The Vermont Teddy Bear Company was founded in
1981 by John Sortino. He started this business by selling
hand sewn teddy bears that he himself made and sold out of
a pushcart in the streets of Burlington, Vermont. Until
1994, Vermont Teddy Bear Company was very successful
and very profitable as a small business industry.
The corporation had created many challenges and
John felt his entrepreneur days had come to an end and he
had recognized that the future success of his company was
dependant on a transition to a professionally managed
organization. The company took on a new CEO
and the new management team started to explore new
opportunities for growth. The uphill climb with the retail
business took off but only to fall once again. This is when
the position of CEO had changed and Elisabeth
Robert was elected into this role. Roberts
acknowledged that there company was in the "Bear gram"
business, the gift business and the impulse business.
Close-up of a teddy bear
Teddy bear, born in Germany about 1954
English: Teddy bear Français : Ours en pelucheUpon
seeing that their competitors were the very companies that
sold chocolates, flowers, and greeting cards for last minute
shopping.
Robert's largest challenge was realizing that their
primary focus of the company would return to maximizing
returns in the radio bear gram business, which contributed
to the majority of the company's annual revenue. (Wheelen
& Hunger).
The vision statement is a concise declaration of the
direction that an agency is planning to take into the
preferred future. A key element in the vision process is a
review, or scan of the external and internal environmental
factors that may impact an agency over the next several
years. This vision for The Vermont Teddy Bear brand
represents the rich heritage of the "Great American Teddy
Bear" manufactured the best teddy bear in America, by
using American products and labor. (Wheelen...