Ironbridge teddy bear shop sees Paddington surge

David Jackson and Paddington Bear in deepest, darkest Ironbridge

A teddy bear store says it has seen a "massive increase" in sales of Paddingtons since the Queen's death.

The owner of Bears on the Square in Ironbridge said the store normally sold one or two of the soft toys each week.

David Jackson said that grew to three or four after the airing of a sketch featuring the monarch having tea with the fictional children's character to mark the Platinum Jubilee in June.

But he said demand had since risen so much the toys were nearly all gone.

"We've seen a massive increase in sales and we're not far off selling out," he said.

"Normally it's a slow but steady seller and we'll sell one or two a week. Since the Platinum Jubilee it's gone up to two or three - but yesterday we sold 10."

Only a few Paddingtons remain

Mr Jackson said he thought most customers were buying the Paddingtons to keep as mementos, rather than to leave as a tribute to the Queen outside Buckingham Palace or other royal residences.

"I think the level of demand we're seeing is largely because there aren't any official 'in memoriam' products available yet, but this is something people can buy that is associated with the Queen," he said.

"We've even had people buying Paddington key rings to put on their Christmas trees."

Bears on the Square in Ironbridge has seen a run on Paddington Bears

Mr Jackson said he expected the store to have sold all its remaining Paddington Bears by the end of the week.

"The problem is that the manufacturers have very little stock because they're struggling to make enough to deal with the current demand," he said.

"We have orders in but probably won't get anything new until next month now."

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