Build-A-Bear Workshop ‘Pay Your Age Day’ Turns Into Nightmare

When it was announced that Build-A-Bear Workshop was doing a 'Pay Your Age Day' today and that any age was eligible, I smelled trouble. Boy, was I right about that.

We broke the news of the one-day event Monday morning on our website. The social media post we shared regarding the special deal has been shared more than 500 times. It's become abundantly clear today that it wasn't just the people of eastern Iowa who were pumped up about this opportunity. Let's begin with video from Coral Ridge Mall in Coralville.

Let's head west to Jordan Creek Shopping Center in West Des Moines. The mall's General Manager told the Des Moines Register he estimated 3,500 people were in line late this morning!

At NorthPark Mall in Davenport, the line stretched from one end of the mall, all the way to the other. NorthPark is no small mall.

It became pretty clear, pretty quickly, that Build-A-Bear Workshop had created a monster. So much so, authorities told them to stop, and not just in the U.S. but in Canada as well. They made this post to their Facebook page just after 10 a.m. Iowa time:

**Urgent Alert: Lines Closed for Pay Your Age Day Event
Per local authorities, we cannot accept additional Guests at our locations due to crowds and safety concerns. We have closed lines in our U.S. and Canada stores. We understand some Guests are disappointed and we will reach out directly as soon as possible.