A brief history of Pokemon Plushes at Build-a-Bear Workshop

The partnership between Build-a-Bear Workshop and Pokemon has added some of the cutest plush toys to date. Here is a look at the partnership thus far and a bit about other places Pokemon plushes can be purchased as well.

According to PokeShopper, the partnership between Pokemon and Build-a-Bear Workshop started in December of 2015 with a Pikachu plush as the debut offering. In 2016, Build-a-Bear Workshop also began to offer an Eevee plush and Charmander plush options.

Then in June of 2017 Build-a-Bear Workshop added a Squirtle plush to the line-up, which left people wondering “Where is the beloved grass type Bulbasaur”? It took until November 2017, after the release of non-starters plushes like Meowth and the original gen Vulpix, for grass types to finally get some love.

Given that Build-a-Bear Workshop offers unique add-ons like clothes and accessories for each new Poke-product, it was most likely due to Bulbasaurs unique shape that it took so long to be released. This can be further speculated because by fall of that same year, when the Pikachu plush, Charmander plush, and Squirtle plush were featured during the 2018 Halloween season, Bulbasaur was gone. Perhaps giving a few more fans another reason to go Trick or Treating as a Pokemon trainer helped soften the blow.

The Latest Pokemon at Build-a-Bear Workshop

The first new offering of 2018 was fan favorite Jigglypuff, available with a plush microphone as an online exclusive plus a cape covered in music notes designed specially for Jigglypuff. It still seems to be available despite not being currently listed with the other Pokemon. So for those having difficulty finding it, it can be found here on their site.

Perhaps they see it as a lower quality product than their other offerings. Its sales may not have done as well as the others and maybe that had to do with advertising where its eyes came across as being a bit too creepy, like this. It’s also important to remember Jigglypuff draws on the faces of those that fall asleep when it sings with a sharpie, and that’s pretty much everyone.

Then, in late 2018, Build-a-Bear Workshop traveled to the Alolan region. The icy Alolan Vulpix is available to build for yourself at Build-a-Bear Workshops across the United States and is the first Pokemon on offer from outside the Kanto region. It comes with a winter cape, a pajama-like outfit and Alolan Vulpix Pokemon card.

However, this online exclusive version is currently the only one out of stock. Alolan Vulpix was soon joined by Piplup who made a splash in October of 2018, as the first true non-gen one Pokemon added to the lineup for those of you who don’t count the Alolan twist Pokemon. It also includes an exclusive card and “Poke Ball Parka”.

The merchandising partnership has skipped several generations of potentially cuddly friends for trainers. Teddiursa, for example, seems to be a match made in merchandising heaven. Fan favorites Skitty, Togepi, Lillipup, and Dedenne could very easily be converted to a plush form, but the possibilities are near endless.

However, with most of the fun of Build-a-Bear Workshop being in … building the bear or character. It may be the fact that many of the Pokemon bundles are only available as online exclusives might be off-putting to some fans.

plushes of many other Pokemon are available through the Pokemon Center

It also does not help that plushes of many other Pokemon are available through the Pokemon Center. This includes Eeveelutions in original, sleepy, and chibi form. And several Pokemon can be found in awesome costumes too. However, these tend to not be removable.

How To Dress Up Plushes From Other Stores

Generally speaking, Build-a-Bear Workshop makes plushes that are between 15 and 18 inches tall. And the Pokemon Center offers around a dozen plushes in that size range. However, trying to pull tiny shirts over the oddly shaped torsos of a few of them might be a tricky process.

That said items like headbands and hair bows, skirts with elastic waistbands, hats, drawstring bags, purses, and other handheld accessories can be used by lots of plushes that are not Build-a-Bear Workshop specific.

Where Can Other Pokemon Plushes Be Found?

The Eerie Delights line at the Pokemon Center was made for Halloween and there is a Holiday Extravaganza line available for Christmas. They also have plushes at the Pokemon Center that are meant to look like snow Pokemon with small little scarves. And there are Kuttari Pokemon plushes which are similar to Disney’s Tsum Tsum.

For those searching for other a dressed up Pikachu plush, this place is a gold mine or at very least a yellow one. Pikachu plush can be found dressing like the bosses of many villainous teams, wearing a number of capes to dress up as other Pokemon, and celebrating a number of events.

The Pokemon Center also has Ditto forms

They also have Ditto forms of eleven other Pokemon available including Shaymin, Whimsicott, Electrode, Lapras, Dragonite, Sableye, Snorlax, Jigglypuff, Clefairy, Charmander, and Pikachu. They also have eight ultra beast plushes.

Additionally, other sites like PokeVault offer items not available on the Pokemon Center website including the extra soft Banpresto and Sekiguchi Pokemon Plushes. It also has Pokemon plushes from Pokemon Center collections of previous years.

That said, most don’t have any sound and the exclusive cards for Build-a-Bear Workshop are pretty cool. What Pokemon would you most like to see at Build-a-Bear Workshop next? Let us know on social media! Sticking with the Alolan theme, I am personally casting my vote for the adorable starter Pokemon Popplio.