People Share Bizarre Build-A-Bear Stories

Posted by Redditor u/namenerd77:

Earlier today, I went to a birthday party for my daughter's (6) friend from school. The party happened at Build-A-Bear, but employees did not run it. We ate cake and pizza in the food court. Then, we went to Build-A-Bear to make bears, and finally returned to my friend's house for the rest of the party.

The invitation stated each child, about eight total, would make a bear. I assumed they would take them home, just like at another Build-A-Bear party I attended. My husband and I put in about $30; these things can cost a lot.

We reached the store. The kids excitedly chose their animals and accessories. I don't know if parents set a limit, but I made my daughter choose just a standard dog with a shirt, which half the parents did. After leaving the store, my friend's mom announced the kids had to give all their animals to her daughter. The kids got upset and angry. They handed over their animals disappointingly, and my friend was not kind about it. One little boy refused and ripped the animal from his hands. I should have spoken up, but I did not. Other parents looked quite confused.

We got back to my friend's house. My kids watched my friend play with her new animals. I left with my daughter quickly. In the car, she started crying. Feeling bad, we went to Build-A-Bear and bought her a new one.

This afternoon at school pickup, another parent and I talked with the party's mom. The chat was short, but I will try to show it here. The mom's fake name is Karen.

Insert awkward small talk here

Karen: ... I hope the girls enjoyed the party the other day. I know my daughter had fun.
Other mom: Haha, yes. I was actually wondering about the whole thing with my daughter getting all the bears. The kids seemed pretty upset after.
Karen: Oh yes, we wanted my daughter to have a special animal decorated by each of her friends.
Me: Oh, okay. I wondered why the kids could not keep their bears. I even put some money in, assuming the bears would go to the kids.
Karen: I did not have enough money for each guest to make their own; that would cost a lot! If you want your money back, I can try to get it for you. I do not see the problem though.
Me: Okay, the kids had to give away their new creations, so they will be upset. I also do not see why your daughter needs all those animals.

Karen did not reply and left immediately. She likely felt slighted.

What bugs me is she claimed she lacked money for all the kids to get one, yet she had enough for her daughter to get eight bears. This logic fails.

From Redditor u/MistressFreyjaX:

During an early build-a-bear project, I placed an urn with my father's ashes, who died of cancer, into the bear. I did not know what to say, and my manager was off. They were very kind, and I finished the job for them (reed teddy, if I remember right). They also had recorded his voice, which I put into the teddy.

Twenty minutes later, my manager returned. I told her what happened and how I managed it. Within months, the store policy stated, "no deceased remains."

I am happy I could do that for them. They dressed the bear like him. They planned to place it on the mantle for the family and grandchildren to touch and hear him.

Posted by Redditor u/queenkatz:

I never had anything that wild. Some people put teeth into bears (which is bad), and a girl put her dead dog's fur into a bear.

A young kid recorded a voice of him screaming, "I will kill you."

From Redditor u/ManOfMilk69:

My mom took my niece and nephew. They built their bears, loading up on accessories—the whole set. Employees did a great job. They told my mom they could return any time during their lives to wash the bears.

After about a year, they started cuddling the bears nightly, and they got a little dirty. So, my sister loaded the kids up. They drove across town to the sketchy mall with the Build-A-Bear. They walked a long way. (Keep in mind these are very young kids; loading them up, handling mood swings, everything happened during this trip.) Finally, at Build-A-Bear, my sister pulled out the lifetime wash certificate from her purse, next to other important papers she keeps, and gave it to the employee.

The employee gave her a strange look and said, "okay." They took the bears to the "washing station," which is a large fake prop cartoon sink filled with fake bubbles and stuffing to look like a bubble bath. The employee swirled the bears in this fake sink and then gave them back to my sister. "All clean."

From Redditor u/Trevor-On-Reddit:

I was not an employee, but I was there for this story. I got a Build-A-Bear for my friend's birthday. I planned to fill it with inside jokes and a few light, inappropriate jokes. A guy with a bear that looked like he thought about it was in front of me. I stood behind him when he recorded. He was nice and calm, then he grabbed the mic. I thought he would say something nice because he told the worker it was for his girlfriend. Here is how this guy began his recording:

"Hey there you fat b**ch! I know you’re f**king with Reburto you f**king s**nk! You f**king... you f**king COW!"

He screamed this in a store full of young children. The employee did not stop him. I assume he feared ripping his throat out if he intervened. Parents covered their children's ears. The guy yelled for maybe a minute, but it felt like forever.

After sewing his voice box into the bear, he skipped out of the store happy. I know why he did it. He planned a date with her and then gave her the bear to crush her world. But this guy yelled at full volume. I kept quiet with a dirty joke so the kids behind me did not hear. Everyone wanted to kill him, but they were too scared to stop him. It was not really weird; everyone was speechless in that Build-A-Bear.

Redditor u/polkadotcroc:

I never had weird guest experiences. I only had weird experiences with the management.

I got fired because I refused to stand outside the store and dance. We were on the mall's lower level. The manager told me to make eye contact with children on the second level. He told me to get them to throw a tantrum so the parent would bring them in. I was a good employee; the job was fun otherwise, but I was glad to leave. That manager lived for that job and made the store very uncomfortable.

Posted by Redditor u/shyfather:

I started working at Build-A-Bear about two months after. I got hired right after the big Teddy Bear day sale. This was my first big sale with the company. I worked 6 pm to 3 am, then the next day early morning until the afternoon. I did not mind much because I had nothing better to do and wanted the holiday pay. Our Black Friday sales look decent. Usually, it is a $5 to $8 bear, then 50% off or buy one get one for $5 on certain bears.

The brand new or most popular items were usually excluded. This season, Pokemon, Star Wars, and Paw Patrol were excluded. Every child wanted Paw Patrol characters. I think this happened around the time I started working, but I am not sure.

After a few hours of steady crowds around 10 pm, people swamped us. I got stuck on the stuffer, filling bears for the long line of families. Most people were nice. People get excited about a 35 stuffed animal for half off; that puts them in a good mood. I stuffed bears for some kids, talking to them about their favorite school activities, shows, and so on. Their mom pointed behind me to a woman (EP) changing the sale signs from a generic cat to Paw Patrol stuffed animals. I thanked her for the tip. I asked them to wait a second while I handled it because we were busy and I was the closest staff member.

She finished switching the signs and took two characters. I greeted her and spoke to her like any other customer. We followed a script for customer talk a few years ago, so much sounds similar.

ME: Hi Ma'am! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. Paw Patrol is excluded from the sale, but we have other cute dogs right next to them.
EP: The sign says 50% off. Are you saying I'm a liar?
ME: I saw that and that is why I walked over. I need to switch it back; someone must have changed it while we were distracted. I wanted to warn you before the register. I am sorry for the trouble.
EP: Is the customer always right? Are you stupid?
Me: (Staying calm) I'm sorry, Ma'am. Our company has strict pricing. The cash register won't override sales over 35%. Even if that was the policy, we could not ring it up.
EP: (Steps closer, trying to scare me) Who are you to tell me this?
ME: (Starting to fear) I am just an associate. My managers are at the register. Wait a few minutes, and I can close my section and get one for you. I would be happy to.
EP: SHUT UP! (Gets right in my face)
ME: (Jumps back and steps away)
EP: (Raises her fist at me)
ME: I apologize; that is just our policy. (I was starting to cry.)
EP: (Yelling the same things, I don't know if she was loud. I was having a panic attack.)

A manager stood near me. She stepped between us. She asked what happened, and I explained. I saw a woman switching signs, then she threatened to assault me. The EP tried to fight it. While she screamed and tried to get close to intimidate me, my manager sent me to lunch to hide in the back until things were handled. This took three to five minutes.

I hid in the back for about thirty minutes. Then I walked out. The store quieted down a bit. My managers told me what happened after I left.

They threatened to call security. Since she held up the store and people were leaving, they gave her a $5 off card. That is less saving than anything on sale. They told her to leave or security would arrive. She kept insulting my glasses. This is weird because I am short and slightly fat; it is easier to insult simple things.

From Redditor u/GMHGeorge:

An employee told me a lady brought in her pet monkey at the mall near me. She treated the monkey like her child and used it as a clothing store for it. She tried to get the local school district to let the monkey attend school, but she failed.

Posted by Redditor u/rgh_eightyeight:

Ten years passed since I worked at Build-A-Bear Copenhagen. The strangest thing I did involved hosting a stag party for a group of big, tattooed, semi-drunk men.

I worked near the exit of an amusement park, so we stayed open late. Mostly tourists came in; few children showed up at that hour. A group of guys entered, and the groom picked a teddy bear for his future wife. His friend asked me to do a heart ceremony to make him sing and dance.

Weird but fun.

From Redditor u/Hopefulkitty:

I watched a teenage girl make a bear dressed like her boyfriend while he was present. She tried hard to look interested, but she failed. This is teenage love.

Middle-aged women visit every time something new releases. They collect these items, but they are always strange people.

Posted by Redditor u/whifferson:

I made a Snorlax. When you press his hand, Alex Jones’ voice plays: “I’ll beat your goddamn a** you son of a b*tch..."

This is the best thing I have ever spent money on.

From Redditor u/Twilightluna187:

My friends and I, thirteen of us, spent money on a $40 bear that read "End my suffering." Its name is Danny Stuffito. It is a pink teddy bear wearing a Luigi costume. During the voice message recording, all employees looked at us with a very awkward expression. It was awesome.

From Redditor u/Cabtalk:

A Native family wanted to place a real bear tooth inside the bear for a newborn. I checked the tooth's sharpness to make sure it would not puncture the fabric.

From Redditor u/evanstravers:

My girlfriend and her grad school friends made a bear named Catastrophe Bear. He said, “Everything is awful.”