Vermont Teddy Bear Company (Shelburne, VT) – May 2015

PART THREE (5 May 2015):  VERMONT TEDDY BEAR COMPANY

I first heard Vermont Teddy Bear being advertised on the radio back in 1986 when it was a prize given away on PYX-106 radio.  I even ordered one for a girl I liked in 1994 (I had to order the “business bear,” as they was the closest they had to one working on the computer, which was how we met).  After that, it pretty much slipped my mind, and it never occurred to me I could do a factory tour.  If it had, Lee and I would’ve probably stopped by when we did our trek to the Ben & Jerry’s Factory in 2006.  But when I was checking out things to do in the area for this trip, I saw this and decided it looked like a fun thing to do.

The company was founded in 1983, and later moved to the colorful barn location here in Shelburne.  It wasn’t too far from the Shelburne Museum (which I’d been to during high school field trips).  While I recalled passing Shelburne Museum during my 2006 visit to the region, I don’t recall seeing the sign for Vermont Teddy Bear.  Perhaps we were simply talking and I missed the sign?

The tour takes under 30 minutes, and gives the information of how the fabric is cut and assembled on site.  There didn’t seem to be much production currently going on, but this was also the “slow” period of the year.  I figured since they have a bunch already in stock, so they’d just need to build ones to replenish stock as the bears were being ordered.

We were given a bear-shaped piece of fabric (roughly about the size of our hand) to wear as part of the tour swag.  There was a slit on the “head” of the bear, so it fit over the buttons we’d been given.  So if you seeing something that looks like a brown stain on my shirt in the pictures, you know now what it was.

We were told us how authenticity of the bears are maintained by the five points of articulation they have (hips, shoulders, and neck), and the “Born in Vermont” written on the eyes.  Part of the design of the bears includes the way the pieces are assembled so they can’t be pulled apart by young hands (so no chance of a baby plucking out a bear’s eye and swallowing it).  Our tour guide, Matt, didn’t miss any bear-related puns along the way, which added a level of fun to the experience.

From having ordered one previously, I already knew about how the “Bear-Gram” (when a bear is mail-ordered and shipped to someone) comes in a box with an “air hole” so the bear could breathe.  The box also had notations about which side was “up,” so the bear wouldn’t be transported on its head.  A map on the wall during the tour showed some of the places where they were shipped to.

I already knew from hearing past information the bears would be repaired at this location, but it was amusing to see some of the levels of wounds these bears had sustained.  I knew I’d see a victim of a dog attack, but I didn’t expect to see a bear which had been used as an oven-mitt (with grill marks burned into the back) or one that had tangled with a lawnmower.

As long as they were able to authenticate the bear came from Vermont Teddy Bear, they’d repair or replace the bear.  And all the bears in post-op got a honey IV drip.

My father asked a good question about the assembly.  As we’d been told on the tour everything was made in the US, he wanted to know where the stuff came from.  Our tour guide let us know the stuffing was made of recycled material, and was shipped from the Detroit-area.  That was nice to know that 100% of the bear was US-made.  There was a display showing the stuffing with a sky-diving bear in it, and of course I was going to play with it to turn it into the wind-tunnel.

All the bears were customizable.  Once you decided what color you wanted, then you get accessories for the theme you choice.  Examples of these were in the gift shop, like a snowboarder, firefighter, “Orange Is the New Bear,” and zombie.

For the younger crowd, there’s an area where guests could construct their own bear from the various components available.  There were bins of various arms, legs, and heads, which Dad and I played around with.

I did consider actually doing the build-a-bear workshop to make my own, so I could get a birth certificate for it.  The main reason I didn’t was because it wasn’t something I needed, nor did I have anyone to give it to after.  Also, I would’ve wanted my bear to have two heads.  So I filled out one of the birth certificates to honor my favorite musician King Diamond.  Figured that was twisted enough for me.

On a side room, which wasn’t part of the tour, was a section about their sister-company which does the PajamaGram.  Nothing kinky here, just you can order matching PJ’s for the entire family or a particular person.  The PJ’s were just hanging on a rack, and not as fun as the teddy bears in their display.

Outside there’s a couple places for photo opportunities, and some easy chairs to lounge in (to get a nice view of the Shelburne Airport).  This was a nice roadside stop, and I was glad we were able to do so.  It was fun.  I wished I’d seen this on my earlier trip when I could’ve shared it with someone special.  Perhaps that will be a reason to make a return trip, or place an order soon.

For more information on the places visited or mentioned:

Vermont Teddy Bear Company:  http://www.vermontteddybear.com/

Shelburne (VT):  http://www.shelburnevt.org/

Shelburne Museum:  https://shelburnemuseum.org/

PajamaGram: http://www.pajamagram.com/

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