Build-A-Bear Workshop
Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc is a U.S.-based specialty retailer of customized stuffed animals and related products. The company operates through three segments. Its Direct-to-consumer segment with key revenue, includes the operating activities of corporately-managed locations and other retail delivery operations in the U.S., Canada, China, Denmark, Ireland, and the U.K., including the company's e-commerce sites and temporary stores. The international franchising segment includes the licensing activities of the company's franchise agreements with store locations in Europe, Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and Africa. The commercial segment includes the transactions with other businesses, mainly comprised of licensing the intellectual properties for third-party use and wholesale activities.www.buildabear.com
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Search complete. 6 mentions across 2 episodes found for "Build-A-Bear Workshop".
Sep 29, 2026
Melissa CampanelliHOST
I'm Melissa Campanelli, the co-founder of the Women in Retail Leadership Circle, which is a membership-based community of senior-level women in retail.
Melissa CampanelliHOST
And I'm excited to welcome Cara Meath, who's the Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Build-A-Bear Workshop.
Melissa CampanelliHOST
Gara is a technology leader who sits at the intersection of retail, data, and AI.
Melissa CampanelliHOST
At Build-A-Bear, she leads an enterprise technology strategy and modernization, helping create a more connected data-driven organization while using technology to enhance both the digital and in-store customer experience.
Melissa CampanelliHOST
She's also passionate about practical AI adoption, building high-performing teams, and helping organizations navigate transformation in a way that creates real business value.
Melissa CampanelliHOST
Gara, we're so excited to have you with us.
Joe KeenanHOST
Hello, and welcome to this episode of Total Retail Talks.
Joe KeenanHOST
I'm Joe Keenan, the editor-in-chief of Total Retail, and I'm pleased to be joined today by the CEO of Build-A-Bear Workshop, Chris Hurt.
Joe KeenanHOST
Chris and I are going to talk a little bit about his tenure at Build-A-Bear Workshop, the turnaround that that business has experienced in recent years, and a little bit about some of the exciting things that are to come from Build-A-Bear in the near future.
Joe KeenanHOST
So, Chris, this is a great opportunity to talk with you, and welcome to the show.
Chris HurtGUEST
Yeah, Joe, thank you very much.
17 MINS LATER
Joe KeenanHOST
We have tariffs.
Joe KeenanHOST
So there's all these different external factors that are really outside of your independent control, but you have to operate in that space.
Joe KeenanHOST
So thinking about the future for Build-A-Bear Workshop, how do you try to position the business to thrive in this landscape where each day something potentially different is happening? There's so many different things that can pop up.