Vermont Teddy Bear

In 1981, John Sortino was playing with his son Graham when he realized he had an interest for teddy bears. John saw that all of his son’s bears had a foreign tag on it, so he wanted to be the first person to create American-made teddy bears. By 1983, John began to make bears in his wife’s sewing room and sell them at an open-air market in Burlington, Vermont. It took a year for John to sell his first 200 bears.
One day, John picked up an idea from one of his customers. The customer wanted him to deliver a teddy bear to her home, so the idea of a delivery service came to john. The Bear-Gram concept was born. In 1990, the company took its Bear-Gram concept to New York City. Advertisements including local radio personalities endorsing Bear-Gram gifts were sent out to the public. Phone calls from customers were overwhelming and the company reached its sales goals for the year in just two days.
In 1992, Inc. Magazine recognized the Vermont Teddy Bear Company as the 80th fastest growing private company in the United States. By 1993, the company moved up to 58th in the rankings. In that same year, the company designed its facility they wanted to move in so they could continue their great success. In the summer of 1995, the company moved into their new facility. The facility is 60,000 square feet and sits on 57 acres of land, located in Champlain Valley. Soon after the facility was created, the founder moved on to start other entrepreneurial ventures. Today, more than 150,000 people visit the Vermont Teddy Bear Company to find out how a teddy bear is made from scratch and make their own teddy bear. The company is launched on the radio in all 50 states making Vermont Teddy Bear Company a household name and a Vermont icon. The company believes it makes the best bears in the world because every bear is designed, cut, sewn, and stitched in Vermont. The bears are alive with personality and attitude and help people connect in a fun and meaningful way. The Vermont Teddy