ENTREPRENEUR Tish Walsh is ready to cash in on a beanie bonanza with her Preston market stall.

For Tish, pictured, had been running a stall in the town for just two months, dedicated to the craze of Beanie Babies, before the people behind the phenomenon - American manufacturers Ty - announced they were to cease production of the toys.

And while the prospect of losing your supply may spell disaster to most firms, for Tish it could be that business is about to boom.

Since Ty's announcement that they are going to 'retire' all of the popular stuffed toys, Tish's stall has been the place to shop in Preston town centre, with hundreds of people flocking to her outdoor stall.

Tish, of Kirkham, said: "We have been run off our feet. There are already some rare beanies, which have shot up in price, in particular ones from foreign countries.

"But now people are desperate to buy the beanies because they know they will shoot up price when they are all retired after Christmas.

"Where else can a child buy something for as little as £3.99 and know it will shoot up in value after Christmas?"

Tish stocks rare specimens of the Beanie Babies from Canada, Italy and France - all of which sell for hundreds of pounds.

She is an avid collector of the rare toys herself, having started her collection four years ago in America when she saw one called Bruno - and bought it because it shared the same name as her boyfriend!

Some toy experts have claimed it is all a scam by Ty to boost sales.

But Tish added: "So what if it is? At the end of the day, these are toys which are popular and will shoot up in value. There will be plenty for me to sell for a long time yet.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.