August 14, 2002 -Gettysburg, Pa, Come September, The Boyds Collection Ltd.® will open its barn doors to Boyds Bear Country™, the World's Most Humongous Teddy Bear Store and Free Museum. A magical and whimsical 120,000 square foot world including some 70,000 bears, hares and other critters, Boyds Bear Country™ sits on 132 acres of pure Gettysburg, Pennsylvania bearscape.
The more than 500,000 guests expected to visit Boyds Bear Country will have exclusive access to Boyds' whimsical traditions in the 5,000 square foot museum. The Boyds museum also includes some of the first teddy bears ever created at Boyds as well as a fascinating history of how company founders, Gary and Justina (Tina) Lowenthal, built one of the world's largest teddy bear companies.
In addition to the free museum, Boyds Bear Country features five stories of intricately planned displays, all stuffed with bears and artifacts, and all designed to make ya' laugh or sigh. Not one detail has been overlooked in this special bearhaven. Open just in time to mark the 100th anniversary of the teddy bear in November 2002, local residents and guests of Boyds Bear Country will celebrate this momentous occasion with beary exciting fanfare.
"Boyds Bear Country™ is a one-of-a-kind entertainment and shopping destination - to say the least," said Jean-André Rougeot, CEO of The Boyds Collection Ltd. ® "We don't do anything on a small scale at Boyds, so you can only dream what a spectacular world Boyds Bear Country™ will be. We can't wait to show off our bears in their very own imaginative environments."
The Grand Opening Celebration
For the official Grand Opening celebration weekend, September 27-29, 2002, Boyds Bear Country will be packed with entertainment and family activities. From a live petting zoo to tethered balloon rides to spin art and live music, you won't want to sit for even a sec'-- except maybe to enjoy some of the scrumptious eats our prized chefs, Rufus, Dufus, Daryl, Sweetie Pie and Willie B. Bacon have cooked up for you.
FOB Jamboree
Coming up on October 19, 2002, Boyds Bear Country™ will host the FOB Jamboree, a special day just for Boyds Collectors Club members. And, it's already sold out... that means we are expecting 2,100 people for that one-day event. Boy, do we have our work cut out for us!
The Boyds Collection Ltd.® is a leading domestic designer, importer and distributor of branded (ouch!), high quality, handcrafted collectibles and other specialty giftware products. Boyds sells its products through a large and diverse network of independent gift and collectibles retailers, high-end department stores, selected catalogue retailers and other electronic and retail channels. Boyds crafts affordably priced, high quality, "Folksy with Attitude" collectibles. The Boyds Collection Ltd.® is based in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and is a publicly traded company (NYSE symbol: FOB).
