BEANIE BABIE MANIA STILL STRONG IN CAPE

It seems Beanie Babies are here to stay.

The soft animal toys have taken collectible shops by storm since they were first introduced by Ty Warner in the Chicago area in the summer of 1995. Beanie mania struck Cape Girardeau again Saturday when more than 100 people crowded outside Judith Anne's, 130 N. Main, for a chance to acquire the newest of the hot bean bag toys.

Some 13 collectors, most of them from southern Illinois, were camped outside the store as early as 5 a.m. to be first in line when the store opened at 10 a.m. The group swaddled themselves in sleeping bags and blankets and drank hot beverages while they awaited their chance to hunt.

To "make sure everything was fair," the early risers organized a waiting list and had people sign it in their order of arrival. Store owner Judith Anne Lang said the list made her job much easier when she arrived at about 8:30 a.m. to see 54 customers standing outside her door.

"At first I really thought the Beanie Babies would be a flash in the pan, but I think I'm pretty well convinced Ty Warner has a really good marketing strategy and they'll last," Lang said.

People waiting for their chance to enter the store had a variety of reasons they were willing to brave chilly temperatures to buy Beanies. For some who remembered naming the toys of their youth, nostalgia was the main attraction. Other collectors said it was the cuteness of the toys coupled with the "thrill of the hunt" that made them cheerfully leave warm beds.

Still others said they were inadvertently caught up by the craze. "I got swept up in it when a lot of colleagues from school started talking about it," said Tim Ward, an elementary school counselor who said his dog, Penny, has collected 94 Beanies since November.

Stretch the Ostrich, a new Beanie released last month, was probably the most popular toy of the day. Debra Rau, a volunteer who helped man toy bins at the store, said she understands the excitement the collectors felt.

"It's the thrill of the hunt," she said. "I don't think it'll die out -- I've never seen anything like this."

Customers said they also don't mind the long lines because the prices were reasonable. Although Beanie Babies are originally priced at $5 each, high demand and secondary markets have driven prices up in many stores.

"This is the third Saturday in a row we've been here because she's the fairest of any of them," said Dana Bode of Mounds City, Ill. "Every Beanie she's sold has been $5 and that's the way it should be."

Lang originally made her Beanie Babies shipments available to customers as soon as they were received, but the daily volume of phone calls requesting information about the toys became disruptive to the business.

That's when she decided to hold her shipments and put them out to sell on Saturday. The change was made three weeks ago, and business -- Beanie and otherwise -- has swelled.

"It's creating a lot of activity down here and I think people are getting the opportunity to walk around after they get their numbers," she said. "It has given me a real good clientele of customers who come back and shop my store for other things."

Other downtown businesses are benefiting from the change. Employees at several stores said people on the hunt for Beanie Babies have visited their stores while awaiting their turns to buy the toys.

"Most of the people who buy Beanie Babies have children, so they come here and look while they're waiting to get in," said Meredith Jackson of Kids Wear Again. "It's been like this almost every weekend she's done it."

Rau said Beanie collectors will have a larger opportunity to buy and sell collectibles when the first area Beanie Babies swap meet is held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 15 at the Drury Lodge. Accessories, clothes, sleeping bags, tag protectors and other Beanie gear will be available, she said.

Collectors were excited at the prospect, which they said gave them yet another opportunity to get access to exactly what they wanted.