They say everything’s bigger in Texas, and that couldn’t be truer when it comes to the experience at the Houston Museum of Natural Science (HMNS). Founded in 1909, it has since grown to become one of the largest science museums in the country, with an expansive museum store that aims to further the museum’s mission of science education through offerings that aren’t just functional, but also a lot of fun.

A TRULY INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE

More than 2.5 million visitors a year — including more than 500,000 children — visit the museum’s four floors of permanent exhibit halls, which include everything from Ancient Egypt, paleontology, gems and minerals, chemistry, energy, a Cabinet of Curiosities, a planetarium, and a giant- screen theater to a butterfly center that features a rainforest with over 400 species of live butterflies fluttering around the visitors.

“Our Paleo hall is the size of a football field and covers time from trilobites to man,” said Latha Thomas, senior vice president of marketing and retail sales for the museum. “We have the only triceratops with fossilized skin on display, and our mineral hall is considered to be the finest in the world. The museum also hosts numerous events and special exhibitions each year.”

Unlike most museums that discourage touching the exhibits, the HMNS has a Cabinet of Curiosities containing objects that guests are invited to interact with, along with a current special exhibit showcasing real sharks that can be touched. In addition, the energy and chemistry halls are filled with numerous interactives that are both digital and physical.

“The planetarium has 8K projectors — it was the first in the country to have them,” she said. “The planetarium is one of the first venues we had in the museum, and it’s even been used to train NASA astronauts in star navigation. We also produce our own films and show rented films — and it’s also a very popular spot for people to get engaged.”

In addition to the main location, HMNS has a satellite location in SugarLand and the George Observatory located in Brazos Bend State Park, which is open every weekend for public stargazing.

“Numerous discoveries have been made with our telescope,” Thomas said.

FROM MINERALS TO MASTODON TEETH

There are numerous discoveries to make when visitors enter the museums store at the Houston Museum of Natural Science — everything from toys, apparel, home décor, souvenirs and plush to minerals and fossils. In addition to a huge selection of branded and souvenir merchandise, Thomas said they also want people to feel comfortable and trusting of purchasing high-end minerals and fossils from them.

“We’re not your typical museum gift shop,” she said. “We consider ours to be a museum store, as we have something for everyone — whether it is a student here on a field trip picking up some rock candy for a few dollars or someone buying a $25,000 mineral for their home.” Bestsellers include rocks in truly every price range — from 50 cents to $50,000. Branded tees and science kits also sell well, and since they are located in Space City, there are plenty of STEM and space-themed STEM toys and gadgets.

Thomas explained the HMNS store works with a variety of local vendors on custom pieces and jewelry, plus numerous fossil and mineral partners who own their own mines and quarries to provide the finest pieces for the museum store’s customers. They even have a Navy diver who works with them to source all the store’s megalodon shark teeth.

“We’re first and foremost a museum,” she said. “That means that people go through the store and expect to see unique, one-of-a-kind products. About 95% of our items cannot be purchased elsewhere, and for many of the high-end minerals, fossils and jewelry, those are the only pieces in the world.

“Our president — who is also the curator of our mineral hall and an expert in minerals — as well as our paleontologist, Egyptologist, anthropologist and malacologist all help us with sourcing as well as suggestions on things to carry,” she said. “I think that’s a big reason why our store is so different from a traditional souvenir shop.”

As for trends or surprising hits, Thomas said they have mineral-carved birds, which, while much more high-end, have recently been selling well. The store also collaborated with a local award-winning chocolatier for custom chocolates she said they can’t keep in stock.

“Last year, we had a full-sized cast of a T. rex skull that was sold, and we also had a life-sized replica of a terracotta warrior that someone from South Carolina purchased,” she said. “Our staff drove it from Houston to South Carolina to deliver it.”

Thomas said that it’s also just as fun to hear the kids in the store oohing and ahhing over small rocks that they want to purchase to begin their rock collection.

“I think many people are amazed that they can see items in the store that are so closely inspired by the halls and that they can actually take them home with them and have the ultimate memory of their visit,” Thomas said. “In the end, that’s what we want from our visitors — that the store helps spark their interest in science, too.”