Building memories

There are further considerations to be noted. Hamleys’ listed status means you can’t just add a floor or extend, there’s only limited space.

“It’s always the challenge with bricks and mortar, you only have so much physical space. But this warranted it.’’

That’s one of the key messages from toy retail powerhouse Hamleys, with executives at the company noting the return of shoppers in their droves to the flagship store in London’s Regent Street.

They were talking exclusively to TnP at the opening of the new look Build-A-Bear workshop in the famous store housed in a listed building.

“Tourists are back,” said buyer Karen Dennett, talking as kids queued at the opening to get a close look at the handpicked and designed bears. “Footfall in the West End is back up to pre-Covid times. We’ve also had the Coronation, which helped with that, and our new Westfield store [which opened at the White City, west London shopping centre last year] has really helped.”

Hamleys MD Darshan Mehta concurred: Business is back, the Coronation has really helped too.”

The new Build-A-Bear store should further add business to the retailer.

“The last few years, come Christmas-time there’s always been a queue,” said Dennett, “we’ve had to have a system in place. There was only one stuffing machine to make the bears, so that was the first thing we had to look at.”

There are now two stuffing machines, which should speed up the process, eliminate the queues and pull in more business. But it’s more than just that.

“We wanted more theatre and more of a presence,” Dennett added. “We wanted it to be a real shop within a shop. It’s always been a good thing for us, and it’s a natural evolution. It’s much more impactful, with signage that really shows it’s here.”

It was a natural progression, the idea came easily and once agreed, there was, Dennett noted, “no holding it back”.

Build-A-Bear also adds in-store excitement. “Hamleys is not just a store, it’s a theme park,” said Mehta. “It’s not just about the return per square foot, it’s about bringing to life a child’s imagination.”

“It’s wonderful, it’s very exciting,” said Build-A-Bear chief executive Sharon Price John, over from the US for the launch. “We’ve significantly improved the space, added to the size and given it a new look and feel. It still had our old look and this has really freshened it up.’’

Hamleys CEO Sumeet Yadav added: “We are delighted to unveil our refurbished BuildA-Bear experience at Hamleys Regent Street. At Hamleys, we strive to create unforgettable moments for children and families and working with Build-A-Bear to create a brandnew, updated and immersive retail experience, is another step in that direction. We have worked diligently to bring an enhanced, larger-than-life retail area that will capture the hearts of all who visit and give the opportunity to take home a cherished memory of their family day out at Hamleys.”

Back at the launch, TnP is discussing the current state of play in the market from Hamleys’ perspective, as well as future plans and openings.

On the former, Karen Dennett said: “Construction is doing well, soft toys are doing well. And with Turtles, Transformers and Barbie films coming out, things are looking good. We think Christmas will be strong, we had a good Christmas last year, and stock issues have all been resolved.

“As for cost of living issues, we do have pocket money toys and we go right up to the high end. We’re conscious of it and we try to cover the whole market.”

As for openings, Mehta said: “Westfield is doing well – we’ve got awesome neightbours and the best spot in the mall. We’ve got Milan and Rome stores, we’re looking at more travel retailing. There’s a huge footfall there.”

But, he concluded, there’s no rush. “We’re not a convenience store business, it’s about creating a theme park, we always want to be special.”