How I Built This with Guy Raz

Build-A-Bear: Maxine Clark. A Former Shoe Executive Launches a Stuffed Animal Empire

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Fejezetek

  1. — A mom Who Worked for Eleanor Roosevelt 09:18 - The Impromptu Interview That Changed Maxine’s Career 16:00 - Becoming One
  2. — Why She Walked Away From Payless 21:27 - The Beanie Baby Disappointment That Sparked Build-A-Bear 26:14 - Designing the
  3. — Opening Day — and a Line Out the Door 39:53 - Defending the Brand Against Copycats and Lawsuits 45:53 - Scaling to Hundr
  4. — Letting Go: Stepping Down as CEO and Building a Legacy This episode was researched by Rommel Wood and produced by Kerry

Ebben az epizódban

When Maxine Clark left a top job in retail to start a make-your-own stuffed animal store, people thought she’d lost her mind.  Investors doubted it.

Retail experts couldn't understand how it would scale.

But drawing on more than 20 years as a retail executive, Maxine built a massively  successful shopping “experience,”  where kids could stuff, dress and personalize their own stuffed animals.  Today, Build-A-Bear has generated billions in sales, survived the decline of malls, weathered the financial crisis, and become a global brand.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN  How a failed errand—and an offhand comment by a kid–inspired a business plan  How Maxine leveraged two decades of retail experience to launch Build-a-Bear  How Willy Wonka and Walt Disney were early inspirations  How she built a wedge against competitors  How she got through the financial crisis How she knew when to step down as CEO– and how to collaborate with her successor   TIMESTAMPS: 05:52 - A mom Who Worked for Eleanor Roosevelt 09:18 - The Impromptu Interview That Changed Maxine’s Career 16:00 - Becoming One of the Few Female Fortune 500 Executives 18:43 - Why She Walked Away From Payless 21:27 - The Beanie Baby Disappointment That Sparked Build-A-Bear 26:14 - Designing the First Store: “Make it Like Willy Wonka.” 37:53 - Opening Day — and a Line Out the Door 39:53 - Defending the Brand Against Copycats and Lawsuits 45:53 - Scaling to Hundreds of Stores and Going Public 58:25 - Letting Go: Stepping Down as CEO and Building a Legacy This episode was researched by Rommel Wood and produced by Kerry Thompson, with music by Ramtin Arablouei, and edited by Neva Grant.  Follow How I Built This: Instagram → @howibuiltthis X → @HowIBuiltThis Facebook → How I Built This Follow Guy Raz: Instagram → @guy.raz Youtube → guy_raz X → @guyraz Substack → guyraz.substack.com Website → guyraz.com See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

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