Shropshire-based teddy bear manufacturer Merrythought is supporting the NHS and the coronavirus fighting fund thanks to a special souvenir bear and his cuddly companions.
Bevan the Bear, originally created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the NHS, is making a comeback and will be joined by a selection of Merrythought’s traditional, British-made teddy bears to raise funds for the NHS Charities Covid-19 Appeal and SATH, the company’s local Hospital Trust in Shropshire
The ‘Blue Ribbon’ campaign collection also includes Merrythought’s best-selling London Curly Gold bear, together with Oxford, Traditional Cheeky and of course Bevan – named after founder of the NHS, Aneurin Bevan. Paying tribute to the NHS frontline heroes, Merrythought has chosen only teddy bears that wear a blue ribbon, with a minimum of 20% of all online sales to be donated to the charities.
“While a Merrythought teddy bear is the ideal companion to get you through challenging times such as these, choosing a special bear for either yourself or a loved one will now also help the NHS and those affected by Covid-19,” said fourth-generation managing director of Merrythought Sarah Holmes.
“Bevan is a particularly special bear for us and we were very proud of our collaboration with Shrewsbuy and Telford Hospital Trust, our local NHS Trust. We now want to build on this to help the wider NHS as it faces such an unprecedented crisis.
Merrythought, which marks its 90th anniversary this year, is famous for crafting the finest, British-madeteddy bears, which are adored by children and adults across the world.
“We appreciate the difficulties that families and the NHS are facing at the moment, and are keen to see the Merrythought teddy bear giving some financial and emotional support to those affected by Covid-19. Merrythought is very much a business which has been at the heart of the community for the last nine decades, and we hope to continue to be so for generations to come.”
While the Merrythought Shop in Ironbridge has had to close in line with current Government restrictions, orders can still be placed online.
“We are proud that our teddy bears are British made, and we appreciate all the efforts across the community to support British businesses as we all try our best to get through this crisis together.”
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