Build-A-Bear Causing Shutdowns

Build-A-Bear’s ongoing ‘Pay Your Age’ promotion has parents flooding malls with their children, waiting in lines worse than Black Friday and causing some malls and the stores to shut down the promotion. The promotion offered customers to get a plush toy for the cost equal to that of the child’s age.

The promotion was to encourage parents to enroll in the Build-a-Bear Bonus Club rewards program and to provide their email and only club reward members could participate in this promotion. This was a new promotion that BAB never attempted before in their 21 years of business and had no limit, causing the drove of parents and children to take over malls with BAB locations.

Nationwide many locations were forced to shut down the promotion due to the overcrowding and lines of people blocking main walkways through malls. The promotion started this morning when malls opened and BAB emailed all the participants of the promotion at 11:30 a.m. EDT saying, “Please be aware: Based on the unprecedented response to our Pay Your Age Day event in our early opening stores, we are experiencing significantly longer than expected lines and large crowds. Local authorities are requiring us to limit the lines and crowds due to safety concerns. We understand this is disappointing, we are working to address the situation, and e will be reaching out to our valued Guests soon”

Many of the BAB locations have had to close operations and end the promotion, prompting members of the rewards club to check their e-mail as they find a solution for customers who were unable to participate. A similar deal is also available for members of the rewards club through the “Count Your Candles” promotion, allowing kids to come in during the month of their birthday to build their Birthday Treat Bear and paying the cost equal to the child’s age.

Most participants we’re shut out of this deal and you can check out the crazy wait lines in the videos above.