This store is an awesome collab between Build-A-Bear and Sanrio! There are currently only three in the country, one in LA, one in NY, and the newest location at Mall of America in Bloomington, MN! At present, the B-A-B located on the 1st floor is under construction for expansion and improvement, so for all your plush friend building needs, there is a temp location on the 2nd floor and this exciting bonus B-A-B on the 3rd floor (along the north side, near the food court) that offers exclusive merch of the Sanrio characters, lots and lots of outfits (including some Mall of America themed ones), as well as "in-person access to online exclusives." When I entered the store with my husband and two friends from out of town, my brain flooded with dopamine, no lie. All the popping pastels and cute characters and fun outfits made me "awww" out loud. We had a lot of fun browsing all the options and I ultimately got a mini beanie Kuromi and a mini drawstring baggie for her (it's sized so your B-A-B's can have their own B-A-Bs... so meta lol). I may have to make another stop in later next time I'm at MoA. My two friends were absolutely delighted they got to visit (they live in Texas), so I'm glad I was able to make their Hello Kitty dreams come true! The two employees that were there that I interacted with had personalities that were perfect for the cutesy store; they absolutely fit right in. They were also friendly and helpful. I read online that you can book parties here, which can be done through Build-A-Bear's website: https://www.buildabear.com/hello-kitty-stores The one thing I'm not sure of at this time is if this is meant as a limited time experience or not? I don't know if it will be a permanent fixture of MoA once the 1st floor B-A-B is done with remodeling. I guess time will tell. But I'd recommend that if you're curious or interested, you should drop in sooner rather than later just in case! read more

Build-A-Bear Workshop - Storefront - Toy Stores Near Me - Bloomington, Minnesota

I'm not a kid, but I was still really excited for this experience. The staff were not welcoming and I felt basically ignored. Really weird, kinda creepy vibes. It was 6 PM on a Sunday, so I'm assuming it's partially attributable to that. The first time I went to a build a bear, I had a really fantastic and fun time that made me want to come back, so I did this as a special treat with my tip money on my only day off for the next two weeks. This honestly might keep me from ever going again. My stuffed animal is still really cute though, so that's a slay. $35 for that is crazy though. read more

My daughter's love build a bear! What's cooler than a place that gives kids a free bear on their birthday? Then they get to handpick any accessories they want to add, name their bear, add sound effects and put in a scented heart? This place is a kids dream come true! They had a promotion for buy one at regular price and get one for only $14. There was a light blue bear my daughter had her eye on but we couldn't find it anywhere. Service was great because the workshop team found it right away in the red bin and took care of us. I think the highlight was the service received when the bears were getting stuffed. It was very interactive and my girls loved watching the bears get stuffed. Highly recommend as a must get to for any parents visiting mall of America. read more

Build-A-Bear Workshop - Getting a new bear for my daughters! - Toy Stores Near Me - Bloomington, Minnesota

now who doesn't love build-a-bear? My daughter loves coming here and getting a new bear to dress up. The prices can be a little high but you are coming for more of the experience rather than just buying a bear. The staff is always friendly and they do have some fun outfits to choose from. I highly recommend this location. read more

Five stars for having some hard to find items in stock. If you are at Mall of America and are a BAB fan it is worth a look.

We stopped in for the first time to get a bowser for my youngest son. They have a lot going on in that store. I understand that the experience for kids is really fun even if I little weird. They keep trying to get you to upgrade your "bear" with sounds heartbeats clothes and accessories. The sheer number of accessories and combinations is impressive. However it's a little excessive. They sell you a bear then a sound maker to make whatever sound you want then a smell maker then a heartbeat then clothes then accessories "hat,guitar,wand,clothes,whatever" then you create a birth certificate then you wait in line for the rando that jumped the line and couldn't pay for their purchase due to card declines. read more

Wow I guess I haven't stop by a build an ear shop for years, kids are grown up now talk about choices they had tons of choices lots of star wars they were really busy read more

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My children were so excited to build their own stuffed animal. This is their first time doing something like this. The staff here were every unprofessional and rude. To snap at my child because they squealed in excitement is disgusting. Don't work at a business that's meant for children to be happy and have fun. This place need to retrain their staff or replace them with a professional employee who understand children get excited. I normally would have said something to the employees but didn't want to risk having to leave the store and lose the beautiful smiles of joy on my child's face. If could give 0 stars I would. read more

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6 cashiers, 1 employee randomly "sweeping", 1 employee stuff bears. 45 minute wait to stuff bears.

This review is for the pay your age day event. What a nightmare... took the kiddo there only to be told the line is close. Got a 15 dollar off coupon for next visit? What a joke. Super bummed and annoyed and unsatisfied. What happen to the pay your age for the bear then building it at a later date as mention on the website? Super great idea build a bear workshop but you where unable to "deliver". Now im going to go deal with my bummed out kiddo. read more

Come on people. Get a little help only two employees stuffing animals and lines are out the door!!!!! Ridiculous!!!!! read more

Great place to bring kids young or old... Today we are here to help our 2-year-old nephew make his first bear, but we've been here a few times with each of our kids (now 12 and 14). The staff does a tremendous job with the kids... Such a great experience! Don't forget to grab an outfit for your bear too! read more

Build-A-Bear Workshop - Toy Stores Near Me - Bloomington, Minnesota

This is a great Build a Bear (or in our case, unicorn) shop. Is never seen a BaB kiosk, so I was skeptical, but they had a wide selection of animals to stuff and outfits to dress them in. Even lots of shoes, bags and accessories. The girl that helped up was super nice and helpful as my daughter filled her toy with fluff. I was a little sad we didn't get a birth certificate, but maybe they don't do that anymore? read more

This is an amazing place to do a kids birthday party! You really just pay for the price of the bear to get a special guide who helps the kiddos select a bear, stuff them, and incorporates a few other activities to keep the kids entertained the whole time. The birthday child also gets a special little birthday cupcake stuffed thing. Even on a crazy Saturday we had our own little space! read more

I live out of state but wanted to send a teddy to a very dear friend hospitilized near the Mall of America. I called and spoke with a wonderful young man named Jason Bull. Told him what I wanted and that I wanted them to send it overnight to the hospital. At that point I discovered that they do not accept credit cards via the telephone. I would have to go to my local Build a Bear and get a gift card. When I said that I couldn't because I was at work Jason found a way to make it work. The company empowered Jason to take an extra step to make this sale. The teddy was delivered, in his scrubs, the very next day. I am so impressed....Customer Service like this just does not exist much anymore... read more

Oh my gosh!!!! Bear-galore!!! We came during a 2/$35 sale so it was PACKED with munchkins! The store remained clean somehow, the staff was super upbeat (amazingly) and the overall experience of "building a bear" was pleasant. Although there was a sale, we still wound up spending $150 through very strategic "up sale" methods. Of course, each bear needs a voice ($4-11), and an outfit ($10-20), a box or bag ($5-20), a friend (another $5-10), a spare outfit (another $10-20) and let's not forget to by a discounted $10 gift card for all of the kids you know ($5/each). Wooh!!!! Each bear comes with a birth certificate and online registration (lose it, a good Samaritan MAY know to drop it off at a local build a bear and you get it back ). read more

Build-A-Bear Workshop - Meet Silver. - Toy Stores Near Me - Bloomington, Minnesota

It's Build A Bear. How can you not like it? I love Build A Bear and I always feel such a sense of wonderment and joy whenever entering any of their many stores. The staff here really seems to be trained to handle and converse with children rather than teens and adults, which is completely understandable. However, my sister and I (we were visiting together) were helped by a very persistent staff member while we were picking our bears. She could have simply told us that there was a $25 sale and let us be but she would not leave us alone. I wanted to shop peacefully but she made it her job to try and pick our bears for us and decide what we wanted. It made me very anxious and overwhelmed and I just wanted to grab my bears and leave. I ended up leaving with two bears and my sister left with one. She hadn't planned on buying anything and I had only planned on buying one (as my household is pretty small and I just don't have room for two) but the worker was incredibly persistent and we just wanted to leave. I do enjoy my Bowser and stegosaurus quite a bit but my experience, as well as my sister's, would have been much nicer if this staff member had not approached us at all. It makes me sad because we only get to visit build a Bear every few years and our experience was very much tainted, as well as our wallets. :( read more

There are 15ppl in line to stuff there bears and they only have 2 ppl working the line I am sorry but it is'spring break for the kids what happened to scheduling more people to work when you are busy . read more

I see others have also posted about the rude behavior of the Bloomington Build A Bear employees. I have 5 children. I have been to many Build A Bear locations throughout the country. It is always a fun experience for children and parents. I expected the same reliable experience at Mall of America. It was my eleven year old daughters birthday. The clerk knew this. However she was rude to my child. She was not "fun" or "friendly". In fact she said " Why are you here today? Tomorrow is pay your age day, and you would save tons of money." When we dressed our bear and stood in line to pay, she moved from one register she was working to ours. She rang up our items and it seemed about $25 too high. I told her this. She replied " Well you bought a ton of stuff including the scent and heartbeat." I was taken aback and my daughter looked distressed so we left the store to continue our plans When I got home and looked at the reciept- the clerk charged me twice for the bear and also another person's name was listed on my receipt for Build A Bear Rewards and Bear ownership? I have no idea how this happened. My credit card info name was correct. I have now tried calling the Bloomington store and their phones are dead for over an hour. grrrrrr read more

I have mixed feelings on my last trip here. It was for my little brothers 8th birthday and his first time ever at build a bear. The worker who stuffed the animal he had picked was not very friendly. I had told her it was his birthday and all she did was give him a special birthday heart for his animal. I wasn't expecting much but she didn't even tell him happy birthday! While the young lady at the counter was much nicer and energetic. She was very friendly and was talking a lot to my little brother and getting him excited to bring his new bear home. I think this location could be great if all the staff could be like her! sadly didn't catch her name read more

went there to let my little sister make a build a bear as she's canadian, the mall went into lockdown due to an active shooter situation and the staff was amazing. they were all very calm and made sure we were all okay, gave the kids something to do, gave us free bears, kids got little party hats. they made the best of a terrifying situation! read more

If you have a youngin in the family be sure to take them to build a bear workshop (that is, if they haven't drug you there already) Everyone I know that has brought their child there LOVES the experience. Not only can they pick out the animal they want stuffed but they can pick out clothing and acceseries. Good for boys and girls alike. It's an experience that will stay with your child long after the visit. read more

Was in the store buying a bear for my nephew. The woman stuffing was very rude and disrespectful. I will not be coming here again .

There are signs everywhere that state build/decorate your own cupcake. When we stood in the horribly long line and finally got to the front, they said they weren't doing cupcakes today. Extremely disappointing for my 3 kids since that's the main thing advertised all over the store and mall. Maybe tell people BEFORE they wait in the long lines. read more

This location doesn't even accept their own coupons even though there's no mention of excluded locations, etc. Quite a wait just to stuff a bear when there's nobody else waiting in "line" and lacking in customer service. They probably only get business because of the BAB name and being situated in a high tourist mall. I will never go again and do not recommend going to this location! TOTAL RIP OFF read more