Vermont Teddy Bear Factory
Cost: | $$ |
Category: | Daytrips |
About the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory
Visit one of Vermont's most popular family attractions, and take a tour to see where and how our famous bears are made. Besides the fuzzy factory tour, you can help stuff, sew and dress your very own 13 inch bear in the Make a Friend for Life room.
The Factory is open year round except Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day.
Hours:
Bear Shop: open 9 am daily
Tours Daily: visit Store for schedule
Factory Tour Admission:
Adults = $2.00
Kids (12 and under) = FREE
Teddy Bear Cafe:
The Teddy Bear Cafe serves breakfast, lunch and snacks Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. During the summer, the Lake Champlain Chocolates Ice Cream Stand serves decadent ice cream, sundaes, and shakes, which you can enjoy outdoors in our picnic table area.
Bear Costs:
Make a Friend for Life®! Make a 13' Bear for $19.99 plus tax.
Groups of 10 or more, click here for group tour info.
For all other inquiries regarding our Factory Tour, Bear Shop, and Special Events, please call 1-802-985-3001, press 2.
Directions:
From Interstate 89: Take exit 13, proceed south on Route 7 for approximately 6.5 miles. The factory will be on your left.
From Interstate 87: Take exit 20, and drive east on route 149. At Fort Ann, New York, take Route 4 east to Fair Haven, Vermont. Proceed north on Route 22A to Vergennes, Vermont. Turn left onto Route 7, travel north for approximately 16 miles. The factory will be on your right.
From Charlotte Ferry: (The Ferry is open seasonally.) Exit ferry, follow Ferry Road to traffic light. At the light, turn left onto Route 7, travel north. The factory will be on your right.
About the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory:
In 1981, John Sortino was playing with his son Graham and his collection of teddy bears. Surprised to see that every one of his son’s bears wore a tag identifying it as foreign made, Sortino was inspired to bring this American tradition back to its roots by handcrafting bears right here.
One day, a customer gave him a terrific idea. A tourist visiting Burlington wanted a bear, but she wanted it mailed to her home. That gave Sortino the idea to package a teddy bear and add delivery service and other extras to go along with it. The Bear-Gram® concept was born.
Shortly before Valentine’s Day in 1990, the Company took its Bear-Gram concept and unusual marketing strategy to New York City. Advertisements featuring well-known local radio personalities endorsing Bear-Gram gifts were placed on Z-100. The response was immediate and overwhelming. Calls for Bear-Grams flooded the Company’s three telephone lines and within the first two days, the Company reached its sales goal for the entire year!
That same year, The Vermont Teddy Bear Company issued an IPO to help finance the design and construction of a facility specially suited for both teddy bear manufacturing and for showcasing its process from beginning cutting and sewing stages, to stuffing, and final back stitching procedures.
Today, more than 150,000 people a year visit the Vermont Teddy Bear Company to find out how a teddy bear is made from scratch, and to make their own teddy bear in the Make A Friend for Life® Cubhouse or select one already made and dressed in the Bear Shop.
While the Company has experienced tremendous growth and change, the Bear-Gram gift remains constant. Each includes a customized Vermont Teddy Bear dressed to suit a special life event, occasion or holiday, and optional embroidery service. The bear is placed in a colorful gift box complete with air hole and game printed on the inside, and enclosed with a personalized greeting and candy treat.
The Company believes it makes the best bears in the Universe because every bear is lovingly designed, cut, sewn, stuffed, and stitched in Vermont. The Bears are alive with personality and attitude and they help people connect in a fun, personal and meaningful way.
Bear-Gram®:
A Vermont Teddy Bear Company® Bear-Gram® is the creative alternative to flowers. It's a fun, unique gift idea that is guaranteed to last forever.
All Vermont Teddy Bears, are Guaranteed For Life. If anything ever happens to your Bear, you can send it to us here at the factory, and we will nurse him or her back to health at our Bear Hospital.
WEBSITE | ↑ top |
LOCATION | ↑ top |
xx, xx, VT map
Phone: (802) 985-3001
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Info changes frequently. We cannot warrant it. Verify with Vermont Teddy Bear Factory before making the trek. If you find an error, please report it...