Frenzy for Merrythought bears
Dedicated fans of the world famous Merrythought teddy bears have been in a buying frenzy since the Shropshire firm closed its doors nearly a month ago. Dedicated fans of the world famous Merrythought teddy bears have been in a buying frenzy since the Shropshire firm closed its doors nearly a month ago. The bears have been flying off the shelves and more than 200 are up for sale on internet auction site eBay. Bears on The Square, in Ironbridge, sold all its stock within two weeks of the announcement that the firm was to stop production, as orders came in from across the world. Bernie Beech, the shop's owner, said: "What stock we had was sold out in days. People were ringing up from across the country and we had e-mails from Australia and America." Read the full story in the Shropshire Star


The bears have been flying off the shelves and more than 200 are up for sale on internet auction site eBay.
Bears on The Square, in Ironbridge, sold all its stock within two weeks of the announcement that the firm was to stop production, as orders came in from across the world.
Bernie Beech, the shop's owner, said: "What stock we had was sold out in days. People were ringing up from across the country and we had e-mails from Australia and America. It gave us a very busy period, although it will have a bad affect on us in the long-term. Merrythought's gollies in particular were a big seller here, especially after they became politically incorrect."
Mr Beech, who checks bear sales on eBay regularly, said he had noticed a huge upturn in the number of Merrythoughts listed on the site. "There were usually about 60 or 70 on there but recently there have been more than 200."
A Merrythought Golly Jack-In-The-Box bear on the site was selling for £100 with more bids still coming in.
Steve Miller is chief executive of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust which runs the Teddy Bear Shop, which is attached to the former factory. He said: "We have seen a significant increase in sales at the shop since the closure."