AMERICA’S MOST TRUSTED PUBLICATION FOR THE SOUVENIR & RESORT GIFT INDUSTRY |
REACH NEW HEIGHTS WITH MOUNTAIN-THEMED SOUVENIRS
These mementos go the extra mile at stores located in the mountains.
DRINKWARE TRENDS RETAILERS CAN CHEERS ABOUT No matter the occasion, mugs, glasses and cups are sure to create a buzz.
PACKING A PUNCH WITH STICKERS, PINS AND PATCHES
These small items are gaining traction and adding to stores’ bottom lines.
COVER
Eight retail shops at Anakeesta Mountaintop Adventure make for a thrilling hunt for the ultimate keepsake.
Eight retail shops at Anakeesta Mountaintop Adventure make for a thrilling hunt for the ultimate keepsake. Anakeesta Retail Director Megan Black shares what makes these stores successful.
SOUVENIR
FOCUS: Lodge & Mountain
Tourists want to take home gifts and souvenirs that remind them of the landscapes they saw. For lodge and mountain retailers, mountain and animal themes never go out of style.
8
EDITOR’S LETTER
Make the most of your time at trade shows this fall.
12
RETAILER ROADMAP
Discover the stores featured in this issue.
14
NEWS BRIEF
SGN’s coverage of Maui wildfires.
24 TRADE SHOW CALENDAR
Make plans to attend these upcoming trade shows.
26
TRADE SHOW NEWS
Coverage from past and upcoming trade shows.
150 PRODUCT SHOWCASE
Get fresh new product ideas for your store.
152 AD INDEX
Easily locate an advertiser’s ad and website.
34
Q&A: Tommy Brown, ZAG
The ZAG Buyer’s Group offers many opportunities.
SOUVENIR
RESORT SHOW SECTION
64 PRODUCT TREND: Plush toys
Plush is crushing sales at animal-themed venues.
72 PRODUCT TREND: Name-drop apparel
Name-dropped apparel sells well at souvenir shops.
80
RETAILER SPOTLIGHT: Tuckaleechee
This cavern gift shop unearths memories for some.
84
MERCHANDISING: Impulse buys
Alluring prices and displays make it hard to say no.
90
MERCHANDISING: Souvenir success
Thoughtful displays can boost sales.
98 MERCHANDISING: Aquarium jewelry
These products often support wildlife conservation.
106 PRODUCT TREND: Christmas
Setting the mood provides for merry sales.
114 PRODUCT TREND: Drinkware
Drinkware ranks among the most popular souvenirs.
120
RETAILER SPOTLIGHT: Idaho Memories
The store offers many reminders of the Gem State.
90
80
98
126
RETAILER SPOTLIGHT: CM of Pittsburgh
This museum store invites kids to try before they buy.
132
RETAILER SPOTLIGHT: Georgia Gifts
Customers enjoy Georgia-themed gifts at this store.
138
MERCHANDISING: Stickers & patches
These products make for great conversation starters.
144
MERCHANDISING: Theft prevention
Keep shoplifters at bay with these tips and tricks.
For many people, fall signals the return of cool temps and pumpkin spice lattes, but for those in the gift and souvenir retail industry autumn beacons the start of trade show season.
From Oct. 4-7, many of you will be in Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Souvenir & Resort Gift Show. Then, from Oct. 22-24, coastal retailers will gather in Orlando for the Coastal Connections Conference. After that, it’s time to head to the Ocean City Resort Gift Expo, Oct. 29-31.
November rings in Thanksgiving, but if you are a gift and souvenir retailer, it is also time to make your annual mecca to the mountains of Tennessee for the Smoky Mountain Gift Show (Nov. 8-11) and IGES (Nov. 7-9 and Nov. 8-11). Both events feature a wide selection of gifts and souvenirs that extend beyond the mountains.
As we get closer to winter, the Grand Strand Gift & Resort Merchandise Show kicks off Dec. 3-6. And let’s not forget all the other regional shows in between. I bet your feet are aching just thinking about all the travel in your future, but I bet you are also looking forward to meeting with vendors and exploring new product offerings.
This time of year is critical to your business, and Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties is here to be a resource as you enter into this busy buying season. For example, you can find out more about the Zoo, Aquarium and Garden Buyers Group on page 42. You can learn about what upcoming shows should be on your radar on the Trade Show Calendar on page 24, and you can read about the latest trade shows news on page 26.
Throughout the issue, you’ll see advertisers promoting their booths at the upcoming trade shows. You can also check out the Smoky Mountain Gift Show 2023 Show Preview on page 36.
No matter where your travels take you this fall, I wish you the utmost success. Seeking out the best products for your store is no easy feat, but I have no doubt you’ll find exactly what you are looking for with so many wonderful exhibitors at these shows across the country. SGN
Karen Carr Publisher & Creative Director karen@breakwallpublishing.com 330-591-2575
Kristin Ely Executive Editor & Conference Director kristin@breakwallpublishing.com 858-684-7744
Katie Turner Business Development Manager katie@breakwallpublishing.com 219-206-1140
Christine Schaffran Associate Editor christine@breakwallpublishing.com 216-272-7700
Megan Smalley Associate Editor megan@breakwallpublishing.com 330-576-9338
Larry White Sales Director larry@breakwallpublishing.com 610-324-2100
Lee White Sales Manager lee@breakwallpublishing.com 609-415-0200
Jamie Winebrenner Sales Manager jamie@breakwallpublishing.com 330-269-5875
Debby Clarke Ad Production Coordinator debby@breakwallpublishing.com 856-816-6346
Gabby Pagura Accounts Receivable accounting@breakwallpublishing.com 330-368-2047
Christine Welman Website Development
Bob Thompson Business Advisor
EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS
Kristen Hampshire
Hilary Larson Mary Elizabeth Williams-Villano
Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties is published six times a year by:
Breakwall Publishing LLC 3593 Medina Rd. #117 Medina, OH 44256
Subscriptions and address changes: Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties magazine P.O. Box 3000 Denville, NJ 07834 subscriptions@breakwallpublishing.com
Entire contents copyright 2023
Breakwall Publishing LLC. All rights reserved. Materials in this publication may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher.
Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties interviews retailers in popular destinations all over the United States. These are the stores featured in the September-October 2023 issue.
Alpine Ski & Gift Shop
Tannersville, PA
Anakeesta
Gatlinburg, TN
Aquarium at the Bay San Francisco, CA
Balboa Surf & Style
Newport Beach, CA
Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland
Frankenmuth, MI
Brown Bear Lake Gift Shop
Big Bear Lake, CA
Butte Stuff
Butte, MT
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, PA
Chimney Rock Management
Chimney Rock, NC
Christmas Vacation Shop
Bar Harbor, ME
Corey’s Pharmacy & Souvenirs
Vero Beach, FL
Flamingo Jim’s Rockaway Beach, OR
Garner State Park Concessions
Concan, TX
Geddy’s Down Under Bar Harbor, ME
Georgia Gifts & More Tucker, GA
Gifted by the Sea Brant Beach, NJ
Goin Left
Lahaina, HI
Hattiesburg Zoo
Hattiesburg, MS
Hogback Mountain Country Store
Marlboro, VT
Idaho Memories Gift Shop
Lewiston, ID
HAVE A STORY YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE? We would love to hear from you! Email Kristin Ely at kristin@breakwallpublishing.com.
Islands Mercantile
Johns Island, SC
Jenkinson’s Aquarium
Point Pleasant Beach, NJ
Jonathan’s The Bear Necessities
Gatlinburg, TN
Kactus Jock
Scottsdale, AZ
Katahdin General Store
Millinocket, ME
Mountain Brothers General Store
Sevierville, TN
Oregon Coast Aquarium
Newport, OR
Saint Louis Zoo
Saint Louis, MO
Sand People
Lahaina, HI
Santa Claus Christmas Store
Santa Claus, IN
Seaside Shade Shack/Tortuga
Sea Isle City, NJ
Shell Boutique
Narragansett, RI
Sunshine Market
Lahaina, HI
The Beach Nut
Virginia Beach, VA
The Christmas Mouse
Williamsburg, VA
The Christmas Shop and General Store
Manteo, NC
The National Aquarium
Baltimore, MD
The Vermont Spot
Country Store
White River Junction, VT
Trail Mix
Peninsula, OH
Tuckaleechee Caverns
Townsend, TN
Virginia Living Museum
Newport News, VA
ZooMontana
Billings, MT
Catastrophic wildfires spread in Maui in early August, which were fueled in part by Hurricane Dora. The fires wiped out much of Lahaina, Hawaii. Some coastal retailers experienced serious damage and loss due to the hurricane and wildfires.
KaiAloha Supply, a coastal retailer with five locations in Hawaii, lost two of its stores on Front Street in Lahaina due to the hurricane.
Ellen Geary, owner of Lahaina-based Sunshine Market, says she lost her storefront, condo and car due to the fires. Geary says she evacuated the area at about 4 p.m. on Aug. 8. She estimates that the entire street caught fire by 5:10 p.m. and all shops were destroyed by the flames.
KaiAloha Supply has been selling Maui Strong shirts to help raise funds for its team in Maui.
A Lahaina surf shop called Goin Left was also destroyed by wildfires in August. According to an Instagram post from Goin Left Store Owner Jennifer Yi, a friend created a GoFundMe page to support Yi and her business.
Many organizations as well as wholesalers have started to raise funds to help victims of the Maui wildfires.
Santa’s Pen, a retail arm of Joseph K. & Co., lost its entire retail store in Lahaina. The company started a GoFundMe page where people can go to donate money to help its Maui staff. Its affiliated Waikiki Christmas stores are also selling Maui ornaments with proceeds going directly to Maui employees.
Scott and Laura Phillipson, owners of Hawaii-based Sand People, set up a GoFundMe page to support its Lahaina employees affected by the fire. The coastal retailer has locations in Hanalei and Lahaina, Hawaii.
Paradise Now Hawaii, a coastal retailer based in Wailuku, Hawaii, began putting together a collection box of items for a shelter to help victims and donated profits from items sold on its website to Lahaina relief funds.
Other wholesalers are also donating portions of sales proceeds toward Maui relief efforts, including Rambling Caravan, Bamboo Wood Stickers, Old Guys Rule and Shaka Love.
Geary recommends people interested in donating to help wildfire victims make donations to verified donation funds, such as Maui Mutual Aid, Maui United Way or Maui Strong Fund. Geary says the wildfires reminded her of the importance of preparing for risks in business.
“You want to be prepared for these risks. Make sure that your legal and financial risks are being addressed and managed, and make sure that you have an exit plan and that your employees are aware of it,” she notes. “Have the legal and financial aspects of your business evaluated so that you’re not exposed.”
Heart on Main Street, a nonprofit organization focused on helping independent retailers, has started an initiative to help independent retailers in Hawaii that have been impacted by the recent wildfires.
The nonprofit set up an online donation portal on Facebook, where businesses and individuals can make monetary contributions to help affected retailers. Heart on Main Street also is actively seeking corporate partnerships to enhance the impact of its donation drive and provide additional support to those in need.
“The devastating fires in Hawaii have left our independent retailers struggling to recover,” says Patrick Keiser, executive director.
Founded in 2022, Heart on Main Street aims to provide knowledge, resources and connections to independent retailers to help them create more sustainable Main Street businesses in local communities.
In response to the wind-driven fires that have caused destruction throughout Hawaii, Gift for Life’s Home vs. Hunger team has launched “Home vs. Hunger Helps Hawaii,” a special online fundraising campaign for World Central Kitchen’s (WCK’s) crisis-related hunger relief efforts in Maui.
Gift for Life says teams are on the ground working with partners to provide meals to evacuees and emergency workers.
In the first two weeks, WCK mobilized to the hardest-hit areas and provided more than 60,000 meals to first responders and families in need. Home vs. Hunger Helps Hawaii is accepting donations online and will continue through Fall 2023 High Point Market, which takes place Oct. 14-18 in High Point, North Carolina.
Sesame Street store
Sesame Street lovers might not know how to get to Sesame Street, but they will soon be able to check out a new Sesame Street-themed gift shop in Philadelphia.
Sesame Place Philadelphia, a theme park dedicated to the kid’s TV show, plans to open Sesame Place Store as its premier retail location this fall. The theme park features more than 25 Sesame Street-themed attractions, entertaining character shows and parades, and an interactive Sesame Street Neighborhood.
The new Sesame Place Store will become the park’s flagship shop and will give guests a glimpse into the colorful, whimsical and furry Sesame Place experience all year round, with no cost required to enter for guests looking only to shop. Located at the park’s entrance, the 6,800-square-foot emporium will offer a selection of merchandise, souvenirs and mementos featuring many of Sesame Street’s characters.
The new store is part of Sesame Place’s upgrades to its entry plaza, which will celebrate the roots of both the show and the park through architecture and scenic details inspired by iconic locations in Philadelphia and New York.
Sesame Place says its 2023 and 2024 season pass members will receive a discount on merchandise based on their season pass tier.
Through a new partnership with SmileyWorld, Aurora World will produce and distribute SmileyWorld plush products with their emoticons. Into 2024, Aurora will be introducing a full line of plush products incorporating the SmileyWorld emoticons, designed to express your emoticons and embrace happiness in an even more lovable and endearing fashion.
“Aurora is delighted to be partnering with SmileyWorld to introduce both young and young-at-heart to the company that started the wave of emoticons,” says Michael Kessler, Aurora World’s senior vice president of sales and marketing. “Aurora is proud to introduce another highly recognizable license to our plush family. We are eager to bring SmileyWorld to life through the quality, lovable plush products Aurora is globally known for.”
Trademarked in 1972, Smiley has been spreading joy and optimism, and with the rise of the digital age has maintained their image as the symbol of happiness. As a plush toy and character company, Aurora World takes pride in providing people of all ages with the joy and comfort that stuffed animals provide. Together with this collaboration, SmileyWorld and Aurora’s values resonate with each other, and this announcement builds excitement for the upcoming plush collection for 2024.
U.S. consumers are still buying more than they did in 2021, but spending growth is slowing as the economy settles down amid higher interest rates intended to reduce inflation, according to the Aug. 10 Monthly Economic Review from the National Retail Federation (NRF).
“The economy was clearly more resilient in the first half of this year than many expected, and the consumer environment has been positive as inflation has slowed,” said NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz. “Nonetheless, there are ongoing economic challenges and questions, and the pace of consumer spending growth is becoming incrementally slower.”
He said consumers continue to spend but face financial pressure. As a result, consumers are adjusting how much they buy while shifting from goods to services.
“While job and wage gains have counterbalanced inflation, the stockpile of savings accumulated during the pandemic is dwindling and is no longer providing as much spending power as previously available,” said Kleinhenz.
The August issue of NRF’s Monthly Economic Review reported that gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a 2.4% annual rate, adjusted for inflation in the second quarter. It was up 2% from the first quarter but in line with 2.1% for all of 2022 and below the 6% growth rate in 2021.
Consumer spending, which makes up about 70% of GDP, played a major role in the continued expansion. But year-over-year spending growth slipped from 4.2% in the first quarter to 1.6% in the second quarter. Retail sales as calculated by NRF — excluding automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants — were up 3.1% unadjusted year over year in the second quarter. That kept up with inflation but was below the 4% growth for the first six months of the year.
The Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index — the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation — was at 3.7% year over year in the second quarter. That was down from 4.9% in the first quarter but still far above the Federal Reserve’s target of 2%.
The Federal Reserve responded by raising rates another quarter-point in July to a range between 5.25% and 5.5% — the highest level since January 2021.
Superhero fans can soon shop for Avengers-themed souvenirs at a new gift shop coming to Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. The park plans to open Avengers Vault as a Marvel-themed gift shop in mid-September.
Disneyland Resort tells Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties magazine that the new store will feature an array of superhero gear. Guests can purchase Avengers’ Infinity Saga Relics for the first time at Avengers Vault. The store will also stock Marvel apparel and fan-favorite merchandise that can also be found at other Disneyland Resort retail locations, including The Collector’s Warehouse, WEB Suppliers and Supply Pod.
According to a report from The Orange County Register, the gift shop will be in the park’s Avengers Campus headquarters building that is expected to eventually serve as the entrance for a Thanos attraction planned for the park.
Nature Planet, a supplier of plush animals and toys, with its headquarters in Denmark, and offices in Atlanta overseeing its U.S. operations, has acquired Cool Jewels (aka Phillips International), a provider of fashion, trend, souvenir and conservation jewelry for teens and adults.
Both companies share a philosophy of building long-term relationships with suppliers, customers and sales representatives, while also making the world a better place. These efforts include supporting children’s cancer charities, building schools and health clinics, planting trees to combat global warming, cleaning oceans and protecting animal habitats.
“During their 48-year operating history, the Cool Jewels team ... has proven themselves extremely adept at introducing innovative products, shipping orders quickly and curating/servicing jewelry assortments to maximize sales potential and profits per square foot, the leading key performance indicator for retailers around the world,” says Soren Lund, CEO of Nature Planet.
Cool Jewels will continue to be based in Hallandale, Florida, and operate as an independent company under the Nature Planet umbrella. All internal and external team members will remain with the organization.
Beacon Design, an ornament manufacturer based in Lincoln, Rhode Island, has donated over 500 ornaments to the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving birds, other wildlife and their habitats.
According to Christine Duong, marketing coordinator, Beacon Design contacted the Audubon Society directly and the organization selected pieces from categories including nature, coastal and seasonal.
“As we frequently collaborate with nonprofit organizations to produce special ornaments, it’s important for us to also support their mission,” says Duong. “Our contribution to the Audubon Society enables us to aid in their efforts to educate, preserve, and advocate for the environment and wildlife in our home state of Rhode Island.”
Beacon Design tries to support a variety of charities, according to Duong. Within the last year Beacon Design has also donated to Special Olympics and Spirit of Liberty.
The Hattiesburg Zoo, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, has installed a permanent “Sustainability Station” inside its gift shop to encourage year-round recycling. Shop customers and zoo guests can stop by the station to drop off several unique items that can’t be recycled in traditional curbside recycling programs, including Mardis Gras beads, laptops, cellphones and flip flops. The station also features a sign with suggestions on how guests can reduce waste.
Jeremy Cumpton, director of conservation, says there are three partnerships to recycle materials. Arc of Greater New Orleans recycles the Mardis Gras beads. Eco-Cell refurbishes and recycles laptops and cellphones; proceeds support conservation efforts for great apes around the world. TerraCycle collects and recycles flip flops.
Cumpton says the Sustainability Station debuted at the shop July 12. While there is no way to track exact numbers of donations made to Sustainability Station, Cumpton says thousands of people visit the gift shop every year.
“We encourage guests to support conservation and sustainability when they can,” says Cumpton. “It’s also an investment in their future and their kids’ future.”
Answering the call to offer its products in more locations, Coastal Carolina University (CCU) is opening two Teal Nation retail stores in South Carolina this year.
CCU opened its first Teal Nation retail location March 1 at 1169 Celebrity Circle, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. CCU’s board of trustees also has approved a lease agreement for a second shop location at 324 N. Main St., Conway, South Carolina, which CCU expects to open Oct. 1.
Teal Nation features a range of officially licensed CCU merchandise, including clothing, accessories, home decor and gifts. Teal Nation also features an online store.
CCU says the shop in Myrtle Beach offers visitors a place to learn about enrolling at the university, purchase tickets for cultural arts and athletic events, and arrange tee times at CCU’s General James Hackler Golf Course, located adjacent to CCU’s campus in Conway.
The shops offer a 30% discount to students, faculty, staff, alumni and Chanticleer Athletic Foundation members.
NOV. 8-11
Smoky Mountain Gift Show
Gatlinburg, Tennessee
www.smokymtngiftshow.com
OCTOBER
OCT. 4-7
Las Vegas Souvenir & Resort Gift Show Las Vegas www.lvsouvenirshow.com
OCT. 6-8
GTS Greensboro Expo
Greensboro, North Carolina www.gtshows.com
OCT. 8-11
CMC LA Market Week
Los Angeles www.californiamarketcenter.com
OCT. 9-10
Seattle Mart Fall Show Seattle www.seattlemart.com
OCT. 23-24
TMC – The Merchandise Center Chicago www.tmcexpo.com
OCT. 24-26
Northern New England Gift and Souvenir Show
Bartlett, New Hampshire
northern-new-england-gift-andsouvenir-show.ueniweb.com
OCT. 24-27
Dallas Apparel & Accessories Market
Dallas
www.dallasmarketcenter.com
OCT. 29-31
Ocean City Resort Gift Expo
Ocean City, Maryland www.oceancitygiftshow.com
NOV. 8-11
International Gift Exposition in the Smokies
Pigeon Forge, Tennessee www.iges.us
OCT. 9-11
Miami International Mart Show Miami www.martofmiami.com
OCT. 10-13
Atlanta Apparel Atlanta www.atlanta-apparel.com
OCT. 11-13
Corpus Christi Souvenir & Resort Show Corpus Christi, Texas www.pinnacle-shows.com
NOV. 6-8
Atlanta Fall Cash & Carry
Atlanta
www.americasmart.com
NOV. 8-10
Las Vegas Market – Fall Sample Sale
Las Vegas www.lasvegasmarket.com
NOV. 15-16
Mid-Atlantic Merchandise Mart
DEC. 3-6
Grand Strand Gift & Resort Merchandise Show
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina www.grandstrandgiftshow.com
OCT. 13-15
Crescent City Apparel and Jewelry Show Slidell, Louisiana www.gtshows.com
OCT. 14-17
Shoppe Object High Point, North Carolina www.shoppeobject.com
OCT. 18-20
Panama City Beach Gift Show
Philadelphia www.midatlanticmart.com
NOV. 17-19
Norton’s Gatlinburg Apparel, Jewelry & Gift Show
Gatlinburg, Tennessee www.nortonshows.com
DEC. 1-3
GTS Greensboro Expo
Greensboro, North Carolina
www.gtsexpo.com
OCT. 22-24
Coastal Connections Conference
Orlando, Florida www.coastalconnections conference.com
Panama City Beach, Florida www.pinnacle-shows.com
OCT. 22-24
Trendz West Palm Beach, Florida www.trendzshow.com
DEC. 4-5
Midwest Market Days Chicago
River Grove, IL
www.midwestmarketdays.com
Retailers who are looking for ways to improve employee hiring, training and retention can find the answers at the Coastal Connections Conference.
During the event, Oct. 22-24 at the Margaritaville Resort Orlando, attendees will hear from expert panelists with a background in building a strong team within their organizations.
The session, titled, “Build an All-Star Team,” takes place Oct. 22 from 4:30-6:00 p.m.
Speakers include Kathy Cruz, founder and CEO, Savvy Shopkeeper; William Hill, retail store manager, Margaritaville Resort Orlando; Scott Hamblen, chief operating officer, Sunshine Ace Hardware/Crowder’s Gifts and Gadgets; and Kim Springsteen-Abbott, owner, Lady Gryphon's Coastal Collections.
“We’re thrilled to bring together such a diverse panel that can share ways to help coastal retailers with this important aspect of their business,” says Conference Director Kristin Ely. “Each panelist has a unique perspective and different approaches that retailers will be able to identify with and adapt to their own operations.”
To learn more about the conference, visit www.coastal connectionsconference.com.
Coastal Connections Conference will also be donating a portion of the proceeds from the event to Maui wildfire relief efforts.
Surf Expo, a watersports and coastal lifestyle trade show, wrapped up its summer show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Sept. 7-9. With more than 730 exhibiting brands participating, the event served as the industry launchpad for retailers to discover new and innovative product lines breaking for summer 2024 and beyond.
“Our summer show was a resounding success with solid attendance from both buyers and exhibitors,” says Roy Turner, Emerald senior vice president and Surf Expo show director. “Our pre-registration numbers were up from last year with on-site attendance in line with 2022. The show floor was steady with activity from qualified buyers. Buyers were eager to see the latest products and trends, and exhibitors were happy to connect with customers.”
Surf Expo continues to evolve its product assortment spanning from surfboards and wetsuits to paddleboards and kayaks. There were also exhibits on surf apparel, swimwear, footwear, coastal gifts, beachwear, gifts and accessories, as well as technical apparel, gear and accessories extending into fishing, camping and hiking.
The Friday before the event, Authentic Brands Group completed the purchase of Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, RVCA, DC Shoes, Element, VonZipper, Honolua, and Boardriders. Turner calls it “probably the biggest change that has happened on the brand side of the surf industry in 40 years.”
The show continues to be a driving platform for buyers and brands to connect in person, create exclusive collaborations and collections, learn about new products and trends and do business. And those who did come got to see more than 175 new vendors.
“There seems to be a lot of entrepreneurial reinvigoration in the marketplace again on both the surfboard sports and resort side,” says Turner. While longtime vendors reported successful shows, Turner noted that Surf is also about “finding new products that can differentiate a retailer and put the specialty back in specialty retail.”
To add to the excitement on the show floor, Surf Expo announced its inaugural Surf Expo Awards, a new awards program to honor product excellence in the watersports and coastal lifestyle industries.
Brands will have until Nov. 17 to submit nominations. Winners will be selected by a judging panel consisting of experienced industry executives and the Surf Expo staff. Finalists will be announced Dec. 15, and the winners will be revealed during the January 2024 event.
Surf Expo featured a full schedule of events to keep attendees busy, including learning labs presented by Board Retailers Association, fashion shows and happy hours.
The show was also a time for the industry to come together to help those affected by the recent wildfires in Maui. Instead of selling a commemorative T-shirt, this year Surf Expo, with help from Lancaster Logistics and Katin, sold a shirt for Maui with 100% of the proceeds going toward the Maui Sports Foundation.
“We have a large contingency from Hawaii both in the wholesale and the retail level,” notes Turner.
Surf Expo will return Jan. 10-12, 2024, to the Orange County Convention Center’s West Concourse.
RedlineXpo has announced the introduction of a trade show designed to drive new business and bring new energy to the souvenir, gift and resortwear industry.
The Reunion: A Souvenir, Gift, and Resort Show, April 4-6 at The Mirage Convention Center in Las Vegas, is designed to provide retail buyers the chance to browse new designs at a strategic time in the buying cycle that will make ordering and fulfillment faster and easier.
The Reunion will showcase products from exhibitors across the U.S., as well as international manufacturers, according to the organizers. Nearly every category of souvenir and resort product will be on display with a wide array of designs making their debut at this show. Helmed by industry leaders Doug Miller and Tim von Gal, the expo is expected to feature product providers and attendees from some of the largest enterprises in the United States.
“Despite every challenge in the marketplace over the last few years — and there have been a lot — this industry has stayed positive, continued to support one another, and put their heart and soul into everything they produce,” says Doug Miller, co-founder, RedlineXpo.
Hosting the show in April provides exhibitors even more time to meet with customers and fulfill orders despite any macro supply chain issues that might disrupt business as usual. And expo attendees will get more time to collect orders and ensure that product is customized and distributed according to their timeline, according to show executives.
The Reunion is the second trade show owned and operated by RedlineXpo. In addition to Miller and von Gal, RedlineXpo is run by resort and souvenir trade show veterans Matt Miller, Evan Shoda, Dirk von Gal and Jhana Jordan.
“With this new date, the commitments we’ve heard already have been so positive, and there’s no doubt this will be an exceptional show,” Jordan says.
More information about The Reunion is available at www.thereunionexpo.com.
Two Las Vegas Fashion Week events – Womenswear in Nevada (WWIN) operated by Clarion Events Inc. and Las Vegas Apparel operated by ANDMORE (formerly International Market Centers) – will co-locate at the Expo at World Market Center Las Vegas beginning in 2024. The collaboration creates a new destination and amenity-driven experience as part of Las Vegas Fashion Week each February and August.
The two buying events assemble under one roof to present over 500 brands in a purpose-built downtown Las Vegas trade show destination designed to cater to the evolving needs of apparel and accessories buyers and sellers. Clarion Events and ANDMORE say the co-location will offer market-goers an improved experience with a broader depth of apparel and accessories styles, categories and price points with easier navigation, gift and lifestyle crossover brands.
Clarion Events and ANDMORE say the two markets will evenly divide the Expo at World Market Center Las Vegas, each maintaining individual brand identities and allowing buyers to shop between the two events. The two markets will run concurrently Feb. 13-15, 2024.
The International Gift Exposition in the Smokies (IGES), the largest gift and souvenir show in the Smoky Mountains managed by New York-based Emerald, has partnered with Enchanted Moments, a sales organization representing the toy and gift industry for the East Coast.
IGES says the partnership will launch the Toy + On Trend Pavilion at the November edition of IGES.
The pavilion will debut within the Sevierville, Tennessee, location of IGES, which takes place Nov. 7-9, showcasing more than 35 vendors to over 6,000 buyers.
The new marketplace will feature an array of games, toys and hobby essentials from trending brands, including Super Impulse, Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty, Deluxebase, Fun In Motion, Playvision, Big Discoveries, Grandpa Joe’s Candy and Incredible Play.
According to IGES, the Toy + On Trend Pavilion will sit alongside other pavilions, such as Campground, Made in America and Sustainably Made Products, which is a partnership with the Fair Trade Federation.
The pavilions will all be located within the Sevierville Convention Center, one of the two locations for IGES, the other being the LeConte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.
IGES events take place Nov. 7-11, and registration is free for qualified buyers.
Gift for Life, the gift, stationery and home decor industry’s sole national charitable organization, has welcomed Samantha Grimaldi, group marketing director of gift & souvenir at Clarion Events North America, to its board of directors.
Grimaldi has worked with trade shows and events since 2010 across industries such as gaming, restaurant and foodservice, and specialty retail. She was introduced to Gift for Life when she joined the gift & souvenir team at Clarion Events in 2019 and shortly after partnered with the organization to raise awareness and support for World Central Kitchen.
“We are thrilled to have Sam join the Gift for Life Board,” says Ari Lowenstein, board chair of Gift for Life. “Her diverse knowledge and marketing prowess will help expand our reach into new industries. I am excited to work alongside Sam and our entire board as we raise awareness for World
Central Kitchen and their efforts to address food insecurity and provide crisis relief across the globe.”
In her role as marketing director of gift & souvenir at Clarion Events, Grimaldi has helped create dedicated events serving the gift, souvenir and resort industry. Clarion Events’ portfolio includes some of the largest and longest running souvenir, resort and gift trade shows, including the Las Vegas Souvenir & Resort Gift Show, Smoky Mountain Gift Show, Philadelphia Gift Show, Ocean City Resort Gift Expo, Grand Strand Gift & Resort Merchandise Show, The Gathering and The Gathering West.
“I am so honored to join the board of directors for Gift for Life,” says Grimaldi. “I had the chance to work together with Gift for Life as they raised money for hunger relief
throughout the pandemic and was able to witness the strong sense of community that the gift and souvenir industry has. I look forward to working with the rest of the board to support and raise awareness for this year’s initiatives.”
Gift for Life was founded in 1992 by a small group of gift industry professionals responding to the loss of friends and colleagues as a result of AIDS. Since then, Gift for Life has raised nearly $6 million for AIDS research and education as well as HIV/ AIDS prevention and treatment with charity partners.
In 2021, the organization pivoted its focus to online digital events with an emphasis on COVID-related hunger relief. This year, the organization is continuing to support programs that address hunger relief.
The summer 2023 Atlanta Market, July 11-17 at AmericasMart Atlanta, energized the gift and home industry with a series of new offerings — including an elevated arrival experience, new casual and outdoor resources and an enhanced @Market app — all presented against the backdrop of the new ANDMORE branding.
Buyers from all 50 states and nearly 50 countries attended Atlanta Market, with an increase in northeastern, western and international representation.
Some 14 industry buying groups and member-based organizations added to the overall buying power. According to ANDMORE, the event featured 6,000 brands, 1,000 showrooms and 1,100 temporaries across the gift and home categories to benefit buyers.
Buyers at the show also used ANDMORE’s new @Market app, which launched at Atlanta Market. With Scan & Go QR code technology, the app served as a digital contribution to help buyers in the marketplace. Atlanta Market returns to AmericasMart Atlanta Jan. 1622, 2024.
New product introductions, expansive programming and advanced at-market technology combined to deliver a positive market experience for buyers and sellers at the summer 2023 Las Vegas Market, July 30-Aug. 3, 2023, at World Market Center Las Vegas.
With attendance representing nearly all 50 states and 49 countries, buyers from around the world converged at Las Vegas Market to find the latest and greatest from 1,000-plus suppliers of furniture, decor and gifts.
While the majority of attendees hailed from the West and Southwest, the summer edition also recorded a double-digit increase in buyers from the Southeast. In addition to interior designers and retailers large and small, Las Vegas Market hosted some 12 nationwide buying groups, bringing business connections and exponential purchasing power to the July event.
Beyond exhibits, the market offered more than 30 events, educational programs and activities over five days. The winter 2024 Las Vegas Market is Jan. 28–Feb. 1, 2024.
If you’ve attended a trade show in the souvenir gift and resort retail industry, you’ve likely encountered the three letters ZAG. These letters have a powerful impact for a growing community of zoo, aquarium and garden retail buyers as well as industry sponsors. Membership in the group numbers more than 300 buyers, and about 200 industry sponsors support the group.
“It is a great way to grow in the industry and be able to network with industry professionals,” says longtime board member Tommy Brown. “Plus, you make some long-lasting friendships along the way.”
Brown is the retail manager and buyer of conservation goods for the Saint Louis Zoo. He has consulted for museums, attractions, theme parks and zoos throughout the world. He currently serves on the ZAG board and other advisory boards and has many published works throughout the industry.
As a professional speaker, he has delivered many talks on retail, merchandising, conservation, diversity and sustainability. He shares more in the following Q&A.
Souvenirs, Gifts & Novelties (SGN): What is ZAG and how has it evolved?
Tommy Brown (TB): ZAG formed in 2005 by a group of buyers from zoos and aquariums that wanted to share ideas and trends in the industry, and formally meet in Tennessee once a year during the Smoky Mountain Gift Show and International Gift Exposition in the Smokies (IGES).
This format worked for years as this group’s focus, but times and the industry were changing, as people were shifting their mindset to a “greener” way of buying and living.
The Zoo, Aquarium and Garden Buyer’s Group has a powerful presence for retail buyers looking for sustainable solutions.
In 2017, ZAG adopted gardens as part of its group, and switched the focus from trends and ideas to conservation and sustainability. During this time, ZAG exploded onto the forefront of being an industry leader for the independent institutional gift store buyer.
ZAG is a great source for sourcing products, trends and ideas, and we will constantly improve the organization to provide these resources and more.
SGN: What has played an important role in the success of ZAG?
TB: ZAG has collaborated with The Smoky Mountain Gift Show and IGES for years to provide tours on sustainability, educational seminars, classes and ZAG mixers. The shows have always been great partners with ZAG, and together we have had great impact within the retail industry.
Partnerships are so important to ZAG as shows and marketplaces help get messages out to our large membership base and support our retail educational work. Las Vegas Market Center hosted
ZAG has a full plate of events during Tennessee Market Week, Nov. 7-11, starting with IGES in Sevierville; this show will offer conservation tours for those enrolled in the Sustainability in Retail Professional Program. ZAG will pay for all of its active members to take the class.
Speakers Include ZAG Board Member Tommy Brown, retail manager and buyer of conservation goods for Saint Louis Zoo; Edward M. Spevak, Ph.D., director, Center for Native Pollinator Conservation, Saint Louis Zoo; Nicole Leinbach, founder, Retail Minded.com, retail professor and author of Retail 101; and Chris Solt, executive director, Fair Trade Federation.
our very first ZAG tour on conservation over 10 years ago now, and now you can see ZAG tours and representation at many different shows throughout the nation, such as the Smoky Mountain Gift Show, IGES and the Coastal Connections Conference.
Not only have the shows played an important role in ZAG’s success, it takes a dedicated board of volunteers and ZAG sponsors. Our volunteer board consists of the following members: David Whitaker (North Carolina Zoo Society); Tommy Brown (Saint Louis Zoo); Judy Rancour (Saint Louis Zoo); Rosemary Domas (Wildlife Conservation Society); Elie Johnson (ZooTampa at Lowry Park), Samantha Halligan (Lake Superior Zoological Society); Shelia Wewers (Como Park Zoo & Conservatory); April Terranella (Kansas City Zoo); and Shelby Salestrom (Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens).
This team creates quarterly newsletters, plans industry events, provides retail educational outreach, hosts the ZAG website and much more. Even with a great board of volunteers, ZAG could not do all it does without its sponsor base that financially supports all of ZAG’s efforts.
To learn more about becoming a member or a sponsor, visit www.zaggift.com. SGN
According to IGES, this course is designed to empower retailers to make meaningful and sustainable changes in business. Through lectures, discussions and hands-on activities, attendees will gain an understanding of the principles of sustainability and how to apply them. The program will explore the environmental, social and economic impacts and teach participants to create action plans. Additionally, it will cover the role of retail in sustainability and identify ways to create more eco-friendly practices in your store.
The program includes a pre-show webinar, Oct. 25 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET; a hands-on tour from 3:30 to 4 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 7 at Sevierville Convention Center, and recognition during the opening night party where participants will receive a certificate of completion.
During Smoky Mountain Gift Show, ZAG will offer members a new Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, Inclusion (DEAI) breakfast seminar on Nov. 10 at 8 a.m., in Gatlinburg.
“We will cover why giving minority and women-owned companies a chance in your gift shop is good for growth and connecting to your whole community,” says Brown. “For example, hosting a deaf day in your shop with ASL communicators helps include more people that may have been overlooked in the community.”
Brown says ZAG will still have its familiar tours in Gatlinburg and a ZAG Mixer at Rain Forest Adventures, Nov. 9 at 6 p.m.
ZAG is also offering member lunches at IGES’s 10-year celebration in Pigeon Forge, and a Hootenanny Luncheon at The Smoky Mountain Gift Show — something completely new this year for its membership, according to Brown.
Learn more about IGES at www.iges.us, and learn more about Smoky Mountain Gift Show at www.smokymtngiftshow.com.
“It is a great way to grow in the industry and be able to network with industry professionals. Plus, you make some long lasting friendships along the way.”
— TOMMY BROWN
Eight retail shops at Anakeesta Mountaintop Adventure make for a thrilling hunt for the ultimate keepsake.
The only way in is by way of a Chandola — a chairlift mixed with open-air, four-person seats and enclosed gondola-style cabins — or the Ridge Rambler — a 45-passenger military vehicle that stands nearly 14 feet tall. Either way, the climb to the top is 600 feet to the summit of Anakeesta Mountaintop Adventure Park. And that’s just the ride in.
Once inside Firefly Village, guests are invited to choose their own adventure of walking on bridges suspended 50 to 60 feet in the air on the Canopy Treetop Skywalk; sailing through the Smoky Mountains on the Dueling Zipline Adventure; conquering the TreeVenture Challenge Course; soaring down the Rail Runner Mountain Coaster; and of course — taking in the view on the Anavista observation tower — the highest point in downtown Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
Opened in 2017, Anakeesta is an outdoor adventure-themed family park that promises to deliver visitors to the heart of what the Smoky Mountains are known for — connecting to nature. With a botanical garden, views of Mount LeConte, and breathtaking scenery in every direction, guests are treated to playing, dining, and shopping in a village that resembles a mythical world only accessible by Hollywood — until now thanks to co-founders, Bob and Karen Bentz.
“Bob and Karen Bentz had this dream of bringing a really amazing, authentic experience that really represents the Smoky Mountains,” says Megan Black, retail director for Ana-
keesta. “They wanted to bring in that village-top vibe on the mountain, kind of take you back to what the heart of Gatlinburg used to be.”
The landscape architects named their creation Anakeesta — a Cherokee word that means “place of high ground,” or “place of the balsams,” depending on who you ask.
And in six short years, the mountaintop has become a playground for more than a million visitors a year, according to Black. While 10 dining venues are waiting to tempt visitors with craft beers, juicy southern barbecue, homemade fried pies and other culinary delights, eight gift shops are ready to welcome guests in search of the perfect souvenirs.
“I think when it comes to souvenirs, we try to take what is special to the guest from Anakeesta and put that into their souvenir goods,” Black explains. “So whether it’s a tower T-shirt because you’ve made it to the top of the Anavista Tower … or a keychain — anything that can extend that Anakeesta experience.”
Black notes because each store has its own identity, the retail team does its best to use the windows and the feature table in each gift shop to set the vibe and tell a story of what’s in the rest of the store.
“We try really hard just to set the tone for the guests so that they know what they’re walking into and bring
them in,” she explains. “We want the guests to come in and be able to kind of wander around the store and take it all in because we want there to be something for everyone.”
For instance, Black notes, Adventure Outpost “is the go-to shop for anything branded.” Bear Essentials is dedicated to outdoor enthusiasts who love nature. Catching Fireflies is a boutique that caters to women’s fashion trends and children’s imaginations. Mercantile features home goods and consumables like jams, jellies and soaps. Trail Head is a mini popup shop for seasonal needs. The Great Outdoors Trading Company tries to capture all explorers of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park at the base of the mountain. The Gem Mine caters to kids who can’t get enough of hunting for rocks and precious gems. And coming soon — the Fur Trader in Stone Village will be dedicated to the animals who make the Smoky Mountains their home.
Black notes a trademark of Anakeesta’s souvenirs is in the custom artwork it uses to stand out from neighboring shops, such as on its number-one selling product — T-shirts. Another signature characteristic, she notes, is the quality of
the products in each of the stores.
“Whether it’s a higher-end [T-shirt] that washes better, we’re standing behind our goods and figuring out ways that we can be one step above the competition,” she explains. “Year after year, it gets harder to not have the same goods as the person down the street so it really pushes us to be more creative and find ways to source those goods.”
She explains, it’s carrying items like unique artwork but also trying to find areas where Anakeesta can stand out “because everyone’s gonna have a T-shirt, but everyone’s not gonna have a really cool Anakeesta T-shirt.”
And creativity doesn’t just stop there. Displaying the merchandise is the eye candy that brings the sale home.
“The Great Outdoors Trading has a raft full of plush bears. And so you may not love it if you’re the parent, but the kids love it,” Black notes with a laugh. “They walk right into the store and they’re drawn to this bright blue bouncy creation that we have stuffed full of black bears. I think that’s definitely one of our more unique displays.”
In the Mercantile, which Black refers to as the park’s “modern take on a general store,” floor-toceiling cubes immerse customers in all available options, including farmhouse decor and unique kitchen goods.
She adds that fixtures have been a focus more recently as the outfit tries to standardize it with “units that are able to flex with a product assortment, but also still give us the ability to make them still look unique.
“So at [The Great Outdoor Trading Company], you’ll find lanterns on the wall and you’ll find really cool chandeliers and different fishing and hiking gear that kind of intrigue you to check out the displays as well,” she notes.
Black says she realized early on how important fixture placement was when she found customers
stuck in a continuous one-way loop in Catching Fireflies — a conundrum that made shopping difficult.
“You could only go in a circle … and if you didn’t pick up what you wanted on your first walk through, you couldn’t turn around,” she recalls. “So … either you were going to leave or you’re going to have to make your second lap.”
She says the staff quickly redid the fixture placement to include pull-off areas that allowed customers to step over to the side “and shop whatever you want and pick out your favorite set of earrings or what have you.”
When it comes to stocking the shelves and tables, Black says there are endless vendors who contribute to Anakeesta’s success, particularly because the stores’ themes vary so greatly.
For impulse buys, hot pickups, winter gear, jewelry and other essentials, Black says they call on SE Marketplace in Atlanta. For winter gear, Baypoint apparel is a go-to wholesaler. When comes to hats, L2 is among the A-listers. Brands like Cotopaxi, Simply Southern, Outdoor Research and Cool Jewels all have a place in their starting lineup as well.
Guests can find TGT Stickers merchandise when perusing stickers, keychains, magnets and patches in multiple stores as well as Blue Planet Eco Eyewear sunglasses. Myra handbags in Mercantile also rank among the favorites, Black notes.
Locally, vendors like the Potter and the Park are called upon for mugs while Soapy Mountain Suds stocks the soap in Mercantile.
And for plush, there are several heavy hitters be-
cause as Black notes, “You can never have enough plush.”
Schylling, Wild Republic, The Stuffed Animal House, Fiesta Toys and Aurora are among those called on to fill the shelves and expectant hands of enamored children.
Black says that other than T-shirts, two of the most popular items are toys, which is why black plush bears and Neato! fidget balls are stocked in more than one location.
“We have a wide variety of kids’ toys and plush to choose from because it’s really important that we are able to target that kid group as well,” she points out. “We have a little something for them in each of our locations.”
But there was a time not so long ago when black bears weren’t easy to come by. In 2020 and 2021 when supply chain issues were running as rampant as COVID, Black recalls one of the greatest challenges she’s encountered in working at Anakeesta.
“I could not get black plush bears from anyone,” she recalls. “And I feel like I was searching the entire world to find some plush black bears because that’s just one of our top-selling categories. I had to have it.”
She adds although it’s a funny example, it taught her the importance of working through uncontrollable variables — not just doing the best with what you have but achieving perfection in not-so-perfect circumstances.
“So really kind of taking what we did have and piecing it together and still making very strong product displays, even though the guests probably never knew it, but we didn’t have all the goods that we wanted to offer,” she explains. “But we really just try to figure out what is it that we feel are nonnegotiable for the guests. What do we want to have for them and what can we do as a replacement or another solution to get them what we wanted to be able to offer them?”
While all of these snap decisions come naturally now, there was a time in the not-so-distant past
“We have a wide variety of kids’ toys and plush to choose from because it’s really important that we are able to target that kid group as well. We have a little something for them in each of our locations.”
— MEGAN BLACK
where not only was she the one making the decisions, but she was doing so without a safety net.
“It all started with just me,” she says more in passing than matter-of-factly. “It’s crazy to think about.”
GROWING AN ARMY
Black cut her teeth in retail working in store leadership at a shopping mall through college while earning a degree in business administration. With eight years under her belt, she was looking for the next career opportunity when she was invited in 2018 to run Anakeesta’s fledgling retail operations, which consisted of just three shops at the time — all under 600 square feet.
She admits her previous experience focused on the basics of management and required little creativity.
“I came from having all the visuals handed to me, having the product just arrive at the back door whenever it was supposed to,” 35-year-old Black recalls. “Really, I was focused in my past life on people management, store excellence, operations and that kind of thing.”
With her desk as her mothership, Black dove into learning about all of the other facets of retail she needed to run the Anakeesta gift shops successfully — a challenge she embraced wholeheartedly.
“I got my feet wet real fast on buying and managing and all of the other components that I never really had to learn before,” she explains. “I can remember sitting at my desk when I first started, and that’s the place where I did all the ordering, all the scheduling, all of the interviews, all the receiving. Literally, UPS would drop
the boxes off in front of my desk and that’s all we needed five years ago.”
Today, she stands at the helm of an operation that oversees a team of two retail operation managers, a warehouse manager, a product planning leader and support staff totaling 55 employees between the gift shops and the warehouse.
“The park’s grown, the department’s grown, so definitely my teams had to grow with it,” Black points out. “I feel very blessed to have the opportunity to grow with a company like I have had with Anakeesta. And a lot of that goes back to the owners, too. They’re very supportive. They had the dream to build Anakeesta years ago, and they brought it to life.”
And every day, while the guests are busy taking chances, seeking out the beauty of nature and challenging themselves as they wind their way through their adventure on the mountaintop, Black is looking for ways to up the ante to create the ultimate retail experience.
“I feel like I’m always trying to challenge myself to make the department better than it was before,” she says. “Whether that’s teaching an employee a more efficient way to fold a T-shirt or getting to redesign an entire store’s new concept, there’s just always an opportunity to grow the department and I just love being a part of building what the department is and is going to be.”
But she is quick to add that she’s not alone in her goal to achieve excellence. It takes a whole team of visionaries to reach the kind of success they’ve had in such a short time.
“The growth has just been phenomenal,” she remarks. “The team is always trying to figure out ways to continue to grow so that we keep everyone coming back year after year for what it is that we have new to offer. I don’t think we’re going to slow down anytime soon.” SGN
STORY BY CHRISTINE SCHAFFRAN
MOUNTAIN AND ANIMAL THEMES NEVER GO OUT OF STYLE.
From the Great Smoky Mountains to the Poconos to the San Bernardino Mountains, whether sitting, standing, drinking, sleeping, walking or climbing, the bears have it. That is to say they have the attention of the customers who visit gift shops in mountain regions across the country.
Although the Mountain Brothers General Store in Sevierville, Tennessee, is known most for its gourmet Vienna Coffee selection, its location can’t help but show love and appreciation for the landscape and the wildlife that surrounds it.
“Oh yeah we have all sorts of Smoky Mountain bear-themed coffee mugs,
shot glasses, a big souvenir section — all mountain-themed,” notes Tyson Maples, who owns the 12,000-squarefoot gift shop with his wife, Kristi. Sayings like “The mountains are calling and I must go” grace signs, home decor, figurines, T-shirts, keychains, magnets and other souvenirs that visitors flock to for a reminder of their time in the Great Smoky Mountains.
But the playful nature of the bears doesn’t stop at the doors to the store. Outside, giant bears made of hay bales tower above the establishment and welcome guests to snap selfies with them, each appropriately dressed for the nearest season or holiday.
Among the vendors who provide products for the store is a local wood carver whose work is displayed both within the showroom and outside with bears holding welcome signs, climbing trees, and simply standing at attention.
“We have a big, huge wood carver he’s nationally known that does all these wood carvings so we have bear wood carvings, and we have the little bear figurines, you know 5-inch-tall ones up to these great big figurines,” Maples notes. “We have paintings from local artists, and we also have your normal wood signs with the bears on it. There’s a lot of handmade stuff from local artisans with bears and the great Smoky Mountains.”
home.
Maples estimates 25% of the shop’s offerings come from local artists. And when it comes to wholesale items, he says his wife looks to the Park Hill Collection, Audrey’s – Your Hearts Delight, Mud Pie and similar popular brands.
“Basically, my wife is on the computer all the time at night and then when we go to markets, we always find different furniture; we have a lot of antique pieces. Everything is usually displayed on an antique or something.”
And when it comes to drawing customers to mountain-themed merchandise and the bears that people desire, Maples says it’s the displays that really bring the products to life.
“The main thing is I think is just the way my wife displays it and we take it back to the old peddler days, too. We have an old wagon and it’s all kind of family-themed,” he notes. “She always decorates it in a different mountain theme with different plants that she buys from Ragon House.”
But nothing speaks to customers more than the picture-perfect backdrop of the Great Smoky Mountains located just outside the doors of the general store.
“There’s a huge field behind us that’s all ours and then all behind that is just mountains,” Maples says. “So, everybody sits out in our fields and we’re right at the entrance of the Smokies. We’re closer than any other store.”
So just what is it that compels customers to buy bear and mountain-themed apparel and gifts?
Tara Martinell, general manager of the Alpine Ski & Gift Shop in Tannersville, Pennsylvania, believes people want to feel a connection to the area they are visiting.
“It’s the area because we have bears in the area and the mountains, so when people come here, that’s what they want,” Martinell says. “They want a souvenir of what they see, even if they haven't seen a bear — probably because if they’ve seen it, they would be running the other way — but they definitely want something of what is offered in this area.”
Sandwiched in the Pocono Mountains just minutes away from the Camelback Ski Resort, Martinell is the third generation to operate the gift and rental shop and says after 50 years, the family has it dialed in on what visitors are going to buy.
“A lot with Pocono mountains and the mountain theme. Obviously being in a mountain range, people tend to gravitate towards those kinds of things,” says Martinell, whose brother, Dan Martinell, now owns the establishment. “They want something with a bear or a deer on it actually, but bears are way more popular this year.”
Among the T-shirts, mugs, hoodies, shot glasses, keychains, magnets, cut-out signs, hand towels, stuffed animals, beach items, ski apparel and accessories, crystals, gems, incense, candles, toys, candy, jewelry, flip flops, water shoes, sunglasses, sunscreen, beach towels and everything else Alpine has to offer, Martinell notes mountains, lakes, and waterfalls are among the motifs in high demand.
To find these items, Martinell relies on a sales rep that she says has been assisting her for more than
“Everybody sits out in our fields and we’re right at the entrance of the Smokies. We’re closer than any other store.”
— TYSON MAPLES, MOUNTAIN BROTHERS GENERAL STORE
15 years with apparel, mugs, shot glasses and similar items. More recently, she says, she has turned to some smaller local events and also Faire, an online wholesale marketplace for retailers and brands.
As for displaying products, Martinell says it doesn’t take much to showcase it because customers are already attracted to it.
“I think it’s more the merchandise itself that makes it stand out,” she says. “And then we move it around constantly to see which area sells fast.
Wondering what types of animal and wilderness gifts and souvenirs to feature at your cozy lodge or mountain gift shop?
Kip Zsupnik, CEO of A&F Souvenir in St. Jacobs, Ontario, says to take a look around before you decide. It all depends on the nearby wildlife.
“It does vary according to region, but only based on the animals,” notes Zsupnik, whose company has been in the business since 1962. “Animal-themed product is very popular … so if you’re in the Smokies, it’s a black bear of course, if you’re in the Rockies, it might be an elk, a moose or a grizzly bear, or let’s say you’re in the Badlands, the bison would be huge up there. The animal-themed goods are very popular in those areas.”
To find products that hit all the right notes, A&F Souvenir uses custom artwork to build a collection for a client instead of just focusing on one item.
“Something that has really been curated for the customer has been very popular for us and so we try to build on a collection,” he explains. “Let’s say it’s a collection for a Rocky Mountain National Park-type place, we’ll do a lot of elk-
There’s obviously particular areas of the store that sell fast. If we put something there, it moves.”
She adds given the locale, carrying mountain and bear merchandise is a no-brainer.
“It’s always just been what we’ve sold because of where we are being the mountains,” she points out. “Besides adding in the jewelry and the crystals lately, we’ve always kind of had that theme. It’s just what works for the area.”
And when you’re in a location like Big Bear Lake, California, the name of the game — and the souvenir — is bears. Such is the case for the Brown Bear Gift Shop, which is located in the thick of the resort town known for “excellent fishing, snowboarding and skiing, hiking, mountain biking,” according to Big Bear’s official travel and tourism website, www.bigbear.com.
With an outdoor facade reminiscent of the Old West, the shop showcases everything-bears to appeal to the crowds who come for their love of the town.
“So mostly all of our apparel is Big Bear and California themed,” says Nick Stebbins, the store’s
themed products, but tie the artwork in with multiple items, so it might be the drinkware, the T-shirts, hats, whatever it might be — it will all just tie together.”
Among the popular items, he notes, are mugs that are 17 ounces or larger, stainless steel bottles, anything that makes an eco-statement, and mugs and shot glasses with “multiple elements to them.”
“So, a glaze with cork, or a glaze with terra cotta, or a glaze with stone, something like that,” he adds. “We’re seeing a lot of elevated souvenirs in that category, not your run-of-the-mill cheap souvenirs.”
For Mountain Graphics in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, the name says it all. In fact, their entire line of bags, T-shirts, bandanas, water bottles, hats, patches, stickers, sweats, magnets and wooden products are branded with outdoor messages. The family-owned company has been “providing printed apparel to people who love the outdoors” since 1986, according to the company’s website.
Owner Mark Newruck says the simplicity of their product line is their “bread and butter.” However, he notes
that there are certain themes that are naturally better sellers.
“Bears always do well,” he says. “And hiking-related items. Anything to do with mountains, hiking, camping, campfires, those are icons we migrate to with our wildlife and outdoor apparel.”
And as far as which one is the most popular, it’s a toss-up.
“They’re all pretty equal,” he says. “I guess it just depends on the area.”
In other words, know the region and what it’s known for, and buy accordingly. Customers won’t be able to resist.
Mountain, hiking and camping icons sell well no matter the region.
assistant manager. “That can range from scenic art of the mountains or bears, but everything is generally themed around Big Bear and bears; but then again there’s a handful of other things like raccoons or mountain life.”
While most anything goes — and most everything does go — among the staple souvenirs such as magnets, shot glasses, keychains, sweatshirts, shirts, hats, coffee mugs, sunglasses, seasonal gear, toys, jewelry, signs, incense, backpacks, hats, picture frames and stuffed animals, Stebbins says it is the figurines that are most popular.
time finding a souvenir.”
Additionally, Stebbins notes, displaying or grouping bears by type seems to streamline exactly what guests are looking for. For instance, for couples, there are bears holding flowers, kissing and holding hands while families appreciate the bears with cubs and holding signs that pledge their love to the “Beary Best Mom” grouped together.
To find just the right sayings and slogans, Stebbins says products by Slifka and Wilcor strike a chord with customers.
“Typically, our resin-molded figurines, or wooden figurines, our wood-carved items, we have tons of different little statuettes or lamps that are like two bears holding the lamp,” Stebbins says of the variety of figurines offered. “But a lot of it’s just kind of that knick-knack to put up on your shelf. Those sell the most outside of our T-shirts which are very popular year-round.”
In addition to the wall space for apparel and spinners for smaller items, glass shelves display various themes or groups to appeal to different demographics.
“We’ll have knick-knacks and things that are like more for couples or older customers, but then we have cap guns or different little toys or we have a little bit of jewelry too, so that’s what the younger crowd typically gets, or the keychains,” Stebbins says. “We even have bear-themed stuffed animals, too, for the younger kids. We have a little bit for everybody, so that way everyone can have an easy
“I feel like people just gravitate toward more cutesy bears. I don’t know if this is just our town specifically, I feel like it is because we definitely draw a certain crowd to Big Bear, it’s almost like a time capsule if you will,” he explains. “We get tourists from all over from different groups. A lot of our guests are very patriotic between 50 and 60 years old, and they like a lot of the ‘Get off my lawn’ bears or things like that. But that’s why I think Big Bear is more of a time capsule, it’s a place for older souls and that kind of demographic.”
No matter the location, retailers agree the mountain and animal themes are good sellers; while none could point to a specific trend they see emerging, all agreed it’s because bears and mountains never go out of style or lose popularity. If anything, Stebbins notes, the allure of bears goes in waves.
“It’s actually kind of weird how it works. We might go a week or two without selling almost any let’s say magnets and then out of nowhere we’ll sell 100 magnets in a day,” he notes. “So they’re not really long-term trends, it’s just kind of flash like maybe one thing is popular that day because one person sees one guy buying it and then they buy it.”
And just like that, he can bear-ly keep it on the shelves. SGN
“We have a little bit for everybody, so that way everyone can have an easy time finding a souvenir.” — NICK STEBBINS, BROWN BEAR GIFT SHOP
Aday at the zoo or a visit to a museum would not be complete without a trip to the gift shop, and for those destinations with animals as the main attraction, plush animals are big business.
While ZooMontana’s Wild Side Gift Shop carries zoo-branded apparel and souvenirs, books and hardline toys like games and puzzles, Kathy Barton, guest services manager, says the store also carries “plush, plush, plush!”
In fact, these cuddly, stuffed creatures make up 45 to 48% of gift shop sales. “Plush reigns supreme,” she says. Why? “Kids love to have something to cuddle on the way home that will remind them of the fun day they had at the zoo.”
In keeping with the zoo’s mission to educate and conserve, Barton restricts the plush styles she carries in the store to only the species that reside at ZooMontana and as close to lifelike as possible.
“You won’t find big-beaming-eyed red pandas or rainbow sloths here, but the customers don’t seem to mind,” she says. “They love that the brands we carry are dedicated to sustainability — like the Eco Pals or Plan lines by Nature Planet. Aurora, Wild Republic and The Petting Zoo round out the rest of our selection.”
Plush is front and center in the store no matter which way customers enter. The large central display was made from recycled electrical wire spools, stacked and fitted with shelves, cubbies and baskets.
“It totally fits Montana’s barnwood vibes and allows us to build a visually engaging vertical display on a relatively small footprint,” Barton explains.
And Barton is noticing some interesting trends this year with plush. “Things are shrinking. More and more shoppers are buying those tiny plush, and
vendors are adding more and more species to their tiny plush lines.”
Wild Side Gift Shop carries small 5- to 6-inch pieces like Wild Republic’s Pocketkins, which Barton says are consistently at the top of the store’s list of bestsellers. “At $6.45, it’s the perfect price point for many shoppers.”
The animals that tend to fly out the door the most are the sloth, red panda, tiger, wolf and snake. And because plush is so popular, outselling hardline toys by 4 to 1, Barton is even considering offering promos to shift some of the slower moving or overstocked toys. “For example, 50% off plush when you buy a puzzle.”
At the Virginia Living Museum where more than 250 species of animals native to the state reside, the Wild Things Gift Store is busting at the seams with plush of just about any style, animal and size one could want.
The venue features mammals, marine life, reptiles, amphibians, birds, plants and planets presented in natural ecosystems that connect people to nature through educational experiences that promote conservation. While dinosaurs are long extinct, the museum also pays homage to them with activities, including a summer animatronic dinosaur exhibit and a Dino Trail where kids can
Sustainable products are becoming more and more important to zoo, aquarium and museum gift shops that support their venue’s conservation mission. Responding to that need are companies such as Wild Republic, which offers lines of plush with sustainable features. During the summer Las Vegas Market, Tiffani Meighen, Wild Republic’s sales manager for North and South America shared more on how the company is increasing its sustainability efforts through its products in response to market needs.
The company is replicating its popular CK line of plush to an eco-friendly version called CK Eco. “The only difference is they are completely recycled and they have the stitched eye versus the plastic eye,” described Meighen. “And the reason we are going that route is that even though we have a recycled plastic eye we could do, there are some zoos and states that are starting to move directly towards no plastics whatsoever.”
Wild Republic is starting to create CK Eco products with its most popular plush. It’s Pocketkins are also transitioning to Eco Poketkins and will be made from 100% recycled materials.
The company has also introduced biodegradable toys, including some plush. “It is an additive that is added to the materials so that when in the right conditions it starts to break down,” explained Meighen.
The company’s Rubber line is also biodegradable. “We just started in the Aquatic line with those,” said Meighen.
“The whole focus of the company is sustainability. It’s the mission,” she added.
go on pretend digs for fossils.
“They are always a big hit,” says Stacy Queensberry, Wild Things Gift Store buyer, of dinosaurs.
She says gift shop customers are drawn to their favorite animal or dinosaur plush, with dinosaurs and snakes taking the No. 1 and No. 2 spot in terms of popularity. And unlike ZooMontana, not all the plush varieties are replicas of the animals living at the museum.
“I’ve got pink snakes. I’ve got purple snakes. I’ve got polka-dotted sequined snakes. Snakes sell all because of color,” says Queensberry. Plush makes up 42% of the store’s annual sales.
She also says price-point plays a factor. “My average price point on a sale per month is about $20 to $22 dollars. Yes I have some $100 plushies. Yes I have some $2.99 plushies, but the $20 to $22 price point is a happy price point I think for most people.”
In addition to dinos and snakes, foxes, wolves and otters are also popular in the plush category. The otter is Virginia Living Museum’s mascot and is even incorporated into its logo. Queensberry notes that she can’t just carry one plain otter, she has to have a mom and baby otter, a standing otter, an 8-inch otter, a 6-inch otter, an 18-inch otter and so forth.
A large tree is the focal point display visitors see when they enter the store. Queensberry says she tries to change out the displays every month depending on events and exhibits that are taking place at the museum. “It always has a plush in front of it and then behind the tree I have a large, 10-footlong table that has crates stacked on top of that.”
Throughout the store she has dedicated areas to plush themes, including one featuring sea life and another on butterflies and bees. There is also a display of just otters and one of foxes and bobcats.
Aside from the animal species, eco-friendliness is an important factor in the plush Virginia Living
Museum carries. Queensberry says the store is focused on making sure the eyes are either sewn in or made from recycled plastics.
Wild Republic, Douglas and Rhode Island Novelty are among the top brands Queensberry keeps stocked. And customers are drawn to different brands for different reasons such as how realistic they are, how soft they are or price point.
The top demographic for plush tends to be the children ages 5 to 8 years old, but Queensberry notes that teenagers and even young adults “love opossums and other odd animals.” They like the way opossum’s tail curls up, or the color of the frogs or the realistic look of the snapping turtle.
“The snapping turtle has been a huge hit lately, and I didn’t think it would do very well because it is a $32 price point and it is a sublimation print, not fur, but the realistic look of it catches a lot of people,” she notes.
Queensberry was also surprised when a 69inch alligator she purchased for a display sold in short order.
ZooMontana’s selection of plush is restricted to the species that reside at the zoo and are close to lifelike.
“I never thought in a million years someone would come in and buy a $105, 69-inch alligator, but it sold in the first week. Needless to say, I bought two more.”
Queensberry says she strives to keep things fresh inside the store for museum members that come in frequently. The store is also open to the public who can shop regardless of whether they paid to visit the museum, making it a place where people come to buy unique gifts that often include an interesting plush toy or two. SGN
“I never thought in a million years someone would come in and buy a $105, 69-inch alligator, but it sold in the first week. Needless to say, I bought two more.” — STACY QUEENSBERRY, THE VIRGINIA LIVING MUSEUM
STORY BY HILLARY LARSON AND MEGAN SMALLEY
In tourist areas, retailers know there’s one factor that moves merchandise above all others: name dropping. That’s the philosophy behind souvenir shops like Mt. Rushmore T-Shirts, a Keystone, South Dakota, emporium where the apparel essentially sells itself.
“Everybody who comes in here is looking for a souvenir of Mt. Rushmore,” says Bria Dillabou, who recently bought the 30-year-old outlet. From sweatshirts and hats to hoodies and children’s toys, virtually everything in the store is name-dropped to feature the national tourist attraction.
Popular items include the store’s signature shirts in both short- and long-sleeve styles, featuring a variety of novelty graphics — from tie-dye to the Rushmore presidents’ images superimposed on the American flag and the Declaration of Independence.
Headwear is a perennial favorite for park tourists who seek respite from the sun under baseball caps and Indiana Jones-style “High Sierra” hats. They purchase pom-pom beanies for winter. The hats are all namedropped, of course, so they double as conversation pieces back home. The same goes for socks, backpacks,
blankets and other Mt. Rushmore accessories, including stickers to slap on parkgoers’ water bottles.
Sales have been strong since Dillabou took over the store in May. “It’s a change of pace,” says the veteran retailer, who previously operated a small boutique. At Mt. Rushmore T-Shirts, Dillabou organizes name-dropped apparel and accessories by size and gender, with distinct sections for ladies, men and unisex styles. “That way, everything is easy to find,” she says.
While shoppers’ appetite for named-dropped apparel essentially never wanes, Dillabou has been surprised by the appeal of minimalist graphics. “Many customers are drawn to very simple designs, which has been unexpected,” she says.
Simple name-dropped designs have also sold well at The Islands Mercantile in Johns Island, South Carolina. The store features products with both the Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island name drops, two islands that are close to the store. Most name-dropped apparel is geared toward Kiawah Is-
For the past few years, Alexa Schneider and Lauren Sampson managed a small screen-printing business from their garage in St. Petersburg, Florida. The small business initially focused on making T-shirts for local businesses.
This past May, 5801 Print House outgrew its garage workspace and upgraded to a 700-square-foot storefront at 5725 Central Ave. in St. Petersburg for screen-printing work. Schneider says she and Sampson recognized that the space was large enough to also offer retail, so they decided to turn half of the building into a souvenir shop.
Schneider says she hopes to expand the screen-printing side of the business and offer name-dropped souvenirs to more accounts in the state and even outside of Florida. One way 5801 Print House is doing that is through its new Map Tee Collection of shirts, which launched eight months ago.
Map Tee Collection shirts feature two-color design maps of a state across the back of the shirt, while the fronts feature a small name drop for a popular destination within that state. The state maps are decorated with retro-looking icons and graphics of other destinations within that state.
Schneider says vintage postcards and brochures helped to inspire the Map Tee Collection design.
“Originally when we made the Florida Map Tee, it was just meant to be sold in our store,” she says. “It quickly gained popularity and we had interest from neighboring cities and began wholesaling [the shirts] to other Florida locations.”
Schneider notes that the key to creating good, name-dropped products requires research on the destination. “Spend a few minutes designing something that stands out instead of simply swapping out the name in the same font of a generic design,” she says.
land because it is a bigger destination island, while Seabrook tends to be more residential.
Owner Avery Smith says T-shirts and hoodies with a simple arch lettering design are most popular with her customers.
“Name-dropped shirts sell every day all day long,” says Smith.
At destinations like the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi, everyone wants to bring home a logo. That’s why name-dropped apparel is by far the top-selling category at the museum gift shop, according to manager April Shaw.
“We try to make our newer styles stand out so that when you come in, you see it right away,” Shaw says. She displays the latest T-shirts, sweatshirts and hoodies on mannequins and piles them on colorful tables right up front by the store’s entrance. Going into summer, that display featured a new style of men’s shirt, along with a name-dropped hat to protect against the Southern sun. Most shirts were neatly displayed on racks, while socks were arrayed on tables.
Imagine Gift Store in Naples, Florida, offers tourists a wide variety of apparel: casual and resort wear, T-shirts, sweatshirts, shorts, caps, hats and pants. The store aims to offer a wide range of products that offer both value and quality that reflect the interests of all types of people.
“At Imagine, there’s always plenty of everything for everyone,” says Gene Oberhauser, owner of Imagine Gift Store, adding that the store offers a fun, friendly environment. “When people step into the store, they are greeted by our talking butler, the singing deer or the full-size Divas Cow. When the customer tells us, ‘I love this store,’ our mission to offer a fun-filled shopping experience has been achieved.”
Oberhauser says a $13.95 all-cotton silkscreen T-shirt with the Naples name drop is one of the store’s top-selling products and has been a staple for many years.
“It’s a great price for a quality shirt,” he says,
adding that hooded and crew sweatshirts also are popular sellers, particularly if they contain a Naples name drop. He says the store has name-dropped hoodies, sweatshirts, caps, visors and onesies for babies and toddlers.
“Name-drop garments are 95% of our sales, even though we stock other lines without a name drop,” Oberhauser explains.
He adds that many other products feature the Naples name drop at Imagine Gift Store, including glassware, magnets, keychains, hand towels, coasters, playing cards, postcards, bracelets, ornaments, frames, stickers, pens, signs, puzzles, books, koozies and snow globes.
Smith of Islands Mercantile notes that most of her store’s apparel features a name drop, with the exception of some patterned swim cover-ups. She also ensures namedropped T-shirts come in at least five to six color options for customers who are looking for a variety.
Socks are a popular impulse buy at many souvenir stores: Who can’t use another pair, especially one emblazoned with a vacation memory? At the Delta Blues Museum gift shop, name-dropped socks sold out and remain on backorder while patrons snap up styles featuring guitars, drums and other musical motifs.
Most of the gift shop merchandise bears the logo of the Delta Blues Museum; many popular shirts feature the names and likenesses of iconic musicians.
“Best-selling impulse buys depend on what shirts we’re showing, and even on the months,
because we feature different blues artists at different times of year,” Shaw says. April displays spotlight the singer Muddy Waters, who was born during that month. And Johnny Lee Hooker’s birthday is in August, so his T-shirts top sales in late summer.
Oberhauser notes that it’s important to keep name-dropped merchandise well-stocked throughout the year. At Imagine Gift Store, name-dropped merchandise tends to be more popular with tourists than with locals; however, Oberhauser notices locals often come in to shop during off-seasons to buy name-dropped products to give as gifts to family and friends.
“Maintaining good inventory levels all year long maximizes every possible opportunity to satisfy a customer,” he says.
Musician-specific merchandise often proves irresistible to blues fans at the Delta Blues Museum, even if it doesn’t bear the museum logo. So do colorful T-shirts from the popular Crossroads line. And spontaneous purchases don’t just happen at the gift shop; Shaw maintains an active online store, promoting the latest offerings through social media websites.
The retail outlet gets especially busy during summer months, when families and tour groups throng into the gift shop. “We’ll just walk around the store, and ask people if they need help,” Shaw says. “If they don’t need any help, we’ll see if anything needs straightening up. We try to keep it all as clean as possible.”
After all, the Delta Blues Museum is a singular destination. And stocking as much name-dropped apparel as possible ensures a wider audience — one T-shirt, ball cap and crew sock at a time.
“People will see that logo on your shirt and ask about your destination,” Shaw says. “So, if you don’t have name-dropped apparel and accessories, maybe consider carrying some items with your brand on it. That’s how your name gets out there.” SGN
“If you don’t have name-dropped apparel and accessories, maybe consider carrying some items with your brand on it. That’s how your name gets out there.”
— APRIL SHAW, DELTA BLUES MUSEUM
Like most young boys, Bill Vananda and Harry Myers were known to explore the foothills beyond their Townsend, Tennessee, backyards.
“They found it in the early 30s, they knew it was there,” says Jill Williams, manager of the gift shop of Tuckaleechee Caverns. “But it didn’t become commercial until the 1950s.”
1953 to be exact. That’s when the duo staked their claim to the caverns and turned it into a tourist attraction. And it wasn’t until 1969 that the gift shop came along.
Known as the “Greatest Site Under the Smokies,” the Tuckaleechee Caverns are the highest-rated cave or cavern of the eastern United States, its website boasts. “Carved inside the earth’s oldest mountain chain and estimated to be between 20 million to 30 million years old, the caverns are rich in history and lore in recent years as well.”
A history that began as a playground for a couple of boys who became business partners. In 1983, the partners went their separate ways when Vananda bought his partner out and dedicated his life and family to showing others what lay beneath the surface some 150 feet down.
And above ground, the family keeps the legacy alive by selling their most popular treasures in the gift shop, a 2,000-square-foot capsule that preserves the history of the cavern and those it captivates.
The gift shop began as an afterthought in 1969 to cool the bodies of those who braved the mile and a half and 410 steps it takes to walk the length of the cave.
In the early days, the gift shop served as the buffer between the 58 degree cave below ground and the blast of heat one faced when they ventured outside in the summer heat. In fact, the cave fed the gift shop and was the air-conditioner that cooled the facility.
“They had to stop having it funneled in through the duct work because of the moisture and it started to [produce] mildew, and mold,” says Williams, one of 15 employees at the cave operation. “So they did have it that way, but not anymore.”
Among the T-shirts, hoodies, shot glasses, mugs, magnets, stuffed animals, stickers and other name-drop paraphernalia are more nostalgic items such as 20 cent postcards from the 1970s, glasshorse figurines, leather change purses, Indian headdresses, drums, miniature tepees, carved wooden train whistles and an Interstate Highway bingo game.
“We’ve got some stuff in here that we’ve had since the 80s that are still here like porcelain figurines and salt shakers,” Williams notes with a laugh. “We’re trying to phase them out but every once in a while, there will be this one customer that says ‘I’ve been looking for these for like 20 years,’ and I’m like, ‘well, you found them.’”
Most notably, Williams says, are the geese salt and pepper shakers that are adorned with a
As one wanders among the rows of figurines on shelves, rounders of apparel, and glass cases with knives and gems, Williams says, there are a select few items that invoke an audible gasp when a customer recalls them from their own childhood. Such is the case with a particular necklace that seems to be a cherished memory for many.
“There are people that are in their 50s, 60s, that say, ‘we haven’t seen these since we were children,’” she notes. They are referring to beaded necklaces — one has a little Native American papoose and another features a Native American woman wearing a hat and dress.
And for the men, a simple oval-shaped change purse convinces them to open their wallets.
“They're like an egg shape and you squeeze them and they open,” Williams says. “And the men, the older men like my dad, he’s 70, and he’s like ‘you can’t find those anywhere’ and those men they buy them every time they come in.”
For the kids, it’s the modern day toys that grab their attention, such as dinosaur hand-grabbers and foam kits and “anything that glows,” like bouncy balls.
“It’s amazing because the kids bypass the necklaces and the bead work, but then you see people who are 40 to 60 and they’re like ‘oh my goodness,’ Williams points out. “So it kind of brings it back to them.”
Other top-selling items include name-drop hoodies, T-shirts, shot glasses and keychains. Williams notes anything personalized or customized with the Tuckaleechee name, such as an ornament or a magnet, is a sought-after memento.
“Anything with our name on it, and possibly a picture of inside of a cave,” she says.
Among the list of those helping to keep the Tuckaleechee name alive are the vendors behind the apparel, gifts and accessories. Williams says the shop relies on Souvenirs of the Smokies Inc., Squire Boone Village, Legacy Wholesale, J America
Wholesale Apparel, TGT Stickers, and Tex Mex for the store’s minerals and stones.
“You've got to have something for everybody. You just got to have the variety because we have people from infant to 90 years old,” Williams says. “Everybody has a different taste so you have to have something for everybody. That's why I think we have such success is because we have so much. Some people may look at it and be like, ‘who needs that?’ And then the next person, they buy five of it, so it's just the variety, honestly.”
Williams, who has served as the gift shop’s manager for more than 11 years, says it’s the people she meets who compel her to deliver the best experience she can.
“I’m a people person, so meeting the people that come through here — you don’t meet the same person twice. It's interesting,” she says. “It's, not the same day twice. It’s never a dull moment. We have people from all over the world that come in and the stories that we hear from their cultures or their background — it’s a very interesting job.”
Williams says she likes to see the “wow” factor when visitors emerge from the cave. “It is mind blowing down there, and when they come out of
the cave, a lot people they don’t know what to expect when they get here.”
When guests realize they are standing on top of the cave in the gift shop, it’s real eye-opener, she says. And when they descend 87 stairs just to reach the bottom and begin their tour, it’s another mind-blowing moment.
Even after all these years, Williams says the views in the cave never get old.
“I’d much rather be down there than outside,” Williams admits. “It’s beautiful.”
And it seems visitors agree.
From the 210-foot waterfall to the Big Room, which is dubbed as such because it could fit football field, to the creek which runs the entire length of the tour, customers can’t get enough of the underground adventure or the feeling of being a part of something special.
“I had a lady that came through that was 91 and it was on her bucket list to do a cave and you know, at 91, you're thinking, ‘Oh gosh, she’s older,’” Williams notes. “Most people at 91 are at home, but she did wonderfully. It was the last thing she had to do on her bucket list and she scratched it off that day.” SGN
What inspires shoppers to open their wallets and shell out for a souvenir?
Eye-catching displays and irresistible price points are key, according to retailers. Local merchandise that caters to tourists doesn’t hurt, either.
“When people are on vacation, they just buy whatever they want. They don’t always look at the price,” says Suzanne Strattner, manager at the Hogback Mountain Country Store in Marlboro, Vermont. “That contributes to impulse buying.”
On a remote stretch of Southern Vermont’s scenic eastwest road, tourists are usually grateful to find a bathroom
and a bite to eat at Hogback Mountain County Store. That gratitude makes it easy to sell souvenirs, Strattner says: “They’ll say, ‘Well, we’ve got to buy something here, since we used the bathroom,’” Strattner says with a smile.
More often than not, that purchase is a miniature charm. The store’s top-selling impulse items are tiny Christmas gnomes, bluebirds of happiness, coffee cups and other figurine charms whose diminutive size — from a half-inch to an inch and a half — is inversely proportional to their popularity.
“We’ve even got unicorns that the little girls love, with little rhinestones in them,” Strattner says. Packaged alongside
explanatory cards and little mesh bags, the $5 charms are irresistible as keepsakes or novelty gifts; Strattner herself keeps a few on the kitchen window.
Price point is crucial to spontaneous purchases, with many retailers putting the sweet spot at $10 and under. At Hogback Mountain Country Store, other favorites include a line of $3 to $4 lip balms from a Maine artisan in flavors like coconut and vanilla. Inexpensive and practical, they’re an easy sell to tourists who appreciate locally sourced products.
“We support and promote small, family-run businesses in New England,” Strattner says. “That’s our buying strategy, and that’s what our shoppers like.”
Hungry, road-weary travelers are also likely to snap up edible treats like cider donuts, fudge and
maple sugar. The store is known for its selection of caramels and other old fashioned candies that inspire nostalgic impulse buys. More recently, Hogback Mountain does a brisk business in “Bernie bars” — $4 chocolate bars in milk, almond and dark varieties bearing the crotchety, mittened likeness of Vermont’s own Sen. Bernie Sanders. With a $4 price tag, a local provenance and 10% of each purchase donated to a local food bank, “those sell like crazy,” Strattner says.
To find winners like the Bernie bars, Strattner makes a beeline each year for the New England Made trade show where she’s sourced everything from coffee to candles. With tourists of all ages and backgrounds, “you’ve got to have price points for everybody,” says Strattner. “We have sweatshirts that are $70, but we also have sweatshirts that are $27.”
Most patrons are inspired to open their wallets by a country store overflowing with old timey charm. Strattner sets a New England vacation mood with wooden antiques and other vintage props; from the store’s mountaintop veranda, customers are treated to a million dollar view. “I try to post new things daily on Facebook, too,” Strattner says.
Whether in the mountains or by the sea, vaca-
tioners spring for items with a local angle.
At Katahdin General Store in Millinocket, Maine, the best-selling stickers, mugs and ball caps bear Maine or park logos. “Going to trade shows is key for getting new, unique designs,” says owner Michelle Brundrett. “I also advise having certain vendors you can rely on for good quality products.”
The store rotates in new designs every few weeks and displays change constantly to keep things fresh. “I have a sticker rack and a hat rack, and the coffee mugs are on a spinner, which highlights the merchandise and draws attention,” Brundrett says.
Many retailers say that displaying impulse trinkets by the register, where people already have their wallets out, is a winning strategy. At Katahdin General Store, a checkout display tempts tourists with local souvenirs like stickers branded with the logo of nearby Baxter State Park.
“They’re multi-purpose and inexpensive, and people put them everywhere — on water bottles, laptops, cell phones, even cars,” says Brundrett. But what really boosts sticker sales is a recent promotion: $5 apiece, or
three stickers for $7. “Since we changed our pricing strategy, our sales have increased tremendously,” Brundrett says.
For many stores, these small-ticket purchases don’t make a huge contribution to the bottom line. But spontaneous add-ons do boost the per-order item count — and while inexpensive, many trinkets boast huge profit margins. Katahdin’s stickers, for instance, yield profits of more than 100%.
Stickers might be the number-one impulse buy, but name-drop ball hats are a close second. “Hats are one of the things people don’t intend on buying when they come in, but they usually end up walking out with one,” Brundrett says. Coffee mugs round out the bestsellers, which are strategically displayed along an aisle leading to the cash register. On the way out, patrons will also grab souvenir magnets or keychains, or fishing poles and water shoes for spontaneous park adventures.
On Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay, veteran retailer Christine Sheil is part of a three-generation empire built one seashell purchase at a time. Sheil’s mother, Marie Collins, founded Shell Boutique nearly 50 years ago — and quickly discovered that with enticing racks of sand dollars and scallop shells, she
could equal the revenue of local T-shirt retailers whose average price tag was 10 times higher.
“My mom’s whole thing was, never gouge the customer, because we want them to come back,” says Sheil, whose daughter, Lisa Roy, is now the shop’s owner. “My mom always gave a free shell to every child who came in, and my daughter carries on the tradition. And for 45 years, they’ve been coming back.”
Repeat vacationers pop in every summer to see what’s new at Shell Boutique. Inexpensive seashell earrings, pendants and other souvenir trinkets typically retail for $12 and under, which Sheil says is key to impulse buys. “Our handmade sea glass and shell jewelry is very popular — everyone wants to wear it when they’re here,” says Sheil.
Collins, who died in 2011, used to source shells from Florida’s Sanibel Island, handcrafting ornaments and the owl trinkets that became her signature. Her granddaughter, Roy, learned the souvenir trade alongside her, first getting behind the register at five years old. Nowadays, Roy scours trade shows for inexpensive, beach-themed items to lure customers around that same register.
Rope bracelets, starfish and glass mermaid figurines are all popular add-ons. Wind chimes, novelty signs and other nautical crafts from local
artisans are also hits with Narragansett’s summer beach crowd.
Over nearly five decades, the retail family has learned what kinds of merchandise tempts shoppers — and how best to display it. “You don’t want to put an item way on top of the wall so people can’t touch it or feel it,” says Sheil. “We make sure everything is accessible for customers to try on.”
With a steady base of regular patrons, Roy also changes up displays frequently. If something’s not selling, she’ll move it up front, “and all of a sudden people see it,” says Sheil.
And that, after all, is the essence of a successful impulse sale. Dangling tempting, low-cost trinkets in front of receptive tourists is a strategy that has sustained Shell Boutique and countless other souvenir retailers. “My mom was known as the shell lady. Now my daughter is the new shell lady,” says Sheil. “Go to the shows, buy what you love and know what your customers want — that’s key.” SGN
“My mom always gave a free shell to every child who came in, and my daughter carries on the tradition. And for 45 years, they’ve been coming back.” — Christine Sheil, Shell Boutique
Amemento of a trip to a special place; that’s the textbook definition of a souvenir. It can be anything from a simple rock to a Spartina handbag. Souvenirs can be magnets, T-shirts, insulated cups or other items, often emblazoned with the name of the place visited. A majority of stores carry at least a few such items along with their regular stock.
Michael Hale, CEO, founder and creative director of Los Angeles-based consulting firm, Retail Rehab LLC, says he discovered how valuable these “little” items can be to one’s bottom line back when he owned a retail store. “I had a $6 coaster that produced $20,000 a year in sales,” he says.
“I tell that story to entice owners of businesses to take a look at their sales statistics and understand what their drivers really are. It may not be the $200 throw or the $60 sweatshirt. Sometimes it’s those $6 items that produce more volume than anything else.”
The trick to moving these items is how they’re displayed.
Many store owners station their souvenir displays right by the store entrance or in the front window so shoppers
looking for mementos can see that they’ve come to the right spot. Such is the case with Flamingo Jim’s, Rockaway Beach, Oregon. It’s the kind of colorful roadside spot with whimsical statuary outside that people on car trips up the coast find hard to resist — especially when kids are on board.
“Our main sign outdoors says ‘Gifts, Clothing, Souvenirs,’” says manager Laurel Schriber. “In the windows, we’ve got kites and some other random little signs and things. When you walk in the front door, you’ll see our taffy. There are also a couple of racks and shelves on our counter where we display finger puppets, nail files and stickers. We usually put stuff outside on our deck in baskets when the weather is nice."
The store stocks a wide variety of clothing with “Rockaway Beach, Oregon,” “Oregon Coast” or “Pacific Northwest” on it. “Our bestselling items are the clothing — sweatshirts mainly — and toys,” says Schriber. The sweatshirts range in price from $28 to $60, depending on the quality. “The kids go for the toys and the adults buy the clothing.”
If none of that fills the bill, the store has shot glasses, mugs, snow globes, stickers, keychains, magnets, insulated drink cups and trinket boxes that say “Rockaway Beach, Oregon,” or “Flamingo Jim’s” on them. Souvenir
STORY BY MARY ELIZABETH WILLIAMS-VILLANO
Creating wellthought-out displays can give souvenir sales a boost. p
items are distributed throughout the 3,000-square-foot shop with other items. “It’s a full store, but we use our space well,” she says.
Should all souvenirs be kept in one spot or distributed throughout the store, as Flamingo Jim’s does? Hale suggests: "If you have the room, multiple locations are best. Have a spinner by the entry to entice customers, another spinner by the check-out area for impulse buys and one larger fixture in the ‘dweller’ area of your store for the more in-depth shoppers. The fixture at the check-out area should always feature your tried-and-true, top-selling items.”
In Vero Beach, Florida, 100 yards from the Atlantic Ocean, sits Corey’s Pharmacy and Souvenirs. It’s a place where one can get a prescription filled and get some nice mementos, too. The store’s motto: “If Corey’s doesn’t have it, you don’t need it.”
The souvenir items are shelved along the store’s walls, while the middle aisles house drugstore goods.
“The owners have been doing this for 67 years,” says Lori Clark, who manages the non-pharmacy part of the store. “And it works.”
Clark says a lot of souvenir business flows to the store because of its competition. “Most of the other shops on the street are higher-end boutiques,” she says. “We have very reasonably priced items compared to those other shops. Tourists go there, then can come in here and buy a T-shirt for $25 and lots of other souvenirs that are under $10.”
Magnets, picture frames and coffee cups with “Vero Beach” on them are hot items. Insulated cups festooned with turtles, palm trees or mermaids are big sellers, too. “We’re all about the turtles here,” says Clark. “We have one of the biggest nesting grounds along the coast.”
One might think souvenir sales would take a back seat to the drug store operations. Not so, according to Clark. “It’s 50-50. Souvenirs account for half our profits.”
Rose Lucia owns Gifted by the Sea, Brant Beach, New Jersey. The 3,000-square-foot store stocks jewelry by Pandora, Kendra Scott and Dune, along with clothing and home decor. Lucia eschews traditional store fixtures for the most part, preferring to show off her merchandise on real furniture.
“My store is broken into two sections. When you walk in the door, you’ll see the jewelry, clothing and accessories. On the other side, I have the Long Beach Island sweatshirts plus the home decor and baby departments.”
Items with a map of the island are among the store’s most popular souvenirs. It can be found on mugs and insulated wine tumblers, platters and wall art saying, “Welcome to Our Beach House” or “LBI is My Happy Place.”
What’s the best way to group souvenir items? Hale says, “Ideally, you’d want to arrange a fixture by theme first, category second. If you have a threeor four-sided fixture or spinner, each side may present a different theme. Spinners work well to allow for multiple themes and hold a good amount of inventory in a small footprint.”
At Gifted by the Sea, Lucia displays jewelry on branded spinners or on fine jewelry display forms. Elsewhere, she groups souvenir mugs together.
Corey’s displays triple-milled soaps and matching candles together. “The candles have the same scents as the soaps,” says Clark. Near them are locally made Key West Aloe lotions.
At Flamingo Jim’s, “We’ve got all of our adult clothing on one side, and the kids’ clothing in another section,” says Schriber. “There’s a toy section and a table where we display our mugs and shot glasses all together. The snow globes are grouped together, too.” Magnets are so popular that they have several displays. Coastal-themed items — jars with sand and seashells and turtle figurines made out of wood and resin share shelf space.
Travelers often hunt for gifts for people back home. Hale suggests making it easier by looking for opportunities to cross-merchandise souvenirs with other items that would make nice “go-withs.” For
example, pair apparel with coordinating accessories and put mugs and glassware adjacent to specialty foods.
Lucia does this by creating “vignettes” or stories around her souvenir items. “Charcuterie boards are a big thing now,” she says. “We have one that is decorated with the compass coordinates of Long Beach Island. We’ll show that board with things that you could package with it like some jams and a spreader.”
Corey’s gets a lot of business from locals. The store carries the entire Royall Lime line of men’s fragrances, after-shave splashes and body soaps made in Bermuda. “People say this is the only place they can find these products,” says Clark.
The packaging of these products practically screams, “Gift me!” The bottles, which have colorful old-timey labels, are created out of handmade glass from the original clay molds and come wrapped in parchment with a wax seal.
Hale says, “A good rule of thumb for floor fixtures is that they are not taller than 54 inches so the clerks in the front can see over them and keep tabs on what’s going on in the store.”
As for lighting, Hale says he would never tell retailers what kind of lighting they should have, as they usually have to work with whatever fixtures came with the space. However, he says “good lighting is important everywhere in the store and especially for this category.”
At a store loaded with kid appeal, it should be no surprise that toys sell well at Flamingo Jim’s. Schriber keeps the motto, “Eye level is buy level” in mind when setting up displays for her shortest customers.
PRO TIP #1: Distribute souvenirs throughout the store, not just in one location.
PRO TIP #2 : Always feature your tried-and-true top-selling items at the check-out area.
PRO TIP #3: Arrange fixtures first by theme, then by category.
If a certain item is a big customer favorite, it deserves a prominent and attractive display that helps sell even more of it.
One of Gifted by the Sea’s top sellers is Dune jewelry, particularly the items containing sand from different beaches. “Many of my customers come in just for the Dune items,” Lucia says, “and not just people on vacation, but people who live
here.” She decided to give the jewelry its own branded glass case — “actually an old Pandora case that I converted over. It’s a good setup. The case has its own corner, so everyone who comes in passes by it.”
Another special display, a lighted glass etagere, holds wine glasses etched with “Long Beach Island.”
She believes in the power of scene-setting to move product. “Especially with the home decor items, I want people to get an idea of how they or whoever they’re buying it for could use the item — I want them to say, ‘Wow, this is something so-and-so always mentions she needs or wants,’ and here it is.”
Lucia puts emphasis on attractive seasonal displays. “The women who work for me are really great at setting up tables for whatever time of year it is,” she says.
Clark strives to keep Corey’s Pharmacy and Gifts’ displays fresh with new and creative ways to show things off. In honor of her efforts, the owner bought a new slatwall-and-baskets unit just for the Turtle Tracks collection, popular with souvenirseeking kids and their parents.
“That was my Christmas present,” laughs Clark. “Now all the books, stuffed animals and T-shirts that go with them are all very nicely shown off together. It’s a much cleaner and better look overall.”
Lucia has some advice for other retailers with regard to creating effective presentations of souvenir items. “Displaying them well is key,” she says. “It makes things look more upscale than simply lining everything up in a row.”
Clark’s advice is: “Be fair in your pricing. People will buy that much more, appreciate the value and come back.” And they do. In her seven years at the store, she’s recognized a lot of repeat customers who come back year after year.
With a little effort and a little finesse, you, too, can create winning displays that entice tourist customers to take a little bit of your community back home with them. SGN
Gaudy or dainty, silver or gold, bright or muted, modern or retro. Whether a family heirloom or a rare find, the jewelry one chooses to wear typically makes a statement about him or her. And when it comes from an aquarium gift shop, the sentiment most heard is that the buyer supports sustainability and the environment.
At The National Aquarium Gift Shop in Baltimore, about 9% of sales come from jewelry and that’s not by accident. Store Director Ashley Macindoe attributes the interest to the causes behind the jewelry and the attention her employees pay to emphasizing those efforts.
“A lot of my team knows that the product knowledge of a piece is very important to getting that sale because the guest is spending a lot of money coming in through the aquarium, and buying the ticket,” she says. “They’re paying for parking, they’re going to pay for their meals. So, you know, they’re already putting out so much money.”
So going the extra mile to buy jewelry from an aquarium
gift shop better have meaning behind it. And at National Aquarium, it does.
For instance, Scout Curated Wears donates 10% of its net profits to causes that support women. Clear Seas bracelets remove a pound of trash from the ocean every time that a customer buys one. Live Love Protect bracelets contribute proceeds to helping wildlife. Pura Vida bracelets donate 5% of the purchase price to the Surfrider Foundation “to protect the world’s oceans, waves, and beaches,” according to the bracelet’s literature. 1 Tree Mission is “committed to reforesting our earth by planting one tree for each bracelet purchased” according to the company’s website.
“Gift shops are a little pricier than your regular store, so there has to be that added layer of, ‘Hey, we’re actually doing things for the environment’,” she points out. “It’s important for us to note that your money is going to a good cause. You’re not just buying a bracelet.”
To draw attention to such causes, Macindoe says, a TV monitor over 1 Tree Mission’s merchandise shows a looping segment of the trees planted for every purchase.
“It’s important for us to note that your money is going to a good cause. You’re not just buying a bracelet.”
— Ashley Macindoe, The National Aquarium
But nothing draws the eye more than the 12foot wall where the jewelry is grouped by brand and the causes they support.
“We used to have spinners, but we found that they would get really crowded, especially as we came back from COVID and we started getting busier again,” she explains. “So we took [the jewelry] off all of the spinners and we put it onto the wall. And then we also have a smaller spinner for the stuff on a shelf.”
“Customers appreciate the connection between their experience at the aquarium, the message they hear about conservation and the role each of us plays in protecting our natural world,” she says. “That’s why it’s important to share how our products support that message. Even our youngest visitors understand that they can play a part in protecting the Earth and its inhabitants. If that means purchasing a bracelet that was made from recycled materials and supports collecting trash from the oceans, then that’s a win-win.”
She notes that the shop carries both youth and adult jewelry at a wide range of price points that account for 7 to 9% of the store’s overall sales, with youth fashion jewelry being the most popular selection.
Macindoe notes that most of their jewelry offerings are geared toward teenagers; among the most popular — the classic mood rings and best friend (BF) necklaces. She attributes the attraction to the price points at less than $20, with merchandise ranging from $9 to $20. Displays are located near the registers so staff can keep an eye on them.
“We experience shrink, that’s for sure,” Macindoe admits. “No one’s coming to an aquarium to steal, so it’s definitely a crime of opportunity.”
Macindoe teaches the team that guest service is the No. 1 combat against shoplifting. The displays used to be in the front next to the exit, “and we were finding that a lot was going on there. But since we’ve moved it and it’s now next to the register, sure, we still find empty packages around sometimes but not nearly as much. And it’s really just about that guest service.”
Macindoe notes that jewelry sales are about the fifth-highest selling category for merchandise at the National Aquarium.
“For us to really capture that sale, we can’t just rely on them wanting a necklace,” she points out. “Really, it’s the effort that there‘s an added layer of ‘you’re doing good with your purchase.’”
Jordan Dimicelli, assistant store director for the Oregon Coast Aquarium Gift Shop in Newport, Oregon, agrees that the message their jewelry carries has a lasting impression on guests.
“Pura Vida is a very popular brand across all demographics and with the addition of a conservation message and mission, it draws a connection between the guest and a give-back initiative,” she explains.
And while the majority of Oregon Coast Aquarium jewelry assortment is designed to reflect the animals at the aquarium, it also showcases pieces that are inspired by the oceans as well as options that have been chosen for their planet and other animal-conservation missions.
“The Oregon Coast Aquarium is home to almost 400 different species, but there are specific animals that we call ‘Ambassador Animals.’ These are the ones that aren’t generally on view but are featured in educational presentations and demonstrations at the aquarium,” she notes. “We make sure to feature these species in the jewelry assortment, so you’ll see jewelry that represents Wilson, our resident barn owl, as well as Duff and Link, our western pond turtles.”
But sometimes selling jewelry doesn’t take any effort at all. If it’s put in front of customers, they simply buy it. Take for example, Jenkinson’s Aquarium located on the boardwalk in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey.
“I don’t have to advertise my jewelry, honestly, I don’t. It’s just sells itself,” insists Cathy Brand, the buyer for the gift shop attached to the aquarium. “They come in here, they go right to it.”
She adds that only plush outsells the jewelry, which accounts for 30 percent of the sales in the 2,000-square-foot shop that is also filled with books, toys, home decor, beach goods, signs, coffee mugs, apparel, magnets, keychains, stickers and lanyards, among other novelties.
“We sell a lot of shark jewelry, a lot of bracelets,” Brands notes. “Anklets are our No. 1 seller as far as jewelry goes. They love anklets. And I try to keep in the store as much sea life-type of jewelry as possible.”
“Lighting is the best friend of jewelry displays. As long as the lighting is good, then everything works out.”
— Jojuan Corbin, Aquarium of the Bay Gift Shop
Items with turtles, seahorses, starfish and sand dollars as well as freshwater pearl necklaces and bracelets seem to fly off the shelves in what is believed to be the largest souvenir shop on the boardwalk.
“But overall, we sell it all,” Brand stresses. “Literally, we sell it all. It all goes.”
Like the National Aquarium, among the most popular product lines are those with a cause to support.
For instance, 4ocean is “an ocean cleanup company dedicated to ending the ocean plastic crisis,” according to the company’s website.
“They go in the ocean and they clean up all the plastic and garbage and they make bracelets out of it,” Brand explains.
Meanwhile, Fahlo bracelets come with a real wild animal to track on a phone, tablet, or computer. The company partners with nonprofit organizations to support wildlife conservation, according to its website.
seashore, so I try to cater to that,” Brand notes. “They’re getting a starfish from the boardwalk. They’re getting a bracelet that says Point Pleasant Beach on it, or Jenkinson’s so I try to make it conducive to where they’re vacationing.”
In another destination known for its affinity for the ocean and dedication to climate change, the Aquarium of the Bay Gift Shop in San Francisco spreads its message for sustainability with its “green” products, which is why the 4ocean bracelets reign supreme there as well, according to Jojuan Corbin, retail manager for the gift shop.
Another item Corbin points out that goes hand-in-hand with its jewelry are enamel jewelry boxes from Kubla Crafts. Sea turtles, sea horses, flip flops, butterflies, hummingbirds and mermaids are among the graphics that are air-brushed on the boxes which are made from Capiz, “farm-raised window pane oyster shell,” according to the company’s website.
Corbin adds that while they try to match the jewelry to the animals on exhibit, it’s not the most important detail when it comes to sales.
“Lighting is the best friend of jewelry displays,” he asserts. “As long as the lighting is good, then everything works out. There will be times where there will be a good product, but if it’s not under good lights where it will pop up to somebody, then nobody will pay attention to it unless they really get close to it or somebody else touches it.”
In New Jersey, Brand says, good displays are in the amount of research one does.
You gotta follow the trends,” she says. “I read a lot, I follow things on TikTok, I follow things on Facebook and Instagram.”
At the National Aquarium, Macindoe credits the efforts of her sales team for their success in jewelry displays.
“Keep it full. Have one person or two people, depending on the size of your business, that are just dedicated to every time they come in, they check the jewelry, they know what the back stock looks like,” she recommends.
With displays on the wall, on pegboards, racks, spinners and tabletops, Brands says the intent is to keep the jewelry “front and center.”
And the strategy pays off, as Brand says women tend to go for bracelets and necklaces while the younger kids go for bracelets and anklets. With price points typically ranging from $6.99 to $22, it’s not difficult to find tourists willing to fork over the cash for a souvenir that reminds them of the time at the beach.
“We’re on a boardwalk. We’re sitting on the Atlantic Ocean, so people are coming here to the
And in Oregon, Dimicelli notes it’s important to continue the conservation message even after guests leave, which is what a bracelet made from reclaimed plastic or a turtle necklace represents — visitors each playing a part in supporting a cause.
“The education doesn’t need to stop at the doors to your store. Using signage to share why your product is special, how it gives back to the environment or how your purchase supports your institution has become a key factor for us,” she says. “More and more, visitors buy what they believe in and since we’re ultimately here to support the aquarium, it’s really important that guests understand how they can play a part.” SGN
“Even our youngest visitors understand that they can play a part in protecting the Earth and its inhabitants.”
— Jordan Dimicelli, Oregon Coast Aquarium Gift Shop
These coastal retailers share their successful Christmas selling strategies.
GARY CHATNIK:
Coastal Christmas tree themes can run the gamut, from bright tropical tree themes to more neutral, nautical tree themes.
ROB MARSHALL:
Packable ornaments are easy take-homes for remembering the good
Imagine nearly two football fields packed with everything Christmas — 50,000 different gift items, trims, decorative pieces and ornaments. That’s Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland in Frankenmuth, Michigan, where the halls are decked year-round and nearly 300 decorated and lit trees of all sizes fill a factory-sized barn.
The 2.2-acre store is a destination for travelers, with plenty making an annual pilgrimage to the farm town. A greeter invites guests into Bronner’s, where a cafe serves light lunches, treats and snacks.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE
“Families tell us, ‘My grandma and grandpa brought us here every year, so I’m
bringing my kids, too,’” says Lori Libka, communications assistant and longtime associate of 26 years. “The people who work here enjoy helping customers make Christmas memories, and we get to know them and welcome back again and again.”
Hospitality, joy and wonder are running themes at Christmas shops across the country that specialize in this magical time of year — as year-round businesses.
Cue up the holiday music, and the mood is contagious, says Heather Osborne, manager of the Santa Claus Christmas Store in Santa Claus, Indiana.
Yes, there is such a place! The name
Ho, ho, ho — merry sales at Christmas shops are driven by setting the mood, stocking a selection and personalizing the experience.Above: Specialty ornaments on themed trees are the focus at The Christmas Mouse. STORY BY KRISTEN HAMPSHIRE
of the town alone draws visitors who notice signs while traveling the highway and take the exit to find out what’s there.
Within the town that has a population of less than 3,000, there’s one stoplight, one Christmas shop and attractions in Santa Claus Museum & Village — home to an 1880 church, post office and 1935 Santa Claus statue.
“The name of the town definitely sets us apart,” Osborne says, adding that once visitors discover the store, many return every year. Santa Claus Christmas Store makes shopping an event to remember with its Santa’s Cottage, where the jolly old elf rolls out the red carpet in July and October through the holiday for souvenir photos. (The current Santa is in his third season.)
From special-themed trees to Christmas collectibles, decor and gifts galore, the product possibilities are a mile long — much like an eager child’s gift wish list.
“This year, we bought 9,100 different items to sell,” says Rob Marshall, owner of The Christmas Mouse, with shops along the eastern seaboard, including several in The Outer Banks.
With the heavy beach tourist demographic his shops serve, once customers step out of the heat and into an air-conditioned wonderland brimming with ornaments, the spirit moves from sand to snow globes.
Shops that sell Christmas successfully set the mood.
Marshall says, “You basically enter a forest of trees and lights.”
Themed trees are a display foundation at The Christmas Mouse, and complementary products build from motifs like nutcrackers, gingerbread, beach, sports, The Grinch and popular children’s characters like Bluey.
“We start with the tree and then a pegboard of ornaments and other “sit arounds” like figurines, and then we blend it into another tree and peg board,
and it flows this way around the store,” describes Marshall.
This way, customers tour the shop and take in all of its offerings, with holiday products that capture the attention of a demographic spanning from toddlers to great-grandparents.
Bronner’s has a decorating team of 12 associates who dress up and light several hundred trees that are rotated year-round. “They’re being changed up all the time,” Libka says.
Major displays at entrances and exits deliver the wow factor guests expect when they approach the Christmas wonderland. There are literally layers of holiday inside. Libka’s advice to customers: “You need to walk around about three different times to look at everything at eye level, then see what’s on the catwalks, and the third time so you can shop and not miss anything.”
It’s a good thing Bronner’s provides wheelchairs at no charge and strollers for a $2 rental fee — with the gift of a $2 coupon with a $10 purchase.
“We make it as family friendly as possible, and when you come in the door, there are stars or snowflakes on the floor leading you to restrooms if you’ve been on the road,” says Libka. “There is a greeter at every entrance to answer questions.”
At Santa Claus Christmas Store, products are categorized into departments, with a popular one being gingerbread.
“The clay-dough gingerbread houses are the biggest seller in that section, and we have decorative trees with candy and gingerbread scenes,” Osborne says, adding that those accompany wall decor with candy themes that sell. “Gingerbread is very popular this year and that section has been growing.”
Other departments in the shop are theme-based and focus on snowmen, Santa Claus, gnomes, nativities, snow globes and lanterns. “We stock a variety of items in each category to give people a selection so it’s easy to find things to buy,” says Osborne.
They’re easy-to-pack, palm-sized reminders of vacation memories — or they celebrate favorite
hobbies, pastimes, teams, colleges and milestones. Specialty ornaments are the focus at The Christmas Mouse, which has 33,000 items for sale in its stores. About 80 percent of the stock consists of ornaments.
“Say folks are in the Outer Banks and they went hang gliding over Jockey’s Ridge — and they say, ‘It would be cool to have a hang glider ornament,’ so they can pick that up here and enjoy it on their tree,” Marshall says.
Themes span a full spectrum of interests, from ballerinas to NFL players, pickleball and car keys to commemorate earning a driver’s license. There are coastal motifs, too, considering the shop’s location: lighthouses, anchors, crabs, lobsters, starfish, driftwood pieces and sea turtles. “We also have traditional themes like silver and gold, red and green, glass ornaments and old world Christmas,” Marshall adds.
At his shops, tourists are the main demographic and packability is a consideration. “Ornaments easily fit into a suitcase,” he points out.
Personalization is in-demand. At The Christmas Shop and General Store in Manteo, North Carolina, selecting an ornament with an inscribed name and date is a beach vacation tradition for many customers. “It helps them remember their trips over the years,” says owner Gary Chatnik, who operates five year-round coastal Christmas shops and three pop-up shops in malls during the holidays.
Chatnik adds, “Ornaments are a great add-on to a gift card and make for a special, easy gift.”
One-of-a-kind ornaments also resonate with customers, says Ellie Oczkowski, owner of Christmas Vacation Shop in Bar Harbor, Maine. She sold ornaments at a mall stand before opening her seasonal store on Mount Desert Island, home to Acadia National Park. Searching for ornaments and gifts that reflected the region, she came up empty-handed and decided to make her own. Now, other local artisans, some of them customers, contribute their artistic flair to her growing inventory of handmades. Bestsellers include hand-painted lobster claw ornaments.
“These are gifts that reflect a moment in time, an experience, time with family, joy — so that is the driving force behind what inspires the ornaments,” says Oczkowski.
Despite a general return to normal supply-chain activity, Rob Marshall shifted his inventory mindset to a see it, like it, buy it all year mentality.
This requires more space for warehousing, but ensures he’ll have products to place on displays during the busy season without running out. Typically, he held about 3,000 items in a central warehouse. “Now, I have 5,100,” he says.
“Buying used to be more seasonal, but with the lack of goods a couple years ago, I said, ‘If it’s a good item and the vendor has it, we need to have it. It changed our buying patterns and warehousing significantly.”
The same is true at Santa Claus Christmas Store. Osborne mostly buys at AmericasMart in Atlanta. “Then we have shipments come in throughout the season,” she says. Shipments are
stored in a warehouse and the store has several stockrooms. “It definitely helps having those stock rooms full so we can bring out products when the floor starts getting empty.”
During summer, the store focuses on gradually getting all of its products out for display before the holiday rush. “That way, all we have to do is restock and help customers because we get so busy,” says Osborne.
Equally important is “stocking” extra helpers during the busy season at Bronner’s, which has been a challenge amid the labor shortage. Typically, the business goes from 250 employees that are part-time and full-time to up to 750 workers during the high season leading up to Christmas.
“We do some local advertising and we have families where mom is retired and comes into work during the season, or they refer other family members,” Libka says. “We are not quite back to normal yet with our staffing.”
As for labor, Oczkowski focuses on creativity after the holiday and through early spring since her shop is not winterized. “That’s when I make ornaments and decor, so I’m not in the brick-and-mortar during winter, but I am creating and designing year-round,” she says, adding that the business of making holidays merry is “very humbling.” SGN
In Scottsdale, Arizona, at the Kactus Jock, a life-sized statue of a man sporting a mustache and a giant sombrero offers a thumbs up to guests while they peruse a nearby display of Mexican glassware.
“If it’s not a souvenir type of a cup or glass, then we have really great success with our Mexican glassware that is handmade, hand painted, and it’s actually a really good seller,” notes Store Manager Yolanda Williams.
The rainbow-colored water glasses, swirl-colored wine goblets, martini glasses, margarita glasses, pitchers, and shot glasses are hand delivered by a man who drives back and forth from Mexico to display his talents among the store’s
Drinkware ranks among the most popular souvenirs with certain styles leading the pack across many geographic locations.
font surrounded by chili peppers. Williams points out it’s all part of the effort to add dimension and tell a story about the merchandise.
“You have to go with the motif that you are trying to accent, like the Mexican glassware. I’m not going to put something Scandinavian around it or display it on a Scandinavian table,” she explains.
Amid a backdrop of terra cotta floors, wood beams, and earth tones reminiscent of the area’s desert surroundings, the store also boasts an assortment of coffee mugs, sippy cups, insulated thermoses, highball glasses and shot glasses, most
of which are unique to the shop and the image they seek to portray.
“In our store, we try to purchase things that other stores in the area are not going to carry,” Williams points out. “So we try to find vendors that have unique things that we could have maybe exclusively in our store.”
In addition to the Mexican glassware, Williams says silicone cups are proving to be a sought-after item that are becoming an up-and-coming trend.
“Silicone cups are huge. We even can’t keep them on the shelf,” she notes. “We just cannot keep them in stock.”
While Fiesta ware and silicone are the name of the game in Arizona, the color of choice in Butte, Montana, is copper. But, as Butte Stuff store owner Cheryl Ackerman notes, there’s no rhyme or reason to what people are attracted to — so long as it bears the signature copper color.
“It’s a variety. In the copper, it’s just [a matter of] what people are looking for. They want pebbles, they want smooth. We have pinstripe, we have paisley. It’s just what catches their eye because it’s all unique,” she says. “And it’s all solid copper so you can make your Moscow mules in it.”
But it’s not just the color that attracts visitors to the array of pint glasses, wine glasses, flute glasses, shot glasses, mugs, steins, water bottles, straws, ice buckets and pitchers. Ackerman notes copper is a flagship product of the area — one that has meaning for the mining town.
“Butte is known for copper. We have one of the biggest copper mines here in the United States,” she asserts. She notes that the copper at one time was
smelted in Butte, but due to EPA regulations, the copper mined in Butte is sent overseas for smelting then sent back to be crafted into copper products.
And since the roots run deep in the tight-knit community, so do the sayings from the stories multiple generations who grew up on listening to men tell their tales of their days underground. The most popular phrases adorn many of the coffee mugs, pilsner glasses, pint glasses, wine glasses, travel mugs, and shot glasses in the 2,500-square-foot gift shop Ackerman owns with her daughter, Krystal Carlson.
“We sell so many products that have ‘Tap ‘er light’ on it,” Ackerman says with an airy sigh. The phrase immediately transitions her into a dutiful storyteller herself, devoted to getting all the details just right and passing along the history of her beloved home.
“When the men mined underground, they would take great big drills and drill into the sides of the tunnels and their partner would take great, big sticks of dynamite … and they would tap it into this hole that they drilled into the side of the tunnel,” she explains. “And they would say, ‘tap ’er light.’ So then the miners would end their shifts saying, ‘tap ’er light, take care, be careful, be safe.’ And it’s just a Butte saying.”
The store sells the saying on everything from mugs to hats, to clothing. “It’s a Butte greeting. Somebody will leave and they’ll say, ‘tap ’er light,’ [meaning] take care, be easy.”
Another mining slogan, “How’s she go” also is used quite a bit on products, Ackerman says.
She explains that when miners would start their shifts, they would ask the guys getting off shift, “how’s she going,” or “how’s she go?” “And, they were asking how the mind performed that day,” she says. “And if it was a good day, the guys getting off would say, ‘she go good.’ And if it wasn’t a good day, they’d say, ‘I need a boilermaker, a shot and a beer’ because it wasn’t a good day.”
Butte Stuff store does its own sublimation printing at the 10-year-old gift shop so it’s able to make replica images of the mines where generations of men earned a living for their families. Among the most coveted are souvenirs with one of the 14 iconic headframes that still dot the skyline that served as the mineshaft openings where men and their equipment were lowered into the earth.
“With all the tourism and when people come home, they’re our big sellers because they may have had a grandfather or a father that worked in one of those mine and they want a coffee mug that has the mine on it that their family worked in,” Ackerman notes. “So those are really unique.”
Just steps away from the Atlantic Ocean in Bar Harbor, Maine, a two-story periwinkle blue and pink clapboard-sided house beckons visitors to
gather with friends in its pub, long known for encouraging guests to “Meet me at Geddy’s.”
While patrons tip a glass, toast shots with friends or sip from a highball, the gift shop — known as Geddy’s Down Under — sells the most coffee mugs. Even the lobster breaking out of the building’s exterior gives a subtle nod to the most popular drink souvenir in the gift shop, as it holds a mug labeled “cappuccino” in its pinchers.
“It seems like no one can ever have enough coffee mugs,” says Geddy’s owner Heather Davis with a laugh. “It’s just such a simple gift item that is useful.”
She adds that “whimsical” shot glasses with a 3-D moose or lobster also seem to attract attention “because people think they’re funny” and because they are iconic images for the area. For the same reason, visitors love to buy shot glasses with the phrase, “Bah Habah,” which is like slang for Bar Harbor that the “R-dropping” New Englanders are known for.
“People tend to like the accent in Maine. A lot of times we drop the ‘R’ in Maine, of course,” Davis notes. “So it’s something in our area that’s different
than maybe somewhere else.”
While sayings and motifs may change depending on locale, Davis says the basics in the rules for displaying drinkware never change.
“I think the big thing … that you really have to keep up with is making sure that the glassware is shiny,” she stresses. “No one’s going to want to buy a pint glass that looks dirty. It needs to look clean and presentable and not dusty inside.”
Another rule of thumb — making sure the shelf is full all the time.
“So when people buy two things you immediately go to the closet and you fill that,” she explains. “Or make sure that it looks full by [rearranging] to make sure there’s no empty space.”
Davis says a mirror accentuates the shelf where the drinkware is kept, which is another laborintensive prop to keep dust-free, but it’s worth the effort and “adds a little something to the display.”
Such simple rules to follow that make all the difference.
And at The Vermont Spot Country Store in Quechee, Vermont, simplicity is the mantra for the color scheme of the coffee mugs — hands down the most popular drinkware at the gift shop, says Store Owner Chris Goodwin.
“The one-color screens on a dark-colored mug,
“It seems like no one can ever have enough coffee mugs. It’s just such a simple gift item that is useful.”
— HEATHER DAVIS, GEDDY’S
that’s been a standard item forever. Now, I’ve been selling souvenirs for probably 25 years and that has really not changed,” Goodwin notes. “The simpler the design, the quicker the connection it makes with the customer.”
Stoneware or pottery-looking mugs are among some of the most popular, Goodwin says. He adds that pint glasses are a close second for the shop in drinkware, which makes up about 30 percent of sales in the 2,000-square-foot store.
“We wrap a lot of mugs in tissue paper, I know that, when we check people out,” he says with a laugh. “We just have a lot of mugs.”
And to convey the sheer volume of mugs they carry, Goodwin once again relies on simplicity. Three eight-foot shelves spanning five feet high display more than 30 designs that range from campfires to animals to covered bridges to pine trees.
“Putting mugs all over your store in 12 different places, I don’t think that’s a good strategy,” Goodwin explains. “I think you rack it out and let everybody know. So when people see our mugs, I guarantee they say we’ve got the most mugs in a display in the state.”
He estimates the strategy allows them to display about 200 mugs at once — something that convinces customers to join in supporting the most
popular drinkware item in most gift shops.
“Put together a display that says, ‘Hey, if you’re going to buy a mug, you’re going to find it here,” he stresses. “And you know, most of the time you’re going to sell through it no matter what. It’s just matters how quick. But give it some real estate and make a statement with it.”
When it comes to drinkware, shop owners agree that trends may come and go, but mugs are here to stay. Help customers remember your location with every sip of their morning Joe with a selection of drinkware that speaks to what makes your destination unique. SGN
Idaho Memories Gift Shop focuses on providing meaningful gifts and souvenirs to remind people of their time in the Gem State.
In the heart of Lewiston, Idaho, Newberry Square invites passersby to check out its mini shopping center. As customers walk into the building, a well-lit walkway invites them to check out six storefronts: The Mad Hatter Tea Shop, Imua Hawaiian Restaurant, Skalicky’s Sweet Sensations Bakery, Nez Perce Tourism, Vine 46 and finally Idaho Memories Gift Shop at the back of the building.
Idaho Memories Gift Shop Owner Vikky Ross says she doesn’t mind that her store is at the back of the building.
“I knew in my heart of hearts that I could create a shop that
Geodes, mugs and apparel speak to customers at the Idaho Memories Gift Shop looking to take home a piece of the Gem State. And if that doesn’t work, the Bigfoot outside calls them to take a closer look.
would pull customers from Main Street all the way to the back,” she says. Helping to draw customers to the shop, a 6.5-foot-tall wood-carved Bigfoot greets customers outside of the gift shop. Ross jokes that customers almost always want to pose to take pictures with him.
“He has big hands, so you can hold his hand or give him a hug. He’s an awesome photo op,” she says.
Ross decorates the store with timber, wood chips, pinecones and moss to give it a Pacific Northwest feel. She says her husband, John, built all the store’s displays using
reclaimed bins and wooden window frames to showcase merchandise.
Idaho Memories Gift Shop specializes in items specific to Idaho, such as gemstone jewelry as well as huckleberry and potato products. Ross describes huckleberries as like blueberries but smaller and very tart. They are the state fruit of Idaho.
The store also features must-have souvenirs, including magnets, keychains, mugs, themed cards and shot glasses. Customers appreciate the fact that the store stocks high-quality products at reasonable prices, according to Ross.
“I maintain a margin of profitability without having to charge at an exorbitant price,” Ross explains.
Ross often hears customers laughing as they read sayings on T-shirts and signs hanging throughout the store. Kids love looking through the store’s sticker and rock selections. If a kid is having a bad day, she usually lets them dig through her rock bowl to take home a rock for free.
“It’s a happy, cheerful place,” she says of the gift shop.
Before opening Idaho Memories Gift Shop, Ross and her husband John owned a company called Moscow Glass & Awning in Moscow, Idaho, that installed residential and commercial windows and doors until they retired in 2015.
Ross also had a side business with her identical twin sister, Nikky Hites, renovating historic buildings around the state. Until 2018, the sisters renovated about 15 buildings.
For their final project, Ross and Hites renovated
When Vikky Ross prepared to open Idaho Memories Gift Shop, she wanted to make sure the shop would serve a diverse customer base and be accessible to everyone. She wanted to make sure all handicapped individuals could easily enter the store with their wheelchair or service pet.
“My biggest pet peeve is going into a shop where you’re bumping against a person next to you, or you see someone struggling with accessibility,” she says. “It breaks my heart to see that happening.”
Idaho Memories Gift Shop, as well as the other five the retail shops in Newberry Square, are BluePath approved. According to the BluePath website, BluePath is an accessibility website for people with all kinds of disabilities, helping connect them with local businesses that are accessible to them.
Ross says she’s conscientious about sustaining 36-inch-wide aisles in her store and placing products at levels that people in wheelchairs would be able to see. Her employees also know to check to make sure no customer has any accessibility issues.
“The employees are very, very helpful for anybody who does have an accessibility situation,” she says.
the Newberry Square building. The building had previously housed J.J. Newberry 5 & 10 Cent Store from 1932 to 1977 and as Mill End Fabric stores until the mid-2000s. Ross notes that the building was vacant for 18 years until she and her sister purchased it for renovations in 2016. After renovating the building, Newberry Square featured six storefronts on the first floor as well as nine offices on the basement level.
During that renovation project, Ross tried to buy an Idaho-themed gift for a relative in Denver, but she says she had no luck finding anything in Lewiston. She had hoped that one of her tenants at Newberry Square might open an Idaho-centric gift shop to fill that need. When no prospects came to fruition, Ross decided to fill in the last open storefront with her own shop: Idaho Memories Gift Shop.
In 2018, Ross pitched her souvenir shop idea to the North Central Idaho Small Business Development Center at Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston. The center loved her idea, and a mentor offered her some tips to ensure success.
“My mentor said the one thing I needed to think about is, this is seasonal,” she says. “This isn’t a 12-month-out-of-the-year town that has a lot of tourism; there’s going to be downtime.”
Thousands of tourists come to Lewiston every year, thanks to several riverboat cruises that dock in town on the Snake River from April until November. Ross says several farming and fishing groups like to host conferences in Lewiston in spring and summer, too.
But few people frequent Lewiston come February and March, so Ross’ mentor advised her to stock products that would appeal to local customers. So Ross made sure to stock Idaho-centric foods, such as huckleberry jams. Her family also developed a line of lentil soup mixes called Gold Dredger to sell that has been a hit with the locals.
Since opening Idaho Memories Gift Shop, Ross estimates 40% of customers are from the local
community and 60% are visitors.
Ross stocks plenty of gifts that appeal to locals visiting the store, including her selection of huckleberry products as well as dry soup and dry potato mixes. She says she partners with Homemade by Dorothy, a small business in Boise, Idaho, for many of these gourmet food gifts. Ross also features some locally made hot sauces, soaps, leather, jewelry and photography.
“I probably have about 15 solid partners for locally made products,” Ross says.
Many books sold in the store offer information on Idaho’s history as well as gold camps and silver mines in the state.
She also purchases plenty of souvenirs from wholesale souvenir companies to appeal to tourists visiting Lewiston. She stocks Idaho-shaped playing cards, postcards and many mugs. Since Idaho is potato country, the store also offers potato-shaped mugs, salt and pepper shakers, ornaments and even potato heads with cowboy hats.
Since Idaho is the Gem State, customers also
can find a variety of gemstones and gemstone jewelry in the store. The shop offers some high-quality gemstone jewelry crafted by local artists as well as some lower priced gemstone souvenirs — geodes, bracelets, necklaces and rings — that range in price from $8.99 to $21.95. Ross makes sure customers get story cards with gemstone purchases to explain where they can find these stones.
Overall, Ross says she sells more huckleberry products than anything else in the store. But as for what product comes in second place as a top seller?
Ross says, “Every single day, it’s a smidgeon of this, a smidgeon of that. We’ve curated a really great selection of things, things that speak of Idaho, tell a story and have meaning in different ways to different people.”
One of Ross’ biggest fears with starting the store was that she would stock unpopular merchandise. To avoid that pitfall, she tries to get feedback from the store’s customers. She even keeps a notebook in the store for employees to write suggestions from customers, who she says, are the best part of the job. She says, “It’s the people part of the store that I love the most — making people happy and visiting with them.” SGN
“It’s the people part of the store that I love the most – making people happy and visiting with them.”
— VIKKY ROSS
STORY BY CHRISTINE SCHAFFRAN
The phrase “don’t touch” is commonly uttered to a child upon entering a gift shop full of fragile mementos and glass souvenirs. But at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh where interaction with the exhibits is encouraged, the same goes for the gift shop.
So it’s no wonder that one of the top-selling items are name trains that are comprised of individual letters on train cars that link together with magnets to spell a child’s name. A train engine bearing the name of the museum is far and away the collection’s most popular item. Couple the trains with tracks that a kid can send their “name” around, and it’s an instant winner for learning how to spell and making it fun.
“We try to feature products that foster development and hands-on play,” says Matthew Simmonds, retail co-
ordinator for the Museum Store. “We provide a lot of arts and crafts and items that allow them to bring the museum home with them.”
To encourage visitors to dive in and play with the merchandise, Simmonds says a display known simply as “The Bin” near the middle of the store houses rubber duckies, squishy toys, Neato! brand toys, puzzles, kaleidoscopes and other treasures — all priced under $5.
“I love seeing the look on a kid’s face when they’re actually able to buy something,” Simmonds notes.
And getting parents through the door is no small feat. Simmonds says he attempts to put items in the front of the shop that catch the attention of his five- to six-year-old demographic that relate to the museum’s current temporary exhibit. In July, merchandise included Wild Kratts-related
motif and Daniel Tiger stuffed animals.
“I have to catch the eye of kids walking past the store and make parents want to come in, even though they may not want to,” he adds.
Once inside, Mister Rogers and Mo Willems books are displayed up front to attract parents. They tend to congregate there to act as goalkeeper in containing their kids to the store and making sure they behave, according to Simmonds.
But it’s not just children Simmonds is looking to attract to the gift shop. Out-of-town guests who visit the museum also stop in for name-branded postcards, magnets, and apparel. Out-of-print titles from Mister Rogers such as “A Piece of Red Paper” and “Josephine the Short Neck Giraffe” and the Mo Willems collection Elephant & Piggie have also proven to be popular with travelers.
And one souvenir reigns supreme no matter the visitor’s age; the Penny Press Machine emblazons change with fish
statues that grace the museum’s parking lot or a herring — another well-known image at the establishment.
“I’m constantly getting change for people to be able to do that,” notes 24-year-old Simmonds.
As the employee charged with purchasing for the gift shop, Simmonds says products hail from Green Toys, Warmies, Keycraft, Toysmith, Maple Landmark for the name trains, Open the Joy for sensory kits, Commonwealth Press for screen printing on clothing, and Love Pittsburgh for youth and newborn apparel and souvenir items.
As a store dedicated to sensory and earlylearning products, it is a treasure trove for parents looking to stimulate children’s minds.
In addition to the Open the Joy activity kits designed to teach life skills and emotional intelligence, puzzles designed to teach the alphabet, counting and memorization to children under 5 years old uphold the message to learn through play. Plus-Plus kits carry a similar message, as they are designed to inspire children to use their imagination to create a masterpiece using puzzle pieces.
Meanwhile, Warmies offer a different type of sensory experience. The soft, weighted stuffed
“One of the best parts about being in the store is being able to talk with our guests and getting to know them.”
— Matthew Simmonds
animals can be heated in the microwave or chilled in the freezer “to enjoy the therapeutic benefits and the calming scent of real French lavender,” according to the company’s website.
Originally opened in 1985, The Museum Store has grown right alongside its counterpart, changing its name, location within the museum, and most recently undergoing a renovation in 2021 to freshen up the 500-square-foot space.
Name changes saw the store originate as Surprises before becoming The Little Orange Store. Eventually evolved into just The Museum Store only a few years ago. Simmonds notes that while the store has always been on the first floor, it was originally closer to the entrance, In 2004 it was relocated into an expanded portion of the museum next to what is affectionately known as the arts department where kids can do crafts and paint and generally get messy.
The renovation brought in changes to the back end of the inventory process, new displays and
a fresh coat of paint.
Simmonds and one other employee are involved in the day-to-day operations of running the gift shop while two other managers under the guest-services umbrella within the museum assist in operations.
While products are mainly grouped by category, the one wall that rotates regularly is the one dedicated to the most recent temporary exhibit, Simmonds says. “Right now that being Wild Kratts, so we have some of our puzzles and board games that are branded in that way,” he points out.
With souvenirs, books, and museum-branded postcards, magnets and apparel beckoning at the front door, one will pass the exhibit merchandise as well as The Bin near the middle of the store before discovering the Warmies and other stuffed animals near the back of the store.
While a central theme of any museum is to engage and inform its visitors, the Pittsburgh Children’s Museum amplifies its message by tying catchphrases to their experiences on T-shirts, onesies and other apparel.
For example, water exhibits in the museum encourage visitors to “pump, move, channel and dam its flow and try activities with rain, spray and ice.” However, a cautionary note warns parents to “Be prepared to get a little wet.” Since some do not heed this advice, dry apparel with the phrase “I got soaked at Waterplay” is waiting in the gift shop to change into for the drive home.
Meanwhile, in the Kindness Gallery, children are invited to “try different forms of communication to send message of kindness, drawing from the work of Fred Rogers and lessons from ‘Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.’” In the gift shop, T-shirts spread positive vibes with “#bethekindkid” messages, while others pay tribute to Mister Rogers by bidding “Hi, Neighbor.”
And even more important, says Simmonds, is connecting with the locals and those with museum memberships. “I think being able to connect our brand to Pittsburgh as a location is important,” says Simmonds, who has worked in the industry for four years.
For the local clientele, apparel with the phrase “Nebby” on T-shirts and coffee mugs prompts a smile and a connection to Pittsburgh that only they know. “Nebby is an idiom for the term ‘nosey,’” he explains.
And for those who aren’t familiar, he notes, the product is a conversation starter and a way to connect with customers.
For Simmonds, that connection with locals and visitors is what makes the Museum Store such a rewarding place to work.
“One of the best parts about being in the store is being able to talk with our guests and getting to know them,” he says. “Especially over the summer, you get a lot of out-of-town visitors, so hearing about where they’re from, their backgrounds, and what they liked most about the museum and their experience here is probably the best part.” SGN
Customers visiting Georgia Gifts & More get a taste of what everyday life is like in the Peach State. Shelves are stocked with locally made preserves as well as peach, peanut and pecan products. Employees greet customers with local southern accents, making sure everyone feels welcome. The peach-colored walls also remind customers that they are in Georgia.
Karen Gayle, co-owner of Georgia Gifts & More, makes sure to play Georgia-themed music “all day long.”
“There are a million songs about Georgia — Midnight Train to Georgia and The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” she says. “People come in and you hear them humming along to Georgia songs.”
Georgia Gifts & More opened its doors four years ago in Tucker, Georgia, which is about 14 miles northeast of Atlanta. Gayle
describes Tucker as a small town by a big city.
“You would think a souvenir shop would be in downtown Atlanta, but we intentionally did not want to be downtown,” she says, mentioning that traffic and parking are two big challenges in downtown Atlanta. “We’re in a building where there’s free parking, 1.5 miles off of one of the main highways here. People come in and go without all of the frustration of shopping downtown.”
Although the retail store is somewhat new, Gayle initially launched Georgia Gifts & More in 2012 as an online store she managed from home. At that time, she primarily sold Georgia-themed gift baskets she crafted for business-to-business customers in the area.
“It wasn’t supposed to be any of this,” says Gayle. “It just started as an at-home business on the side, something to do. But then each year, it just kept growing. People kept finding us, looking for Georgia things.”
Before starting Georgia Gifts & More, Gayle worked in the advertising industry. She always knew she wanted to start a business, but she never imagined that dream would come to fruition through a Georgia-themed gift shop.
“I was thinking it would be an ad agency, not gifts,” she says.
But Gayle has always been crafty. She arranged flowers for weddings, made home decor items and she enjoys needlepoint. In the early 2000s, in a former business that she owned, she realized that corporations hosting conventions and meetings in Atlanta wanted to procure Georgia-themed gifts and souvenirs for event attendees in welcome bags. She notes that there seemed to be plenty of vendors selling larger gifts and souvenirs to event planners in town, but there were few vendors selling smaller souvenirs to those customers.
In 2012, Gayle married her advertising and creative sides by launching Georgia Gifts & More as an online store to sell gift baskets and boxes to meeting and event planners in town. As word spread about her business, Gayle says her customer base expanded to include local Realtors and apartment complex owners who wanted to give small gift boxes to clients. Businesses that moved their offices to Atlanta would purchase gifts from Georgia Gifts & More for their employees.
As her customer base grew, Gayle moved to an office space with a small showroom to display products, handle online orders and pickups and as a place for customers who wanted to see baskets and boxes in person. As clients began coming in to place and pick up orders, many began to ask about purchasing various gifts on display in the showroom. Gayle jokes that she didn’t even have a cash register at first.
“We never thought people would want to shop when they picked up their orders,” says Gayle. “But people would walk around our showroom — it was teeny tiny — but people would want to look at it.” With more customers asking about retail, Gayle and her husband, Daren, decided to up the store’s retail game at the beginning of 2019 by opening the retail store in Tucker. She says Daren has helped her with shipping and marketing from the beginning when the business was in their home.
Instead of simply displaying products in the showroom area like she did in her office space, Gayle says the store
allowed her to stock dozens of items on its shelves. The company also began to sell more touristy souvenirs and locally made gifts in the shop. She used one-quarter of the building as a dedicated retail area and three-quarters of the building to manage production and shipping.
Gayle says there was a learning curve to figuring out how to create the perfect shop layout as well as how to interact well with customers face to face.
“We were so used to dealing with our customers on the phone and behind the scenes,” she says. “We weren’t used to having face-to-face interactions with customers — that was an adjustment for us. We had to actually be sales-oriented, show people around the store and do all these things you don’t do on the website so there have been a lot of lessons learned. It’s just been a process of learning.”
Georgia Gifts & More had a good first year at its retail location selling gift baskets and souvenirs to a mix of meeting and event planners as well as business owners in the area. But business halted temporarily in 2020 as the COVID pandemic hit.
“There were no meetings, no conventions, no events, no people staying in hotels. All of the tourists and travelers went away, so our customer base went away,” says Gayle.
The first few months after the pandemic started, Georgia Gifts & More closed its storefront and focused on online sales. Gayle says she also shifted the company’s focus to selling Georgia-themed gifts for locals instead of gift boxes for meeting and event planners.
“What we realized is that people weren’t able to travel, so we could ship things — birthday gifts, get-well gifts,” says Gayle. “We looked at what we had sitting on the shelves and how we can repurpose it. We took the same products that we would have sold to a company and put them in a brunch basket, or the same stuff people would put in a
welcome bag and made a birthday basket.”
She notes that a candle called, ‘Hugs from a Distance,’ was a popular seller in 2020.
Repurposing its products helped Georgia Gifts & More gain a whole new customer base. And as the retail store reopened its doors in mid-2020, foot traffic was slow but steadily increased over the past three years. In addition to business owners frequenting the store, she also noticed locals and tourists began returning to the shop for gifts and souvenirs.
Today, Georgia Gifts & More sells a mix of gifts and souvenirs from both wholesalers as well as some local vendors. Gayle tries to attend several souvenir shows throughout the year, such as Atlanta Market, for ideas on what’s popular.
She also visits local farmer’s markets to find vendors who make preserves and handmade goods that will sell well. A website called “Georgia Grown,” which is managed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture, is a resource Gayle uses to find local vendors.
“It’s great to have a portal where it’s specifically Georgia stuff,” she says.
In 2023, stickers have been a top-selling sou-
venir for Georgia Gifts & More, and Gayle says T-shirts and hoodies are always tried and true. A lot of customers also come in looking for postcards, mugs, coasters and tea towels.
Charcuterie boards have been very popular lately with gift-seeking customers. On the food side, Gayle says prepackaged gourmet foods, such as peach, peanut and pecan products always sell.
When the retail location first opened, about 70% of business came from online and 30% from in-store sales. Today, Gayle says, 50% of business comes from online and 50% from in-store sales.
Adapting to customers’ requests has helped the destination retailer grow most over the years. For retailers wanting to expand their customer base, Gayle suggests listening to customers and adapting to those insights.
“Be adaptable and flexible and listen to your customer. They have great insight, we just listen,” she concludes. SGN
“Be adaptable and flexible and listen to your customer. They have great insight, we just listen.” — KAREN GAYLE
MERCHANDISING: STICKERS, PINS AND PATCHES
In years past, tourists primarily purchased large stickers to decorate car bumpers. They often opted for stickers with a name drop of the place they visited to commemorate the trip. Or some tourists preferred to purchase stickers with witty sayings that matched their personalities.
But in the last five years, tourists have shifted their preferences. Instead of buying one large bumper sticker
at the end of their vacation, they buy multiple smaller-sized stickers to place on a wide variety of gadgets and drinkware.
Check out any coffee shop, and you’re sure to find someone with a souvenir sticker on the back of their laptop. Similarly, you’ll likely find someone on a hiking trail carrying a water bottle decked out with stickers that highlight all the places they trav-
eled. Teenagers and young adults adorn their cellphone and tablet cases with these souvenirs to make a statement.
Many destination retailers have taken notice of this trend. Brett Rimkus, co-owner of Garner State Park Concessions in Concan, Texas, says he began to see the sticker craze ramp up five to seven years ago as customers began putting the souvenirs on reusable water bottles and travel mugs.
He has noticed customers buying patches and pins for similar reasons — they want to decorate their backpacks, purses, hats and vests with mementos from places they have gone.
“It’s weird, but 10 years ago, patches were just something for Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts,” says Rimkus. “Now, it’s gone way beyond that.”
Across the U.S., destination retailers say stickers have grown in popularity lately, with tourists even making requests for them in some instances.
Trail Mix Peninsula, operated by the Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park, is a small destination retailer in Peninsula, Ohio, that serves hikers, bikers and train passengers visiting Ohio’s Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Lorrie Smith, retail operations manager for the Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park, says a customer approached her about five years ago about selling stickers at the Trail Mix shop.
“We weren’t really carrying stickers at first,” she says.
Smith took the suggestion to sell stickers, and she says they turned out to be a hit with park guests.
Wholesalers have noticed the increased popularity for these small add-on items, as well.
Laura Alikpala, who works in marketing for Kent, Washington-based Impulse Souvenirs, says there has been an uptick in demand for Impulse Souvenirs’ stickers among retailer customers in recent years.
It’s certainly good to offer a wide variety of stickers, pins and patches, but Brent Durham, owner of Brass Reminders, suggests that retailers periodically refresh their offerings to maximize profits.
For example, he says, a store might offer 32 sticker designs. The store’s top-selling design may make the retailer a $500 profit for the year, and the No. 2 design may make a $450 profit. The five designs that sell the least may barely have sold enough to get money back. For those five, Durham suggests taking them off the display rack and replacing them.
He says, “The best thing to do is
“Stickers are a fun and lower-cost item that appeal to families traveling together to coastal destinations,” she says. “We expect to see continuing growth in this category with multiple designs to appeal to broad demographics for visitors.”
Today, it’s essential for destination retailers to carry smaller-sized stickers for customers wanting these souvenirs to decorate travel drinkware and phone cases. But retailers can’t ignore larger stickers, either. Although they are less popular, some tourists still appreciate and collect large decals for their vehicles.
Olivia Poto, buyer for Chimney Rock Management LLC in Chimney Rock, North Carolina, says Chimney Rock Park’s gift shops stock a variety of stickers in different sizes, colors and subjects to appeal to all kinds of customers.
“Large stickers tend to go well with the collector who decorates their cars, motor homes and coolers,” says Poto. “We hear from those who collect the smaller stickers that they place them on their water bottles, laptops and phone cases.”
Brass Reminders, a wholesale manufacturer based in Keene, Kentucky, offers high-quality name-dropped souvenir decals for destination retailers across the U.S. Owner Brent Durham says he has noticed retailers purchasing smaller and smaller sized decals from him with each passing year.
clearance [those least popular] stickers or even throw them away. Try to get another design on there that will make you $500. It may cost you $40 to do that, but would you rather spend another year to get that $40 back or have a new design on the rack that might make you $500 in profit that same year?”
He adds, “If you can replace it with something that makes profit, you improve the quality of what’s on the rack. This goes for anything you merchandise on a rack.”
Durham emphasizes to customers to reorder the designs that sell out and replace the ones that don’t.
Offering a strong selection might
lead to an increase in add-on sales, as the under $10 price point makes for an easy impulse purchase for customers who want to remember their trip. Retailers say a lot of smaller stickers are even priced under $4 to $5 each.
It doesn’t hurt to have racks near the cash wrap to encourage add-on sales. Garner State Park Concessions features several sticker and patch racks throughout the store, but Brett Rimkus, co-owner, makes sure to have one right by the cash wrap. He says, “We do have several displays around the place, but I have one right near the register. Customers are waiting, and they grab one or two stickers while waiting.”
“Stickers are a fun and lower-cost item that appeal to families traveling together to coastal destinations.”
— LAURA ALIKPALA, IMPULSE SOUVENIRS
Stickers today also are less likely to peel off after being exposed to water.
Durham notes that higher quality brands of stickers and decals can even be rated for up to a five-year lifespan, making them a great souvenir for people wanting a memento of their trip.
He says, “Our decals started out in a standard size for car windows. In the last six to seven years, we’ve added a mini size, and it now outsells the standard size.”
Durham attributes that switch to more people wanting to put stickers on their gadgets. He notes that teenagers and young adults have helped to drive this trend.
“It’s a younger person’s game,” he says.
Rimkus often looks to industry trade shows like Surf Expo to determine what souvenirs will be popular. But, he adds, kids often clue him into what’s popular among teenagers and young adults, as well. And as of late, smaller-sized stickers have been a hit with the youth.
“The way I’ve always seen it, college people decide the trends,” he says. “College is really where trends are set. As you get older, you also want to do the younger thing. Older people want to be thought of as young.”
Rimkus suspects younger crowds enjoy collecting stickers and patches as a simple way to break the ice.
Destination retailers often use wholesale vendors to purchase their pins and patches, but sometimes they find local artists to craft stickers and decals that better match the vibe of the destination. For instance, Trail Mix Peninsula’s stickers are all made locally, but the store turns to wholesale companies for its pins, patches and magnets.
Fleming buys her selection of stickers for Jonathan’s The Bear Necessities Gift Shop from eight wholesalers. Although customers enjoy beautifully designed stickers and decals, many customers want them to feature a name drop as well.
“We have some designs that can’t be name dropped,” says Durham of Brass Reminders. “Iconic designs without name drops still sell, but for most people, the whole purpose of the decal is to say where you’ve been.”
Almost all stickers at Islands Mercantile in Johns Island, South Carolina, feature name drops for either Kiawah Island or Seabrook Island, two popular vacation destinations in the area.
“Most of our stickers are island specific,” says Avery Smith, co-owner of Islands Mercantile.
Smith adds that her customers also really like stickers that feature the state flag with a blue background and a white palm tree and crescent moon. “People gravitate toward that design. It’s a cool logo.”
When considering what graphics or logos to feature on stickers, pins and patches, retailers should focus on imagery that matches their destinations. For Islands Mercantile, turtle graphics are popular on stickers to remind customers of their trip to the beach.
Lorrie Smith of Trail Mix Peninsula says her customers enjoy stickers that depict bikes and feature the Cuyahoga Valley National Park name drop on them.
“We have our towpath going through,” she says. “People want a memory that they pedaled the towpath.”
“Years ago, people talked face to face a lot,” he says. “Now, people are on the phone all the time. They need ways to encourage conversation. [Stickers and patches] are a way for people to say where they’ve gone and break that ice.”
With a technology-driven world today, people of all age groups can appreciate that stickers, pins and patches promote conversation.
Debbie Fleming, co-owner of Jonathan’s The Bear Necessities Gift Shop in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, says she sees customers of all ages putting stickers on their water bottles and computers to both start conversations with others and bring up happy memories. “It kind of covers all age groups,” Fleming says of the trend. “It’s to bring back something you remember. And if it’s on your computer, you see it every day.”
Poto says Chimney Rock Park’s store primarily offers stickers, pins and patches that relate to the park.
“Stickers with our Chimney Rock image are always best sellers,” says Poto. “With pins, Benchmark with altitude is extremely popular — Benchmark is a surveyor’s mark cut in a wall, pillar or building and used as a reference point in measuring altitudes. Then, our patches are the iron-on variety, which can be sewn as well. Images of Chimney Rock are best sellers for patches.”
Rimkus notes that name-dropped stickers and patches sell best. He says, “It’s hard to say what our top-selling design is. But really, it’s the name drop that sells. People want to identify where they went. Cool imagery sells, but not as well as when it says where they went.” SGN
“But really, it’s the name drop that sells. People want to identify where they went. Cool imagery sells, but not as well as when it says where they went.”
— BRETT RIMKUS, GARNER STATE PARK CONCESSIONS
STORY BY MARY ELIZABETH WILLIAMS-VILLANO
KEEP SHOPLIFTERS AT BAY BY LEARNING A FEW TRICKS FROM THESE SAVVY RETAILERS.
Kandice Duffey, manager of Balboa Surf and Style, Newport Beach, California, recalls once when a group of high school boys came in. “I saw one boy rolling up shirts and stuffing them in his clothes, so I approached him and said, 'Do you want to give me what you have now or should I call the police?’” As his buddies snickered, he surrendered the shirts.
While this story is amusing, retail theft is no joke to a retailer with an alreadynarrow profit margin. A large corporate chain can easily absorb losses due to petty pilferage, but a small retailer feels the pain much more acutely. Stores employ many strategies to deter would-be thieves. Many stores use anti-theft devices on easy-toconceal items, while others use signage that tugs at the conscience or rely on the eyes of staff and cameras.
Here are some examples of retailers’ successful theft-prevention tactics.
THEM WITH KINDNESS
Merely a cheery “Hello, welcome to our store!” may be the best theft deterrent of all. “The last thing a thief wants is to be recognized,” says retail consultant and educator Cathy Donovan Wagner, founder of Chicago-based RETAILMavens.
Maria Martinez, manager of The Beach Nut, Virginia Beach, Virginia, knows this firsthand. “The biggest theft-prevention thing we do is make sure we’re walking the floor and welcoming our customers,” she says. And as we’re welcoming people, we’re also subtly letting them know ‘we see you, we see what’s in our store’ — not just doing our own thing, ignoring them.”
Jared Gaburo owns two stores next door to each other in Sea Isle City, New
Jersey — the Seaside Shade Shack, which specializes in sunglasses, and Tortuga, a store with high-end beach apparel for men. “I’m pretty good about being on the floor and walking around,” says Gaburo, “especially when young kids are in the stores because they tend to be the ones that steal the most. It’s typically teenage girls who are the biggest
A retailer can do a lot to prevent theft committed by people coming into the store. Unfortunately, there are others who might also be tempted to steal from you. “Most theft, sadly, will be committed by your own team members,” says retail consultant and educator Cathy Donovan Wagner, founder of RETAILMavens.
Employees are in the store when you’re not. “Our employees have access to the back stockroom, the cash drawer and the safe,” says Kandice Duffey, manager of Balboa Surf and Style, Newport Beach, California.
In fact, sales associates have a double temptation, as they are able to steal not just your merchandise but your cash as well. At the store Duffey manages, a camera records the transactions at the register from multiple angles. “Not all of the angles are displayed on the monitor,” says Duffey. “We have others that the employees don’t know about.”
offenders, trying to get their hands on the bracelets and anklets.”
If a greeting doesn’t chase away a potential thief, try engaging them in conversation. “When these girls came in, I had a gut feeling they were going to steal,” says Duffey, “so I told an employee to be nice to them — 'kill them with kindness.’ As soon as we did that, they left.”
Besides acting as a deterrent, security cameras are invaluable for gathering information for police to follow up on. The Beach Nut is inside a restaurant that has cameras trained on the parking lot and valet stand. “If it’s someone who drove to the restaurant, we can easily pull the footage of the license plates to send to the police,” says Martinez. “We can also get names off the dinner checks from the restaurant’s point-of-sale system.”
Inside the store, are more cameras angled at every corner. “If we need to watch someone more closely, we can do it from the monitor at the register or from my phone,” Martinez says.
In-store security cameras can do more than simply record thefts, they can deter them as well — as long
as you let potential thieves know that they’re there. “You don’t actually have to have the cameras,” says Wagner. “Merely announcing that you have cameras will make a lot of potential thieves think twice.” You can even add a dash of humor, as Duffey has. “As soon as you walk into our store, you’ll see a sign on the window saying, “Just to let you know, this place is covered in cameras. So please don’t steal, because if you do, I will call the police, and they’ll call your Mom,’ with a little sad-face emoji.”
DID YOU KNOW? According to the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention, shoplifting costs the retail industry around $50 billion a year.
Some retailers choose to keep high-dollar merchandise in protective custody inside locked showcases. “All of our premium, luxury-brand sunglasses are inside locked cases,” says Gaburo. Valuable jewelry is kept at the register. There are anti-theft systems like magnetic security tags, but those might be too pricey for a small retailer. If you’ve ever been to an Apple store, you’ve probably noticed the steel cables anchoring the phones and computers. Duffy came up with a budget
version of this. “We had these keychains that were getting stolen all the time, so I tied fishing line to them. It’s not like people can't yank the line and just take them, but it’d be a bit more noticeable.”
Shoplifters often take advantage of the privacy afforded by a dressing room curtain or door.
“We count the items when people go in and when they come out,” says Duffey. “I do it with them — ‘okay, you’ve got one, two, three, four items,’ — verbalizing that ‘I know you have four items, so you’d better come out with four items.’” She and workers also clear away clothing left hanging so there’s no confusion later. But keeping count can be a challenge, especially when the store is busy and people use the dressing room without asking.
Martinez uses the counting technique, too. “With the items that don’t sell as often we all keep mental counts in our head of how many there are. If we see an empty space, we’re really good about asking each other, ‘Did you sell that? It’s gone.’”
Emotions can run high when you see someone stealing, as the following story illustrates. “A guy came in here and walked around with one of our
skateboards for a while, then set it down by the door and left,” remembers Duffey. “Before I got a chance to put it back, he returned, reached inside the door, grabbed the skateboard and left.”
What happened next Duffey admits shouldn’t have. “I hurtled over the counter and me and my co-worker just took off after him,” she says. They caught him and recovered the skateboard.
What should a shop owner or employee do when they observe someone shoplifting? Wagner asked a theft-prevention officer this question. “He said, ‘The first rule is, don’t confront them.’ The person committing the crime could be trying to get money to buy drugs and may not be in their right mind. They may get violent. It’s just too dangerous.’”
No item of merchandise, no matter how valuable, is worth someone getting harmed.
What should you do instead? “Make a mental note of what they’re wearing,” says Wagner, “anything that could identify the person. Get a license plate if possible. Then call the police.”
You don’t have to sit back and be a victim while unscrupulous individuals cut into your hardearned profits. By taking a few precautions, you can make your store more appealing to shoppers and less appealing to shoplifters. SGN
Retail consultant and educator Cathy Donovan Wagner shares what a theft-prevention officer told her about what a store owner or employee should do when they suspect that a shopper is really a shoplifter. Here are some theft prevention tips to follow:
#1: Thieves don’t want to be recognized. Greet them. If a friendly greeting doesn’t scare them, engage them in conversation. Make it obvious you’re watching them.
#2: Pay attention to a shopper with a large tote, handbag or shopping bag. If you suspect someone is loading their personal bag with items with the intent to steal them, ask to hold their bag(s) at the counter so they may have an easier time shopping.
#3: Discourage shoplifters with signage. “Smile! You’re on camera!” is a good example.
#4: Use a code phrase to alert your team that there is a suspected shoplifter or group of shoplifters in the store. Example: “Have you seen the new Jane Doe collection?”
#5: Finally, never confront a shoplifter. That could be dangerous. Call the police.
Have a product you would like featured? Send a high-resolution flat-lay image and description to: kristin@breakwallpublishing.com.
