Build-A-Bear Workshop

I never knew what the big deal was about these build a bear places until my sister told me to get my nephew the Captain America costume for his bear for Christmas.
So I went to the store at the Oshawa Centre, and to my surprise, this place is actually kinda fun… for kids of course.
The staff are friendly for the most part, and quick to greet. There’s a difference between saying «hi how are you?» and saying «hi how are you?» with enthusiasm and happiness (even if you have to fake it). Some people are great at it, others are ok and neutral, and some… well, they shouldn’t be in retail or customer service (yet they will write and communicate great customer service skills in their resumes and interviews). The reason I’m spending some time writing about this topic is bc this is a fun happy playful children’s store, and that requires fun enthusiastic happy playful people! I mean, all the yellow walls and colourful teddy bears and costumes should make anyone happy just being in there! (Did I encounter someone at this store who wasn’t happy cheerful? Why yes I did.)
Now about the teddy bears and costumes. A child can choose their bear and see it being made right in the store — kinda cool for a kid to see. But the costumes I think are the best part. I mean, you can make your bear into almost anything… a princess… a soldier… an NHL hockey player with your choice of team… the sky’s the limit here!
I never got to learn how much the bears are, but since I got my nephew one of the costumes, I gotta say… it’s kinda pricey for teddy bear clothes. But I guess in the end, it’s the experience that matters for the kid… and the fun in being able to change their bears from a soldier to a hockey player. It’s kinda like a Barbie-​bear so-​to-​speak.
And because of the amount of costumes available, I almost picked up a second costume for my nephews bear (Toronto Maple Leafs!!), but decided I didn’t want to spend $ 60 on bear clothes. Had my experience been that much more pleasant, maybe I would have spent another $ 30 on a 2^nd costume… who knows.
Overall, it’s perhaps worth it for the kids… the stores are colourful and fun… well organized… and the costumes are the best part.