Just in time for the holidays: Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW) has unveiled its latest Pokémon plush — Charmander.
The make-your-own plush will be available in stores for $28 on Thursday and part of a $61 online exclusive set that includes a sound chip, Great Ball hoodie, Lucario hoodie and a Build-A-Bear Charmander Pokémon card. The Great Ball hoodie also will be sold in stores for $12.50. Charmander is the third Pokémon character the Overland-based retailer has offered to customers, after Pikachu and Eevee were sold online and in stores.
Pokémon is one of a handful of licensing partnerships the company has embarked on, including lucrative Star Wars and Marvel product lines. Earlier this year, Build-A-Bear unveiled a $28 Wicket the Ewok that sold out within a week and caused the retailer to trend on Facebook for the third time in its history. Last year, it released Avengers bears to coincide with the Marvel movie premiere of “Avengers: Age of Ultron.”
In a fiscal 2015 fourth quarter earnings call with investors, CEO Sharon Price John said Star Wars licensed products were the No. 1 boy business and “significantly contributed” to sales from older consumers for Build-a-Bear. The percentage of total sales from consumers older than age 12 increased from 20 percent in 2014 to 26 percent in 2015, according to the company’s annual reports.
The retailer also is undergoing a strategic review, which began over eight months ago. Build-A-Bear has yet to reveal any details of the review to investors or analysts. Build-A-Bear retained Guggenheim Securities LLC as its financial adviser and Bryan Cave LLP as its legal counsel to assist.
Build-A-Bear reported $1.8 million in profit in its fiscal 2016 third quarter earnings report in October, up from $1.1 million the same period last year. Revenue fell from $85.6 million to $83.7 million.