Pre-Orders

With the launch of the 2025 Charlie Bears Collection fast approaching, I wanted to address the issue of pre-orders. I appreciate the many customers who have placed pre-order requests with Bears Against MS over the years and who have, for the most part, followed through on those requests.

As you may or may not know, a number of stockists who used to accept pre-order requests no longer do so. Each has their own reasons for their change of policy but I know that many of us have, over the past couple of years, experienced a significant increase in pre-order cancellations, or worse yet, no response to our emails/messages advising the collectors that their pre-orders are now in stock and available for them to adopt. Unfortunately, not all collectors seem to understand the considerable amount of work that goes into accepting and processing pre-orders and the impact to a stockist when they don't follow through. I don't know if this increase in cancellations is due to the length of time it has taken many bears to reach the U.S. or maybe it's because Charlie Bears stress that a request to them isn't a commitment, just an expression of interest. However, for stockists, it is different. While not a legal obligation, a pre-order with a stockist should be considered a personal commitment to adopt the bear from that stockist.

I understand that pre-order cancellations are a fact of life and accept when the reason for the cancellation is reasonable, e.g. changed life circumstances or a large unforeseen bill or because a bear looks quite different "in the fur" that it did in the catalog. However, too many times the reason for the cancellation, e.g. "I already bought it elsewhere" really isn't fair to the stockist who may have turned down another pre-order request, thinking they were fully reserved.

As mentioned above, I appreciate the many Bears Against MS customers who have followed through on their pre-orders so I have made the decision to continue (at least for the time being) to accept pre-order requests. However, my process for doing so is changing, effective immediately. My new pre-order process is provided below and while it may seem like a lot to read through (it is), if you are thinking of pre-ordering from Bears Against MS, it is important that you understand the new procedures. SO PLEAE READ THE NEW PROCESS INFORMATION BELOW.

1. Regarding the 2025 Charlie Bears Collection, I will start accepting pre-order requests from Best Friends Club Members as soon as the e-catalog goes "live" on the Charlie's Secret Cupboard Facebook page on February 7th and then from non-members once the collection is officially launched on February 14th at 19:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. EST). I will try to let you know if I can confirm the reservation or not within 48 hours of my receiving the request.

2. I will continue to only require a nonrefundable/non-transferrable $25 pre-order deposit for Charlie Bears that are limited to 500 or fewer pieces world-wide (in most cases these are the mohair bears). The $25 will be applied as a credit in figuring the final amount due and is only forfeited if you don't complete the adoption. There will continue to be no deposit required for most plush bears.

3. To request to be added to my pre-order list for a bear, you must send an email to [email protected], to which I will respond letting you know if I can confirm a reservation for you or not. As stated above, I will try to send that response within 48 hours of my receiving the request.

4.  Requests using the "Put Me On The Waiting List" button on a bear's website listing page will now only add you to my "wish list" for that bear, not my pre-order list. In other words, if you only use this method and don't also send an email, you will be notified if and when the bear is in stock and becomes available for general adoption but the bear will not be guaranteed for you.

5. Because the arrival of the bears you pre-order is not always conveniently timed (e.g. multiple pre-ordered bears arriving at the same time), layaway will still be available for any pre-ordered bear with an adoption fee of $75 or more. However, remember that we now also offer a number of PayPal delayed payment options where you can pay over time but, unlike a layaway, you receive the bear up-front rather than having to wait until you have made the final payment. Alternatively, you can still make advance pre-order deposits before the bear arrives. These payments are refundable (except for any credit card or PayPal fees we have paid that can't be reversed which are refunded as a store credit).

6. Subscribe to the BAMS Blog (https://store.bearsagainstms.com/blog.asp) to receive notification of when I add a blog post and then you can view notifications on the BAMS Blog page when a Charlie Bear delivery is arriving (or has just arrived).

7. Once a shipment arrives, I will send you an email advising you of any of your confirmed pre-orders that have just arrived. I suggest that you add our email [email protected] to your safe contacts list and/or if you don't receive the mail, you keep checking your spam folder in the days following the blog post advising of a new delivery. If, despite adding our email address to your safe contacts list, you still have trouble receiving my emails, please let me know what other way I can contact you (e.g. Facebook messenger) and also, as noted in #6 above, make sure you subscribe to the BAMS Blog.

8. I will send a 2nd email when photos are available and it's your turn to choose your bear. If you do not respond within 24 hours, I may move on to the next person on my pre-order list and move you down the list. If you still have not responded by the time everyone on my pre-order list for that bear has been contacted, I will make all un-claimed bears available for general adoption, at which time your pre-order will no longer be guaranteed.

9. Charlie Bear delivery sizes vary but can sometimes involve over 200 individual bears which obviously take a long time to unpack, let alone photograph. Then working my way down my pre-order lists can take a number of days. So depending on how many people are on that list and where you are on the list, it could be a while after delivery before it's time for you to choose your bear. Your patience is appreciated.

10. I will provide updates at the bottom of the delivery blog post as and when I start contacting people about choosing a particular bear in that delivery. So if you have that bear pre-ordered, this will tell you when to start looking for my 2nd email (mentioned in #8 above).

11. If, during the year, you request multiple pre-orders but then cancel more than you follow through on or if you continually don't respond to my emails (see the note in #7 above about providing an alternate way of contacting you), any of your outstanding pre-orders will be moved from confirmed pre-order to wish list, so only available to you if and when those bears become available for general adoption. Also, any future requests you make will be added to my wish lists only, not guaranteed.

Thank you for your understanding.

The full Bears Against MS Pre-Order Policies and Procedures can be found at https://store.bearsagainstms.com/how-to-pre-order-a-bear-and-follow-up-procedures-2.html