Think Customers: The 1to1 Blog

Build-a-Bear’s secret to being a “yes” company is its people. According to Kroll, the retailer hires “smart, fun people who are independent, strategic thinkers.” It’s a strategy that pays off. One customer wrote in about Pamela, the bear builder (what the company calls its associates) who helped her daughter stuff her bear. Later that day Pamela saw the two in Target and said hello, addressing the child – and the bear -- by name. “You can’t train for this,” Kroll said. “You have to hire the right talent.”

Even so, training is integral to creating the Build-a-Bear experience. Emphasizing the “yes” culture, bear builders are trained to do what they think they need to do satisfy the guest, as well as on how to create a “wow” experience. “We’re not selling stuffed toys,” Kroll said. “We’re creating a memory.”

The approach is working. Build-a-Bear has about North American 240 company-owned stores, including several “custom” stores in such places as the San Diego Zoo and Busch Stadium, and franchisees in 16 countries globally. It has branched out to add nine Friends to Be Made stores, which sell soft dolls, and two Build-a-Dino stores. The company has 15 million households in its database, has sold more than 42 million stuffed toys in its nine years is business, and boasts a 50 to 60 percent repeat purchase rate. Not surprisingly, 95 percent of its customers say they are satisfied or very satisfied with the Build-a-Bear experience.