Build-A-Bear Workshop Continues Support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Build-A-Bear Workshop^®, the interactive retailer of customized stuffed animals, is honoring the one year anniversary of its relationship with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital^®, one of the world’s premier children’s research centers, by continuing its support of the hospital. Throughout 2012, the company and its Guests will help St. Jude through a number of key initiatives. Beginning today and throughout the month, Guests can add $1 (or more) to their total purchase at Build-A-Bear Workshop stores in the United States and online at buildabear.com^® for St. Jude. In Canada, store locations will be offering purple satin hearts for $1. A special song, titled "Friends Count,” is also available for Guests to download with a $1 donation to St. Jude. Additionally, the "Cause for Celebration” party program introduced one year ago continues to give Guests a way to have fun while making a difference. In the past year, Build-A-Bear Workshop and its Guests have raised more than $330,000 to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

"We are very excited to commemorate our one year anniversary with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by inviting Guests to join us in supporting this worthy cause,” said Maxine Clark, Build-A-Bear Workshop founder and chief executive bear. "At Build-A-Bear Workshop, we focus our charitable efforts on those causes that matter most to our Guests, especially those causes that benefit children. These donations support lifesaving research and cutting-edge medical treatment for the children of St. Jude.”

In March 2011, Build-A-Bear Workshop announced its partnership with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital with the launch of the "Cause for Celebration” Build-A-Party^® program. When Guests choose to have a "Cause for Celebration” party at Build-A-Bear Workshop, they make a donation of $10 to the hospital. For every "Cause for Celebration” party held in Build-A-Bear Workshop stores, the company gives a St. Jude patient a special celebration gift package containing a personalized card from Guests attending the store party and a $10 gift card.

This year, Build-A-Bear Workshop is celebrating its 15^th birthday and 100 million furry friends made. As part of the yearlong celebration, a special "Friends Count” song was performed by Victoria Justice and is available to download when Guests make a $1 donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Visit www.buildabear.com to make a donation and receive a code to be used to download the song at the Bear Tunes Jukebox at www.buildabear.com/music.

Giving back to causes like St. Jude has always been a part of the Build-A-Bear Workshop teddy bear culture of sharing and caring. This year, the ninth annual Huggable Heroes^® program will award $100,000 in prizes to 10 young people who provide extraordinary service in their communities and around the world. As part of the Huggable Heroes celebration this July, the 10 winners will travel to Memphis, Tenn., and take part in a service project with a group of patients at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Build-A-Bear Workshop will be working with St. Jude throughout 2012 to continue the "Friends Count” celebration.

Build-A-Bear Workshop and its associates believe in the teddy bear philosophy of being good people and good bears. Throughout its 15 year history, the company with heart has shared the hug of a teddy bear wherever needed in local communities and abroad. Build-A-Bear Workshop has given Guests a voice in supporting the causes that are important to them like children’s health and wellness, animals, and literacy, and has given more than $30 million through its corporate donations and foundation grant programs to these causes.

About St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Since opening 50 years ago, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has changed the way the world treats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. No family ever pays St. Jude for the care their child receives and, for every child treated here, thousands more have been saved worldwide through St. Jude discoveries. The hospital has played a pivotal role in pushing U.S. pediatric cancer survival rates from 20 to 80 percent overall, and is the first and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. It is also a leader in the research and treatment of blood disorders and infectious diseases in children. St. Jude was founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas, who believed that no child should die in the dawn of life. Join that mission by visiting stjude.org or following us on facebook.com/stjude and twitter.com/stjude.

About Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc.

Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. is the only global company that offers an interactive make-your-own stuffed animal retail-entertainment experience. There are more than 400 Build-A-Bear Workshop stores worldwide, including company-owned stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland, and franchise stores in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, the Middle East, Mexico and South America. Founded in St. Louis in 1997, Build-A-Bear Workshop is the leader in interactive retail. Brands include make-your-own Major League Baseball^® mascot in-stadium locations, and Build-A-Dino^® stores. Build-A-Bear Workshop extends its in-store interactive experience online with its award winning virtual world Web site at bearville.com^™. The company was named to the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For^® list for the fourth year in a row in 2012. Build-A-Bear Workshop (NYSE: BBW) posted total revenue of $394.4 million in fiscal 2011. For more information, call 888.560.BEAR (2327) or visit the company's award-winning Web site at buildabear.com^®.

About the Build-A-Bear Workshop Friends Count Celebration

Throughout 2012, Build-A-Bear Workshop^® is celebrating its 15^th birthday and 100 million furry friends made. To thank Guests for helping the company reach these milestones, Build-A-Bear Workshop is hosting a year-long "Friends Count” celebration. The celebration includes in-store events and charitable activities. The company is also inviting Guests to share and read stories about others who have made furry friends at Build-A-Bear Workshop at the website buildabear.com/stories. For more information and updates on Build-A-Bear Workshop and the year-long "Friends Count” initiative visit buildabear.com^®.

TRADEMARKS

We would like to thank you for your interest in covering our business. As you write your story, we would ask that you use our full name: Build-A-Bear Workshop^® and that when referencing the process of making stuffed animals you use the word "make” not "build.”

Build-A-Bear Workshop is our well-known trade name and our registered trademark of Build-A-Bear Retail Management, Inc. Build-A-Bear Workshop^® should only be used in capital letters to refer to our products and services and should not be used as a verb.