Our Mission

?At Build-A-Bear Workshop, our mission is to bring the Teddy Bear to life. An American icon, the Teddy Bear brings to mind warm thoughts about our childhood, about friendship, about trust and comfort, and also about love. Build-A-Bear Workshop embodies those thoughts in how we run our business everyday. Build-A-Bear Workshop. Where Best Friends Are Made Maxine Clark has been Chief Executive Bear of Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. since the company’s inception in 1997 and has served as Chairman of the board of directors since conversion to a corporation in April 2000. From November 1992 until January 1996, Maxine was the President of Payless ShoeSource, Inc. Prior to joining Payless, she spent over 19 years in various divisions of The May Department Stores Company in areas including merchandise development, merchandise planning, merchandise research, marketing and product development. Maxine Clark is one of the true innovators in the retail industry. During her 30-year career, her ability to spot emerging retail and merchandising trends and her insight into the desires of the American consumer have generated growth for retail leaders, including department store, discount and specialty stores. In 1997, she founded Build-A-Bear Workshop, a teddy-bear themed retail-entertainment experience. Today there are more than 370 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide, including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and France, and franchise stores in Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa. Build-A-Bear Workshop extended its in-store interactive experience online in 2007 with the launch of its virtual world at buildabearville.com Build-A-Bear Workshop and Maxine Clark are proud to be recognized in their industry. In 2008 Maxine Clark was named one of The 25 Most Influential People in Retailing by Chain Store Age; in 2006 she was inducted into the Junior Achievement National Business Hall of Fame and received the 2006 Luminary Award for Entrepreneurial Achievement from the Committee of 200. She was named a Customer-Centered Leader in the 2005 Customer First Awards by Fast Company. Maxine was named one of the Wonder Women of Toys by Playthings magazine and Women in Toys, and was also one of the National Finalists in Retail for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2004. In 2005, the National Association of Small Business Investment Companies (NASBIC) made Build-A-Bear Workshop Portfolio Company of the Year, it was named one of the International Council of Shopping Centers Hottest Retailers of 2004 and the Retail Innovator of the Year for 2001 by The National Retail Federation. Maxine is a member of the Board of Directors of The J.C. Penney Company, Inc., where she also serves as Chairman of the Corporate Governance Committee. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of Barnes Jewish Hospital, Washington University in St. Louis and her alma mater, the University of Georgia. She also Chair of Teach for America – St. Louis and a member of the Teach For America National Board. She is also a member of the Committee of 200, a leading organization for women entrepreneurs around the world. In 2006, her first book The Bear Necessities of Business: Building a Company with Heart was published by Wiley.