Build-A-Bear reviews

3.8

59% would recommend to a friend

(1,769 total reviews)

Sharon John

60% approve of CEO

51% positive business outlook

Build-A-Bear has an employee rating of 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 1,769 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Build-A-Bear employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.5 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews
2.0
Oct 11, 2018

Terrible manager alert!!

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The store is fun and colorful, the employees are wonderful and you will make friends with the lower staff.

Cons

If a store manager is being rude or just a total jerk it doesn't matter if you contact your district manager or hr, nobody wants to help, nothing will be done, you will be made to look foolish and the store manager will find out and will punish you. Cuting hours, talking bad about you, putting notes in your locker calling you broken.

1.0
Apr 15, 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

None that I experienced. Their biggest “perk” is free teddy bears. Grow up. Offer employees some real compensation. Also, their “inclusive” statement is only for show. Bad culture!!

Cons

Stuck up, RUDE, management is a joke, accounting department has a clique that is unbelievably uninviting. As a disabled person, I was ridiculed. HR tried to place illegal policies on me solely. It was terrible.

2.0
Oct 16, 2017

Completely depends on environment

Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

High energy environment Team outlook within the store 30% discount and 50% during holidays All managers qualify for benefits - even part time

Cons

I absolutely adored my job as a bear builder, however I began to resent coming to work after being promoted to Associate Manager. The culture has completely changed since Sharon took over and the company has shifted from caring about the customer to caring about what the customer is spending. I was very uncomfortable with how hard corporate wanted us to push to get “one more item” per sale. I understand that a company needs to make money but the way the pressure trickles down from corporate completely negates the fun environment Build a Bear has strived to achieve over the last 20 years. I left because I felt overworked and under appreciated. Nothing I did was good enough unless every customer left with empty pockets.

Viewing 10 - 12 of 1,769 Reviews

Glassdoor has 1,850 Build-A-Bear reviews submitted anonymously by Build-A-Bear employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if Build-A-Bear is right for you.