Speaking of rampant consumerism

My children went to a party today at Build A Bear. (no, I won’t include a link because I don’t want to promote this place). I had never even heard of it until last Monday. We don’t watch commercial TV, and don’t bring advertising flyers to the home. We don't go to the mall to just wander around. We shop for clothes only a few times a year and then it's very fast: into a couple stores, pick up our stuff, leave.

This particular meme has been infecting young girls in our area & 2 of the victims are friends of my daughter. Hence, the birthday party invitation.

Here’s their shtick. You pay an exorbitant amount of $ for an empty bear or other creature. You take it to the machine which stuffs it with fluff. I watched a woman buying one for her mother (presumably for mother’s day) and the salesclerk did a whole routine about stuffing the animal with love, including making the customer yell out loud ‘I love my mom!!!’ I could just imagine the training manual: ‘we’re not just selling a bear, we’re providing an entire bear-buying experience!’

And then, the clerk takes the customer around the store to buy outfits and accessories for your bear. They have everything you could imagine: chinos, swim suits, pajamas, tuxedos & wedding gowns, themed outfits, bikinis, roller skates….. It’s insane. All ‘Made in China’ of course. All look like miniature GAP clothes and accessories. All come with pricetags like regular-prized GAP merchandise. There are little dressing rooms for the bears with 3 way mirrors. It's surreal; adults spending tons of money to dress teddy bears. (Is this yet another sign of the immaturity of this culture?)

As we were part of a party, there were some games & activities but really, the whole thing is about shopping. The party package includes the basic bear for each guest (cost: $15). It comes in 2 colors. If the guest brings extra money, they can ‘upgrade’ to another bear or animal, of which there is a huge selection. So the party starts with the sales/party hostess asking all the kids “did you bring extra money or are you just getting the basic?”

(Guess what? My kids got the basic.)

Then they stuff it and give it a pretend bath and groom it at the grooming table. And then, the shopping starts. If you didn’t bring any extra money to purchase outfits, you get some free ribbons.

(Guess what? My kids got the ribbons.)

They get a birth certificate for their bear & get to take it home in a big cardboard box decorated like a house (one of those ones that closes like cardboard cat carriers). Inside is a goody bag containing stickers and brochures and advertising for more merchandise in the store.

At the end, they get in a circle and recite a pledge about being a good owner to the bear they just created. I thought they might as well be saying “I promise to be a good consumer and to never question the value of what I’m buying. I pledge to return here with all my money and give it all to you in return for over-priced ridiculous items.”

On the way out, the staff tell the kids how much they loved having them & that they hope they’ll all come back soon to buy new outfits for their bears.

BLEH.

But. My kids had fun. They didn’t mind being the only ones to have the basic bears with no clothes. They liked the cardboard box to bring it home in. They want to sew and knit some outfits for their bears.

I had warned them that there might be some pressure to buy stuff but that it was highly overpriced and that we should just stick to the basic item in the party. I brought money just in case it turned out to be a really big deal for the kids, but they were fine – just a bit bored waiting for everyone to finish shopping (the other kids had brought their allowances to spend).

It was an opportunity to talk about our values.