NEWS & INFORMATION

News Archives

Spring '99
March/April/May

**May 27, 1999**
More information about the new Puffkins and retirements! The Retailers' Express (newsletter sent by SWIBCO to all retailers who carry Puffkins) will be sent out on June 15th with information on the new styles and who will be retiring. There will also be an official announcement on the SWIBCO site sometime that day. However, the new Puffkins will actually be introduced at a show in Minnesota earlier in the month (June) so we could possibly hear who they are a little early. We reported yesterday that we could be seeing as many as five of our friends leaving us for retirement and that is exactly what will happen! 5 Puffkins will be taking a permanent vacation to make room for 5 new furballs in the Puffkins family!

**May 27, 1999**
There will be another Puffkin Day held in Independence, Missouri on June 26th. It is being hosted by R&R Depot at Independence Center. There will be retired Puffkins, variations & oddities, and Limited Editions on display. There will be drawings held and some of the prizes include Puffkins autographed by Mr. Pouleson. The Puffkins Collectors' Club will be attending. There will be lots of fun Puffkin things to see and do there! Bring your extra Puffkins to trade with other collectors if you wish. Hope to see you there!

**May 26, 1999**
Along with the 5 new releases to be announced in June we can also expect up to as many as 5 retirements.

**May 21, 1999**
11 year old Katie Walsh is the winner of the Mary Beth's Beanie World Puffkin contest. She won a set of Puffkins including some retired ones, magnets, keyrings, funwear, and other Puffkin items. Congratulations Katie!

**May 19, 1999**
SWIBCO has redesigned their website to include the new plush line, The SWIBCO Collection. The main page now gives you the option to check out Puffkins, The SWIBCO Collection, or the souvenir products. The Puffkin section is the same site we are all familiar with. The SWIBCO Collection site has the same basic layout as the Puffkin site. (No guest book, cool links, FAQ, etc.) The souvenir site remains the same and still has info about the different SWIBCO products and company.

**May 18, 1999**
You can now click on www.puffkins.com and go to a mirror site of the Official Puffkins Website. Right now both websites are identical.

**May 15, 1999**
According to Mary Beth's Beanie World Online, SWIBCO is offering 1000 special Puffkins to commemorate the Mary Beth's Beanie World Collectibles Convention at Valley Forge, PA held on May 15-16. We have heard that there are 250 each of specially tagged Freddy the tree frog, Danny the dino, Patriot the r/w/b eagle, and Scooter the chipmunk. Click here for more info.

**May 7, 1999**
The Official Puffkins Website has updated their FAQ section with some interesting info about Patriot.
During the first production run of Patriot, some blue-eyed Patriots were made and shipped. Patriot's correct eye color is gold. They don't give a definite total, but they do say it appears the gold-eyed Patriots far out number the blue-eyed Patriots. See FAQ #35 and #36.

**April 30, 1999**
More exciting news about the April 24, 1999 sales meeting held at SWIBCO! It seems that each rep attending received two specially tagged Freddy the tree frogs as a memento of the big day! I was told that there were only 120 of these special Freddys made.

**April 30, 1999**
The Swibco Collection plush line is due to begin shipping in mid-May.

**April 27, 1999**
Expect 5 new Puffkins in mid to late June. One has been specifically chosen to benefit St. Jude's Children's Hospital by a portion of the profits going to help out this wonderful organization. This extraordinary Puffkin will wear an additional specialty tag to proclaim his helpfulness to this fantastic charity! We can expect a total of 20 new Puffkins (including Halloween & Christmas) by the end of the year.
We were also advised to expect several retirements in June and possibly sooner.

**April 27, 1999**
As we mentioned on March 10th, Patriot is not a Limited Edition and will not have a Limited Edition tag. We wondered then if he might be hotter than a firecracker and we are still wondering if he will disappear from store shelves faster than a roman candle!

**April 27, 1999**
SWIBCO's new line of plush was well received by the 70 sales reps who flew into Chicago for the big introduction on April 24th. Most of the plush animals are available for retailers to order and will begin shipping after the orders for the new Puffkins have been filled. The plush animals could be in some stores by next week. We will have pictures posted soon.
*Please take our survey and let us know what you think.

**April 27, 1999**
The correct style numbers for the Christmas Puffkins are: Spice #6702; Mooseltoe #6703; Elvin #6704; Jangles #6705. (Pictures to be posted soon)

**April 26, 1999**
SWIBCO was in such a hurry to get the Christmas flyers done for their big sales meeting that nobody noticed that the style numbers were printed wrong! The style numbers appearing on the flyers belong to Jingles, Skylar, Rosie and Telly.

**April 23, 1999**
As previously mentioned there will be four 1999 Limited Edition Christmas Puffkins. They will be Mooseltoe the red-nosed moose wearing a scarf, Jangles the red bear with a candy cane, Elvin the pointy-eared elf, and Spice the sweet gingerbread man. Pictures will be scanned and posted soon.

**April 23, 1999**
The four newest releases are in the SWIBCO warehouse and are being shipped to retailers NOW! Check your favorite Puffkins store in the next week or so as the new Puffkins should be appearing on store shelves.

**April 20, 1999**
The May issue of Beans magazine features an article called 'A Passion for Puffkins' which profiles our very own Puffinstuf. Be sure to pick up your copy while they're still available.

**April 1, 1999**
We received word that there are four styles planned for Christmas 1999 instead of the three that Mr. Pouleson originally discussed at the January Gift Show.

**March 17, 1999**
Mary Beth's Beanie World Monthly has the poems for three of the four new Puffkins due out in May. They are as follows:

Danny the dinosaur - #6686
Birthday: July 7, 1998*
Danny the dinosaur loves to roam around
his every move makes a thunderous sound.
When you see him smile and wave
then maybe he'll take you to his secret cave.
*Birthday: July 8, 1998

Scooter the chipmunk - #6688
Birthday: August 31, 1998
Scooter loves seeds, oh how he eats!
Stuffing his face and ballooning his cheeks.
He scurries and hurries, you won't see him walk,
When his mouth is full, he's too polite to talk.

Freddy the tree frog - #6690
Birthday: August 18, 1998*
Freddy's a tree frog with long sticky toes,
eyes as merry and red as holiday bows.
He'll cling to a tree, to the ladies he'll croon
then plop! in the water in the hot afternoon.
*Birthday: August 28, 1998

**March 16, 1999**
CheckerBee Publishing is releasing a Puffkins collectors' guide licensed by SWIBCO which will be available around the first of June. Included in this guide will be large pictures and info on each Puffkin released up to the date of publishing, retirement information, collecting tips, display ideas, hints on cleaning fabric, and much more! Members of the Puffkins Collectors' Club can order a copy through the club with an added bonus. Each member's copy will be autographed by SWIBCO president John Pouleson.

**March 10, 1999**
Four new Puffkins will be available in May. They are: Patriot the Red, White and Blue Eagle, Danny the Purple Dino, Scooter the Chipmunk, and Freddy the Red Eyed Tree Frog. John Pouleson confided in Puffinstuf at the January Gift Show that Patriot will not be a Limited Edition. He may be hotter than a firecracker though, so get him while you can.
There is no retirement planned at this time.

**March 10, 1999**
There will be four Limited Edition Halloween Puffkins due out late summer. They will be: Stitch the Frankenstein Monster, Patches the Scarecrow, Jack the Pumpkin, and Trick the Masked Orange Bear. In case you're wondering, Jack the Pumpkin will not have the same face as Gourdy. This little Jack-O-Latern will have a unique expression and personality. Trick the Orange Bear will be masquerading as Zorro this Halloween! Even though pictures are not yet available, the sketches we have seen of the four Halloween spooksters are adorable.

**March 9, 1999**
Swibco announces a St. Patrick's Day Contest on the Official Puffkins Website! Click here for details.

**March 5, 1999**
Mary Beth's Beanie World Online announces a Puffkins Contest. The contest runs from March 1st through April 30th. Click Here for details, or go directly to Mary Beth's Beanie World Online.

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