Wishful was first launched in 2023 as the first and only Merrythought bear that yes, you read it correctly, cannot be purchased! Instead, those lucky enough to own our adorable Wishful bear can only do so by being randomly selected as part of a special giveaway or competition. In addition, only a handful of Wishful bears will ever made, making him a bear that is highly sought after by Merrythought’s followers and collectors!

Ever since he joined the Merrythought family, Wishful has been a very busy bear. finding new homes across the world and bringing a smile to lots of people. To celebrate his first birthday, we are looking back on just some of the adventures our adorable ‘Bear You Cannot Buy’ has enjoyed so far...

This special character has been lovingly created from two beautiful tones of mohair plush, and wears a stunning scarlet bow, in the centre of which is an iconic gold-plated Merrythought wishbone pendant – truly befitting to his name!

After the Merrythought team designed and created this charming bear, we embarked upon a search for the perfect name for this one-of-a-kind companion… After many fantastic suggestions, we invited our wonderful social media followers to vote for their favourite, and one lucky voter of the most popular name was randomly selected to win the very first bear, who was henceforth named ‘Wishful’! He bid farewell to his fellow bears and departed our factory, destined to join Susan in her Lincolnshire home!

Eager to join more new families, another Wishful bear was placed in Elsa’s delivery box, and became a welcomed stowaway who quickly settled into his new home…..seen below enjoying a tasty bowl of porridge!

In the months to follow, Wishful snook into other Merrythought order boxes, which saw him surprise more happy customers. This included Hazel from the Wirral, where he became the latest addition to her already impressive teddy bear collection.

Wishful joined Merrythought’s 2023 Christmas festivities as the widely desired prize of our Christmas competition. His exclusive nature saw thousands of entries, each hoping to adopt their very own ‘Bear You Cannot Buy’ in time for the big day, and ultimately, Katherine was the lucky recipient of this wonderful gift!

The Merrythought team is continuing to hand-make Wishful in our historic Ironbridge factory, so one could be on its way to you soon. Here are the ways you might be able to own him: 

... win one of our upcoming competitions or charity raffles!

... be randomly selected to receive Wishful inside any order you place with us!

... as a gift from us to one of our loyal social media followers!

If you can’t wait to see Wishful’s next adventure, remember to stay connected with us on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram to be the first to hear about your next opportunity to own him… And you too could find yourself adopting Wishful, The Bear You Cannot Buy!

Come and join us!

@merrythoughtbears