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Toolkit for Collectors
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www.beanwatcher.com
Bean Watcher
News and Reports for Beanbag Collectors!
This site exists for your enjoyment. My goal is to make your beanbag collecting experience more enjoyable. I focus on Ty products
-- Beanie Babies, Beanie Buddies, Beanie Boppers, and more. I do not receive any financial compensations whatsoever --
I prepare it because of the joy that it brings to me and others. I hope you'll enjoy the news, photographs, and articles that you see.
So grab a beverage, sit back, and enjoy the read! ~ Bean Watcher
Worldwide News and Reports
September 2006 Archives
Today is Patriot Day in the USA
In remembrance to those who
died five years ago on September 11, 2001
If there are any updates, I'll post them
after I return home from work.
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Still Hunting for Hamley and William?
Click here to check on the availability of both Hamley and William
Click here to check for Hamley
Click here to check for William
To check local times throughout the world
* * * In Hand Pictures of Roger and Mary, Vedes Exclusives * * *
from Sabine in Germany
For more information about this German pair,
you may contact Sabine by email -- click here.
* * * Harrods' 2006 Invitation * * *
September 30: The October 2006 Beanie Baby of the Month
 An anonymous reader shares a picture of the unannounced October 2006 Beanie Baby of the Month (BBOTM). What can it be? This black-colored bear clearly has a Halloween theme. It has a jack-o-lantern on top of its head, a bright orange button nose, and black and orange trunks. The button fastened on its chest clearly shows that it is a BBOTM style. To see its picture, click here.
September 30: Paul's Pictures of Nigel
 Paul from the UK shares his in-hand pictures of Nigel the bear. His pictures include views of this Beales exclusive Beanie Baby, the embroidery on its foot, its hang tag, and a group shot of his treasure trove of Nigels! To see his pictures, click on the links below.
Paul's Pictures of Nigel
 Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your pictures with us!
September 30: From the Email Bag -- Potpourri
 Daniel from Maryland, webmaster of Beanie Universe, shares the following news of re-introductions in the Pluffies line. Daniel writes:
Ty has moved the Beary Merry and Candy Cane Pluffies from the Retired list to the Current List! He is doing the same thing he did with Plumpkin! Just thought I would make you aware of this.
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing the news with us! Beary Merry and Candy Cane both retired on December 29, 2005. As of yesterday, both styles were silently re-introduced! Paul and Ian from the UK share the news that the UK-based store, Heroes-Shop.com, is selling the gold-thread version of Jemima Puddle-duck, Mr. Tod, and Tom Kitten at £5.99 (GBP) each. Please note that if you order from this store, the beanies are expected to be available in early November. To place an online order, click here to begin. Bean Watcher comment: As I reported previously, a number of collectors living outside of the UK reported slow shipping times. The Heroes Shop apparently shipped the first Beatrix Potter sets by surface mail. So, if you are in a rush to receive your beanies, please contact the shop first to check on its method of shipment. You can then decide whether or not to buy from them. A reader from California has his say about Beales' shipping costs to the USA for Nigel the bear. He writes:
The cost of the bear is £ 5.99 + Postage and Packing £ 7.00 + £ 3.50 for insurance, making this a total of £16.49p. This is the price you pay for each bear, i.e., so 2 bears would cost £ 32.98p. Wow that is kind of high, about $ 31.00 per bear. I just can't understand why the shipping is so high from the stores in the UK. Beales, Hamleys, Harrods, etc. It does not cost that much to ship from the UK.
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I agree that the shipping costs are high. But then again, international shipping is typically expensive. I plan to post an article on shipping costs in a future column.
September 29: Latest Ask Ty Response Posted
 The latest winning Ask Ty question and response have been posted. Who is Ty's new friend? Just Ask Ty!
Q: How do you celebrate Oktoberfest? (submitted by beaniecharge)
A: With a tall glass of fresh apple cider and my new friend . . . . Leaves the Beanie Baby !
September 29: Six New Exclusives Coming Soon
 The excitement continues... Today,Ty announces six new exclusive Beanie Babies today. Five of these have been long-anticipated. One comes as a surprise. Here they are: Bean Watcher comment: Thanks to all who shared this news with us!
September 29: Announcing the October 2006 Introductions
 Today, Ty officially announces the October 2006 introductions. As previously reported, most of these beanies have a Christmas theme. There are new styles in seven different product lines. Here they are: Bean Watcher comment: Thanks to all who shared this news with us!
September 29: More In-Hand Pictures of Nigel
 John from the UK (aka the phoenix) shares his report and beautiful pictures of Nigel the bear. Here they are:
I was expecting to go to the Kendal Store on Saturday, having been told on the phone last week that they would be selling the (Nigel) bears on that day. When I heard that some people had already managed to buy them at other stores, I rang again...to find they were already on sale! No mail order available, but they would put some aside for collection, so we went over this morning.
The assistant told me that they had 300 delivered, and that they had nearly all gone. First he'd been told he could sell three per customer, and then later on he could sell as many as were wanted...but he didn't know anything about the official launch date on Saturday, or the invitation!
I don't think we can blame the assistants for this...but there certainly seems to have been a lot of misunderstanding somewhere. He couldn't believe I had traveled 70 miles to pick up my order!
So....not the best organised perhaps...but we had a great morning out nevertheless! Here's a picture of the Kendal store - probably one of the smallest they have, I'd guess, hidden away in the very centre of the town. Kendal is at the gateway to the Lake District, and their most northerly store. We'll be passing by there again very soon on the way to the Beatrix Potter Attraction, which is only a few miles away. If anyone is thinking of going there on Saturday - get there early, there aren't many left!
To see a picture of Nigel's chest button, click here. To see the embroidery on his foot pad, click here. To see a picture of his hang tag, click here.
September 29: From the Email Bag -- The Hunt for Nigel
I suspected that each Beales store might have a different sales policy for Nigel the bear. Based on the reports below, my suspicions were correct... Read John's report above, the reports below, and previously-posted reports from prior days.
A store associate at Beales in Poole, UK responded yesterday to my inquiry about shipping Nigel to the USA. She writes:
Thank you for your e-mail with regards to purchasing the Nigel Beales TY Beanie Baby Bear. As you can imagine, time is of the essence so therefore, the sales are on a first come, first served basis. The cost of the bear is £ 5.99 + Postage and Packing £ 7.00 + £ 3.50 for insurance, making this a total of £16.49p. This is the price you pay for each bear, i.e., so 2 bears would cost £ 32.98p.
Would you please provide me with the following details and how many you would like to purchase.
Full name and address
Card number
Card type
Start date
Expiry date
3 figure security number on the back of the card
Name of the card holder
If a Switch card, the issue number is required. The Beanie Baby Bear can only be sent to the cardholder's address.
Many thanks for your interest,
Regards,
D----- W---
For Beales in Poole, Dorset
Pam from the UK shares her report of the hunt for Nigel the bear. She found them at the Winchester, UK store. Pam writes:
I thought you might be interested to know that yesterday/Wednesday afternoon, after having telephoned first to see if on sale yet, I went to the Beales store in Winchester and purchased the 12 beanies reserved for me. The manager told me that they had received a memo telling the stores that they should NOT be sold in advance and that the initial batch was limited to 5000 with the possibility of a second batch of 5000 - to be split between their various locations. He did say their would be NO online ordering.
Anthony from the UK shares his hunting report for Nigel. He found them at the Ealing, UK store. He writes:
I was reading Tom's report that Nigel the Beales bear was already on sale in Bournemouth on the south coast of England so I called my nearest store Ealing in west London and they too were selling ahead of the 'official' introduction on 30 September. So, I hot footed it down there and bought three. There was no limit on the number that could be bought but the assistant told me that this might change depending on how quick they start selling out of their stock. Nigel's a really nice bear. So, if anyone's wanting this bear they'd better get to the store asap (Ealing doesn't offer mail order - not sure about the others).
Bean Watcher comment: Thanks to all our friends in the UK for sharing their reports with us. Half the fun of collecting beanies is the hunt. And when you find what you want -- you've won a prize that you can treasure for a long, long time!
September 28: Pictures of the October 2006 Ty Products
CindysBeans.com , a USA-based secondary market retailer, has posted early pictures of the October 2006 Ty product introductions. The names and pictures appear to have come from a Ty retailer flysheet. Most of the new styles have a Christmas theme. The product lines and names, from what I can see, are posted below.
To view the pictures online, click here.
Bean Watcher comments: (1) Thanks to the reader from the USA for sharing this news with us. Also, thanks to an anonymous reader for providing us with an updated list of names. (2) I have posted, to the best of my ability, each style in its proper product line.
September 28: Reader's Report -- The Hunt for Nigel
 Tom from the UK shares the following report about his hunt for the popular Beales-exclusive bear called Nigel. Many (if not all) of the stores in the Beales chain sold Nigel prior to its official release (September 30, 2006). Tom shares his experiences with us. He also provides an update to an unconfirmed report (which I did not post earlier) about a signed Nigel. Tom writes:
I went to the Pooles and the Bournemouth Beales today - I was able to buy 10 bears at each store.
I asked how many beanies were being sent to each store and was informed that they would be receiving 700 bears each.... I am on dial-up (AOL died on me) at the moment so can't look up how many stores there are, but think it will be about 6,000 bears.
I asked about the signed Nigels and was informed that there are a total of 2. The Gifts Manager at Bournemouth said that they would be auctioned or raffled off, she is not having a special event on Saturday (when Nigel should be introduced) because she does not believe that she will have any left by then. Whilst I was in the Store I saw over 100 bears going, they were being sold quicker than the Staff could put them out.
The store at Bournemouth is where the primary Beales store is located. For more information about this and other department stores in the Beales chain, including contact information, click here. Then click on the picture above the stores' locations.
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your report with us! There certainly is plenty of interest surrounding this exclusive bear. With a bit of patience and luck, let's hope that you will be able to add Nigel to your collection at retail prices.
September 28: Another Ty-signed William and Hamley on eBay
 For those wanting a Ty Warner-signed Hamley the bear or William the bear, there's a second chance for you to get one of them or both. Five of each bear were signed by Ty. A total of ten signed bears were raffled off to the first 100 collectors in line to purchase Hamleys Toy Stores' exclusive bears on the day of their launch. So far, two of each have appeared on eBay. To view the second signed Hamley click here. To view the second signed William, click here.
September 28: Ty Store and Ty Store Motomachi
 A few collectors have noted that the renovated Ty Store is reminiscent of another popular (but not well-known) online store -- Ty Japan's Ty Store Motomachi. There are some similarities. Both sites allow collectors to buy a variety of Ty products through the internet. Shoppers can click on pictures of beanies that they want, add them to a shopping cart, and check out of the store to buy them. And of course, there are differences (quite a number of them). You can compare the two sites by clicking here to visit Ty Store and clicking here to visit Ty Store Motomachi.
September 28: Ty Store Roppongi Hills 2nd Anniversary Bear
 Talking about Ty Japan, Sakurako from Japan, webmaster of Bottega Beanies, shares her report about the latest promotional bear from the Far East.
The promotion, from Ty Store Roppongi Hills (in Japan), features Happy Birthday the bear. This special Beanie Baby is intended to celebrate the store's second anniversary. Collectors who spend over ¥ 1,700 (JPY) in merchandise before taxes -- in the store or through Ty Store Motomachi's online shopping site -- receive one bear. To receive two bears, collectors must spend over ¥ 3,400 (JPY) before taxes.
Only 200 of these limited-edition collectible bears are available. Each store promotion comes with a second hang tag and a gorgeous black ribbon tied around its neck. The ribbon has the Ty logo printed on it and the following words: Ty Store Roppongi Hills The 2nd Anniversary. Looking at the pictures, this collectible will certainly appeal to collectors of Ty Japan promotions!
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your report and pictures with us!
September 27: Introducing Two New Ty Store Exclusives
 Today, Ty introduces two new Ty Store exclusives: the Beanie Baby called Spells the bear and the Beanie Buddy called Frankenteddy the bear. Both of these new styles have a Halloween theme. To view the announcement on Ty.com, click here. To place your order at Ty Store, click here.
September 27: Marilyn's Pictures of Recent Beanie Babies
 Marilyn from Wisconsin shares her beautiful pictures of three exclusive bears. Featured are the Hamleys Toy Store exclusives, Hamley the bear and William the bear. Also featured is the Ty Store exclusive, Sweetiepaws the bear. To see her pictures, click on the links below.
Pictures of Hamley and William
Pictures of Sweetiepaws
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your pictures with us!
September 27: SpongeBob Pinkpants to Raise Funds
 The PR Newswire, a news information source, has posted a press release titled, SpongeBob's 'SquarePants' Become Pink This October To Help Raise Funds During National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The release informs readers about the efforts of Nickleodeon and Ty, Inc. to support next month's event. Here is an excerpt:
NEW YORK and OAK BROOK, Ill., Sept. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Nickelodeon & Viacom Consumer Products, in partnership with Ty, announce an all-new, limited-edition "SpongeBob PinkPants" Ty Beanie Baby(R).... Currently available at retailers nationwide and on nick.com, while supplies last, the Beanie(R) marks the first time the world famous sea sponge will be produced in plush in a color other than yellow. Both Nickelodeon and Ty will donate profits... to various breast cancer charities in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The special Beanie will retail for approximately $6.00.
To read the entire press release, click here.
September 27: From the Email Bag -- Odds and Ends
Sue Owen from the UK, a supporter of CHERISH, shares the following message about her latest fundraiser. She writes:
Just a note to let you know that CHERISH has a set of the German Vedes stores exclusive Beanies Roger and Mary now on auction on eBay under seller ID sue_owen (click here). They are a delightful pair and so difficult to get hold of outside of Germany as they cannot be ordered online. Many thanks to Sabine Rowles for donating them!
Bean Watcher comments: (1) Thank you for sharing the news with us! (2) Sabine is the collector in Germany who shared her pictures of Roger and Mary with us (earlier this month). Sabine is willing to help others add these Vedes exclusives to their collection. To contact her, click here. Lyn from Florida asks about a New York Yankees Beanie Buddy. She writes: Supposedly there is a new Buddy being given away at the Yankee game on October 1st??? Heard anything? I went to the Yankees website and could find no info on my personal search. Bean Watcher response: Thank you for your email. The New York Yankees will be having its fourth annual Limited Edition Ty Beanie Buddy Day on October 1, 2006. The name of this plush toy still has not been announced, but it will soon! The first 18,000 fans 14 years of age and under will receive this bear. Click here to view the team's 2006 Promotional Schedule. To see a graphic of this unannounced beanie, from the New York Yankees' official site, click here.
September 26: In Hand Pictures of Nigel
 Steve and Claire from the UK share their in-hand pictures of Nigel the bear, a Beales exclusive. They write:
Just thought you might like to share the pictures I took today, following my visit to the Poole Beales store. Popped in just to check the launch details for 30th September and spotted this fellow sitting on the shelve looking back at me! After a conversation with the sales assistant, I walked out, or was it floated out of the shop with him in my carrier bag.
To see their pictures, click here and click here.
Bean Watcher comment: Thank you for sharing your pictures with us! I hope you enjoyed the hunt!
September 26: Ty Store Gets an Upgrade
Today, Ty has changed the appearance of Ty Store to make it look much more like an online shopping site. There are many more items that you can choose from. The items are separated by categories: Beanie Babies, Garfield, Clothing Accessories, and enrollment in the Beanie Baby of the Month Club. There are also helpful links and sites that will provide answers to commonly-asked questions.
You should check it out. It is certainly a great improvement! To visit the renovated Ty Store, click here.
Bean Watcher comment: Thanks to all who shared this news with us!
September 26: Update on Buying Nigel the Bear
After receiving the pre-order information about Nigel (see my September 24, 2006 column), I called the Beales store in Bournemouth, England and was transferred to the store's Gift Department. The friendly store associate who I spoke with had no clue about pre-sale orders for Nigel. However, she did say that if orders were shipped to the USA, the cost would roughly be about £ 7.00 (GBP).
Interestingly, she also stated that in-store sales of the exclusive Beanie Baby would begin on September 30, 2006. Each customer would be limited to buying twenty (20) bears. She could not provide additional details at the time.
Bean Watcher comment: Please remember that the above information can change with time, the person you are speaking with, and perhaps, the particular Beales store that has been contacted. Use good judgement to decide when you should call. As in my case, word of accepting pre-orders clearly had not been shared with all store associates. As a final note... It will be interesting to see if all Beales stores will have the same sales policy for this bear or if each store's policy will differ (like the sale of last year's Fenwick's exclusive Ty Classic, Fenwick Holiday Teddy). We'll have to wait and see.
September 26: Marilyn's Pictures of the Halloweenie Beanies
 Marilyn from Wisconsin shares her beautiful pictures of this year's Halloweenie Beanies. There are five new styles: Creepers the spider, Ghoul the boy ghost, Ghoulianne the girl ghost, Screams the cat, and Treats the pumpkin. To see a group picture, click here. To see individual pictures, click on the links below.
The 2006 Halloweenie Beanies
Bean Watcher comments: Thank you for sharing your pictures with us!
September 26: From the Email Bag -- About Yesterday's Retirements
Daniel from Maryland, webmaster of Beanie Universe, shares news of three silent retirements. Here they are: Bean Watcher comments: Thank you for sharing the news with us! Michael from Illinois shares the following observation about the retirement of Senna kun the dog:
I saw that Senna Kun retired in today's Sept. Retirements but it only showed in the announcement that Senna Kun with the Brown Paws. So I just checked and as I suspected Senna Kun with Pink Paws has silently retired. Also I noticed that the Ty classic Senna Kun which I don't think was available to the public but was listed on the Ty site has also silently retired.
Bean Watcher comments: Thank you for pointing out the three versions of Senna kun with us! In yesterday's column, I noted that the pink paw and brown paw versions of Senna kun had retired. But I missed the Ty Classic version. Thanks for pointing this out.
September 25: Pre-ordering Nigel the Bear
After seeing the announcement of Nigel the bear on Ty.com, I decided to write to the Beales store in Bournemouth, England. I asked if their exclusive Beanie Baby could be ordered online or by telephone. I finally received a response, which is reproduced below:
Thank you for your enquiry regarding the Beales Beanie Bear, which is called Nigel. This is a very limited edition available from Saturday 30 September, and restricted to one per customer, so it would be wise to pre-order. The cost is £5.99, postage to the USA is £7.00 and if you wish to also insure the package that will be an extra £3.50.
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