they are living up to their name... they are currently the Gap in the mall...
LOL. Outstanding.

they are living up to their name... they are currently the Gap in the mall...I talked to the person in the management kiosk about a month ago about this. They swore they have had no communication with Gap and have no idea what is going on. That is complete BS. I would be SHOCKED if that lease didn't have a provision that said if it was damaged to the point of uninhabitable for XX days the tenant would be let out of the lease. My guess is that Gap is saying it was uninhabitable after the flood and is trying to get Simon or Macy's to pay for damage or trying to get lease concessions (and at this time maybe even lost sales) and Simon and Macy's are saying no, that's why you should have business interruption insurance. It's very sad that cooler heads have not prevailed yet. We could really use that babyGap...

Penn Square Mall is effectively shut down due to a “Build-A-Bear” promotion. Thousands have filled the hallways, all parking spaces are occupied, and even the elevator has a line of around 100 people. (I was there at 10:00 a.m.) None are spending money. Other retailers will lose sales for the day because their shoppers can’t get in.

14752

The things people will do for a sale will never cease to amaze me

The things people will do for a sale will never cease to amaze me

Seriously.

How much is a regular build a bear? I don't plan on buying one but I can pretty much guarantee I'd rather spend that then wait in line for multiple hours. If my only 2 choices were to wait in line for 2 hours with a toddler or buy a bear for $100, my response would be if they wanted cash or check?

Also, they ended up running out of bears so a ton of people wasted a huge part of their & their kids days to stand in a line with no reward.

Seriously.

How much is a regular build a bear? I don't plan on buying one but I can pretty much guarantee I'd rather spend that then wait in line for multiple hours. If my only 2 choices were to wait in line for 2 hours with a toddler or buy a bear for $100, my response would be if they wanted cash or check?

Also, they ended up running out of bears so a ton of people wasted a huge part of their & their kids days to stand in a line with no reward.

I have been informed that the bear is around $30 and the accessories and outfits just make it more expensive. I would hope that the management at PSM never allows this to happen again. I cant imagine working at the build-a-bear today, easily the worst retail day they will ever remember. Meanwhile every other tenant is being negatively impacted by the congestion, its a bad look for every party involved.

Seriously.

How much is a regular build a bear? I don't plan on buying one but I can pretty much guarantee I'd rather spend that then wait in line for multiple hours. If my only 2 choices were to wait in line for 2 hours with a toddler or buy a bear for $100, my response would be if they wanted cash or check?

Also, they ended up running out of bears so a ton of people wasted a huge part of their & their kids days to stand in a line with no reward.

I think what happen was that no one expected the lines to be that long and once they got up there they were committed or already told their kid they were getting a bear. I wonder how many toddlers went home screaming today.

I think what happen was that no one expected the lines to be that long and once they got up there they were committed or already told their kid they were getting a bear. I wonder how many toddlers went home screaming today.

A ton.

This promotion definitely left a lot more people angry than happy. Totally back fired for build-a-bear.

From Facebook:


Build-A-Bear WorkshopLike Page
3 hrs ·
**Urgent Alert: Lines Closed for Pay Your Age Day Event
Per local authorities, we cannot accept additional Guests at our locations due to crowds and safety concerns. We have closed lines in our U.S. and Canada stores. We understand some Guests are disappointed and we will reach out directly as soon as possible

co-worker's daughter waited 4 hours and got one.
Arrived at the mall at 8:30.

she thought they gave out coupon vouchers of $15 for those that didnt get a bear

co-worker's daughter waited 4 hours and got one.
Arrived at the mall at 8:30.

she thought they gave out coupon vouchers of $15 for those that didnt get a bear
Just why

My wife went with our son down here in Dallas/Fort Worth and waited 4 (!!) hours and got one.

I'm glad I was at work :-)

If I had a choice between paying $30 on a regular day or or standing in line for a SINGLE HOUR with a toddler for a FREE bear I’d pay full price every time. And people weren’t doing this for a free anything. They were doing it to save $20 or $25 or whatever. People waited NINE HOURS in some cases. I would pay someone HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS to not have to do this. It blows my mind what people will do for a very few dollars’ savings. Often things they’d NEVER bother doing to earn the money in the first place. People are really, REALLY strange creatures at times.

And I know someone is going to say “some people can’t afford $30 for a toy for their child.” I get that. I lived it at times when I was a child myself. Guess what; no toy. I lived through it. And I still knew that my parents loved me despite the fact that I didn’t get every single thing I ever thought that I wanted.

And by the way if you can’t afford a $30 toy for your child maybe you shouldn’t be burning up an entire day standing in line at the mall.

</old man rant>

If I had a choice between paying $30 on a regular day or or standing in line for a SINGLE HOUR with a toddler for a FREE bear I’d pay full price every time. And people weren’t doing this for a free anything. They were doing it to save $20 or $25 or whatever. People waited NINE HOURS in some cases. I would pay someone HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS to not have to do this. It blows my mind what people will do for a very few dollars’ savings. Often things they’d NEVER bother doing to earn the money in the first place. People are really, REALLY strange creatures at times.

And I know someone is going to say “some people can’t afford $30 for a toy for their child.” I get that. I lived it at times when I was a child myself. Guess what; no toy. I lived through it. And I still knew that my parents loved me despite the fact that I didn’t get every single thing I ever thought that I wanted.

And by the way if you can’t afford a $30 toy for your child maybe you shouldn’t be burning up an entire day standing in line at the mall.

</old man rant>

I agree with just about everything said here. If people have 4 hours to wait at the mall, then they could have easily worked 4 hours and had most of the cost covered, even at minimum wage.

What irritates me most is hearing about parents who were very angry at the company over this. Have they not ever heard of a promotion that “while supplies last” attached to it? Have no idea if build-a-bear included this wording or not. But even if they didn’t, parents should have just used common sense and assumed so. You and/or your child are not entitled to anything, get over it. The society that we live in. Smh.

^^^^^^
Yep. And I notice that a ton of the most over-the-top distraught/angry comments I’m seeing on the news and social media posts etc. are from people who at least LOOK like they could pay $30 for a toy. Ridiculous “you’ve ruined their childhood” sort of stuff. Our culture so enables and even caters to a complete loss of perspective. Airing that sound bite is good TV, but it rewards, normalizes and even encourages really questionable behavior.

The Today show just interviewed the CEO of Build A Bear. She seemed very contrite but also dumbfounded by the attendance, which they clearly didn’t anticipate. She said they were fully staffed and fully stocked, and she only wished the day were longer so that they wouldn’t have disappointed anyone. Obviously I think they’d do it very differently in the future.

But one thing stuck with me; she said this event was intended to make it possible for kids whose parents maybe couldn’t afford a bear to have access to one. I think that’s noble. The problem in my mind is that the people I saw having the biggest fits probably arrived in luxury SUVs. In the future it makes me wonder if Build A Bear could find another way to reach the underserved population, perhaps closing for a day for a specific event for kids on WIC or something like that.

By the way, I think the real victims of all of this mess were the other stores in the mall and their shoppers. At many malls the other stores simply had to shut down operations. Didn’t get your discount bear? What about people who may have driven from the country to buy clothing or housewares ar a gift for grandma only to find they couldn’t get into the store they came to visit, or the employees of said store who didn’t get paid because they were sent home early, or the retailer who lost a sales day?

The whole thing was a ridiculous example of how our priorities and perspective can become warped.

Is the typical price for a Build-a-Bear truly around $30?

I thought it was higher.

i was thinking the same thing... my understanding is that they are typically in the $100-$120 range.

Is the typical price for a Build-a-Bear truly around $30?

I thought it was higher.

that is just for the bear, completely plain and naked. they then sell you all of the accessories. when I took my niece... it ended up being pretty close to $100, and she didn't get that many accessories. they are like $15 for a hat, and $25 for a shirt, etc...

One final thing about lines at Penn Square: I went to Starbucks and found 15 people waiting to order. I got in line, opened the app and placed my order. Five minutes later it was ready. The line hadn’t moved. I guess standing in another line is OK if you’ve got no place to go.

One final thing about lines at Penn Square: I went to Starbucks and found 15 people waiting to order. I got in line, opened the app and placed my order. Five minutes later it was ready. The line hadn’t moved. I guess standing in another line is OK if you’ve got no place to go.

to prove a point to a co-worker the other day, I knew they were going to chick-fil-a and bringing it back to the office. so I went with him... got out of the car once he got in line. went inside, ordered, sat, and ate. then went and got back into the car right after he ordered his food. Some people just like being in line

That business model tho.

Let's buy a ton of cheap bears from china, tear them into pieces, and then charge people (more) to reassemble them. Who's in?

Was the bear promotion just the bear itself was priced at the age of the kid? (i.e. add-ons were extra)

I think it was just for the bear itself, which is why I repeated the $30. Could be wrong though.

Right, but if it was just the bear, then people were going to 'save' $15-20 and then turn around and spend a bunch more. And stand in line for hours for that privilege.

Especially odd since this is all about bringing your kid and having them participate, rather than getting a good deal for a birthday or Christmas present to be given on those particular events.

I wonder the average # of toys per child in those lines. All of my nieces and nephews had hundreds if not thousands, even though they were from very modest households.

But one thing stuck with me; she said this event was intended to make it possible for kids whose parents maybe couldn’t afford a bear to have access to one. I think that’s noble. The problem in my mind is that the people I saw having the biggest fits probably arrived in luxury SUVs. In the future it makes me wonder if Build A Bear could find another way to reach the underserved population, perhaps closing for a day for a specific event for kids on WIC or something like that.


When we took my daughter to see Santa for the first time at the Devon Christmas deal back in 2015, they had build a bear stuff set out for people to have their kids put together bears, which were then collected and given out to needier kids. I don't know if Devon bought all that stuff (if they did, surely not at market price) or if the company donated, or some mix of the two.

I'm pretty sure most of the people waiting in line were stay at home moms looking for something do. Even whining and getting on social media can be a form of "entertainment" for them.

to prove a point to a co-worker the other day, I knew they were going to chick-fil-a and bringing it back to the office. so I went with him... got out of the car once he got in line. went inside, ordered, sat, and ate. then went and got back into the car right after he ordered his food. Some people just like being in line

Well in the summer anyway its not worth waiting in the drive through at chick-fil-a because they don't want to send their workers outside to take orders and payment. When they have two three people outside its like 5 minutes at most.

I hate drive throughs because I hate ordering through a speaker.

Well in the summer anyway its not worth waiting in the drive through at chick-fil-a because they don't want to send their workers outside to take orders and payment. When they have two three people outside its like 5 minutes at most.

I hate drive throughs because I hate ordering through a speaker.

midwest city chick fila has 3 people out side and taking orders this week

to prove a point to a co-worker the other day, I knew they were going to chick-fil-a and bringing it back to the office. so I went with him... got out of the car once he got in line. went inside, ordered, sat, and ate. then went and got back into the car right after he ordered his food. Some people just like being in line

Ha . . . the other day my wife and I stopped by the Braum's at Second and Santa Fe in Edmond. The drive through was wrapped around the building and at least 8 cars deep before you got to the speaker. I went in and there was one person ordering a burger and nobody in line for ice cream. I was in and out before the drive through line moved through 2 cars.

midwest city chick fila has 3 people out side and taking orders this week

The one on 33rd east of Broadway in Edmond does as well . . .

The one on 33rd east of Broadway in Edmond does as well . . .

I don't know a chick-fil-a that doesn't, and if someone finds one saying they "don't want" to do it a quick call/email to corporate will get it corrected really amazingly fast.

it wasn't just in OKC, they ran out of bears everywhere due to the unexpected, overwhelming response.

it wasn't just in OKC, they ran out of bears everywhere due to the unexpected, overwhelming response.

I think Build-A-Bear used the same PR outfit that came up with IHOB.

Well in the summer anyway its not worth waiting in the drive through at chick-fil-a because they don't want to send their workers outside to take orders and payment. When they have two three people outside its like 5 minutes at most.

I hate drive throughs because I hate ordering through a speaker.

"Never go through the drive-through! They always <bleep> you in the drive-through!"

I don't know a chick-fil-a that doesn't, and if someone finds one saying they "don't want" to do it a quick call/email to corporate will get it corrected really amazingly fast.

The Chick-Fil-A at 2nd and Bryant in Edmond recently upgraded their drive thru. They have wrap around shade, heaters, and fan misters for their staff and lots of staff outside directing and pushing orders quick. When you have a limited item menu, it makes getting in and getting through quick.

If I am by myself, I will order ahead on the app, and go in an grab it. It is pretty quick.

As for those questioning those who sit in a drive thru, look at the primary audience of a fast food drive thru...especially at a place like Chick-Fil-A, it is easier to sit in a drive thru if you have children in the back seat who are buckled in and content with a tablet versus going inside.

As for Penn Square Mall, the Chick-Fil-A, like most others, is heavily staffed and can handle a large crowd with consistent service compared to other vendors who run a lunch crew of 2-4 people.

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet. I'm really surprised it took this long. Brookstone is the kind of business that just cannot survive in the age of Amazon.

https://www.cnn.com/videos/cnnmoney/2018/08/03/brookstone-closing-mall-stores.cnnmoney

^

I didn't even realize they were still around.

Any of the "Skymall Catalog" type stores are fun to browse, but really can't compete with Amazon.

Brookstone was always that place you went in to browse, but never to buy. I'm surprised they lasted this long.

The most interesting thing about Brookstone closer is what will move into the space? A Tesla store would be interesting?

Brookstone was always that place you went in to browse, but never to buy. I'm surprised they lasted this long.

Yeah I can't say I've ever bought anything at Brookstone or at Sharper Image. It's more one of those places you go to waste time while waiting for somebody to finish their shopping. For people who do want those niche gadgets, most are going to buy online these days.

Did the Gap close down??

I think I once bought an umbrella from that Brookstone when it started raining when I was in the mall one time. That's the best I can say.

Did the Gap close down??

I actually noticed that they have started remodeling for a fall 2018 opening. Took long enough

The most interesting thing about Brookstone closer is what will move into the space? A Tesla store would be interesting?

I have wondered when Tesla might open a store front here in town. The problem with OKC is that it is so oil and gas heavy. I heard from a friend who works at one of the bigger companies that the feeling was that if you showed up to work in an electric car you were putting your job at risk. It seems kind of silly but I could see where people would feel that way.

I have wondered when Tesla might open a store front here in town. The problem with OKC is that it is so oil and gas heavy. I heard from a friend who works at one of the bigger companies that the feeling was that if you showed up to work in an electric car you were putting your job at risk. It seems kind of silly but I could see where people would feel that way.

Our laws don't allow Tesla's direct-to-consumer model.

All to protect the interests of car dealerships, of course.

sounds like how the liquor laws used do be (and still are in some ways).

Our laws don't allow Tesla's direct-to-consumer model.

All to protect the interests of car dealerships, of course.

uMWmYJOa-BM

Our laws don't allow Tesla's direct-to-consumer model.

All to protect the interests of car dealerships, of course.

Ah yes, the fundamentalist, good ol' boy based, blue ribbon laws. Really need to dump those just like the did the old, stagnant liquor laws.

I just found this on OSCN
http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=483269

Ah yes, the fundamentalist, good ol' boy based, blue ribbon laws. Really need to dump those just like the did the old, stagnant liquor laws.

If you'd take a look at the video I posted above you'd see it has nothing to do with good ol' boys and is not just an Oklahoma thing.

Ah yes, the fundamentalist, good ol' boy based, blue ribbon laws. Really need to dump those just like the did the old, stagnant liquor laws.

You do realize that, in New Jersey, there are counties where there are no malls open on Sundays, right?

For as "liberal" as people think the northeast is they still have some pretty strong blue laws in place. Lime Rock Park cannot run races on Sunday, As of the last time that I was in Boston there was still no alcohol in stores other than package stores. The first time in Boston coming from Austin I was surprised that the Whole Foods by our hotel had no alcohol at all. Smaller towns have even more restrictions.

I just saw a post on Instagram that said Gap has reopened today.

Never too early for Christmas at the mall.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/pennsquare103019a.jpg

UGH.. too early!>. I mean can we at least wait till Nov

Never too early for Christmas at the mall.

https://christmasweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/dashing-through-the-no-grumpy-cat-meme.jpg

man... i was hoping for Easter decorations...

I had not been in there for a while and it is completely leased and jam-packed full of kiosks. There isn't a square inch in there not maxed out.

And of course, it is always quite busy.

Credit to them as malls struggle everywhere.

They should just move Thanksgiving to December 24th. just make one big super holiday. Ssrks like Thanksgiving is just the Chtistmas Dinner dress rehersal.