ST. LOUIS -- Sept. 29, 2005 -- Build-A-Bear Workshop®, Where Best Friends Are Made®, is teaming up with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind Sesame Street®, to offer their Guests an opportunity to make their very own Cookie Monster plush friend. Make-your-own Cookie Monster is the second in series of furry friends from Sesame Street that will be available in all Build-A-Bear Workshop stores in the U.S. and Canada and on the company's website at www.buildabear.com starting October 7.

The 19-inch Cookie Monster friend will be available for $20 in the U.S. and $30 in Canada. In addition, an exclusive 4 message Cookie Monster sound chip can be added for $5 in the U.S. and for $8 in Canada.

Last year, Build-A-Bear Workshop offered Guests make-your-own Elmo, which was the first Sesame Street product offered at Build-A-Bear Workshop. Now Guests will have the opportunity to make their own Cookie Monster. "We are thrilled to be partnering with Sesame Workshop to offer Guests the chance to make their own Cookie Monster. We received many emails from Guests who loved personalizing their own Elmo and we are looking forward to offering Guests another great Sesame Street product," said Maxine Clark, Founder and Chief Executive Bear of Build-A-Bear Workshop.

"Sesame Workshop is committed to making a meaningful difference in the lives of children by developing innovative and engaging programs and products," said Maura Regan, Sesame Workshop Vice President and General Manager of Global Licensing. "We're pleased to work with companies like Build-A-Bear Workshop to help foster creativity, imagination, and play with young children."

Guests who purchase make-your-own Cookie Monster will have the opportunity to go through the same bear-making stations they are accustomed to in order to make their stuffed animal truly unique. Guests will get to choose their Cookie Monster, stuff it just right, and add personality with hundreds of outfits and accessories. The company is also known for the memorable heart ceremony that takes place during the bear-making process. This station allows Guests to choose a red satin heart, make a special wish and place it safely inside their stuffed animal.

As part of the product launch, on November 2 the biggest Build-A-Bear Workshop store in the world, located in Manhattan on 5th Avenue at 46th will host a walkaround Cookie Monster appearance in celebration of Cookie Monster's birthday.

Sesame Workshop is a nonprofit educational organization making a meaningful difference in children's lives around the world. Founded in 1968, the Workshop changed television forever with the legendary Sesame Street®. Today, the Workshop continues to innovate on behalf of children in 120 countries, using its proprietary research methodology to ensure its programs and products are engaging and enriching. Sesame Workshop is behind award-winning programs like Dragon Tales and Sagwa, The Chinese Siamese Cat and ground breaking multi-media productions in South Africa, Egypt and Russia. These are among many Workshop endeavors recognized for their deep understanding of children's developmental needs and the most effective ways to address them. As a nonprofit, Sesame Workshop puts the proceeds it receives from sales of Sesame Street, Dragon Tales and Sagwa products right back into its educational projects for children around the world. Find the Workshop online at www.sesameworkshop.org.

Build-A-Bear Workshop, Inc. (NYSE:BBW), with fiscal 2004 total revenue of $302 million, is the only national company that offers Guests an interactive make-your-own- stuffed animal retail-entertainment experience. The first store opened in St. Louis in 1997; the company currently operates over 190 stores in the United States and Canada. With the opening of its store in Sheffield, England, in the fall of 2003 and the addition of international stores in Japan, Denmark, Australia, South Korea and France, Build-A-Bear Workshop® has become the global leader in the teddy bear business. In November 2004, the company opened two friends 2B made® stores, the newest concept based on the doll-making experience. For more information about the company and its products, call 888.560.BEAR (2327) or visit the company's award-winning web site at www.buildabear.com.