Build-a-Bear closes stores over "Pay Your Age" deal
7/12/2018
Parents and kids wait in line for close to an hour at Coral Square mall in Coral Springs, Fla., for the Build-A-Bear Workshop Pay Your Age day event on Thursday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Build-A-Bear Workshop’s “Pay Your Age” promotion proved too popular, including at Toledo’s Franklin Park Mall.
The chain known for its customizable teddy bears and other stuffed toys couldn’t handle the crowds Thursday and had to turn shoppers away. It wrote in a Facebook post it closed lines at its stores in Canada and the U.S. due to overwhelming crowds and safety concerns.
**Urgent Alert:
— Build-A-Bear Workshop (@buildabear) July 12, 2018
Per local authorities, we cannot accept additional Guests at our locations due to crowd safety concerns. We have closed lines in our stores. We understand some Guests are disappointed and we will reach out directly as soon as possible. https://t.co/aSFfPCcfsG pic.twitter.com/WZJ53tOAEH
The offer, which let customers buy a bear and pay their current age with a cap at $29, was also available at its United Kingdom stores.
Customers took to social media to complain afterward. The company said it knew people were disappointed and it would reach out soon.
Toledoans online also expressed their displeasure. Like everywhere else, lines extended well past the store’s front doors.
@13abc this is the Franklin park mall pic.twitter.com/EXSrXBjlWb
— Robert Culbertson Jr (@RobertCulberts2) July 12, 2018
If you are considering going to pay your age thing at Franklin Park Mall in #Toledo , don't. The line is 8+ hours. #FranklinParkMall #PayYourAge #BuildABear
— ⚡Nicole⚡ (@nicolesheart) July 12, 2018