Powered by Discovery: The Griffin Museum of Science & Industry
While the Griffin Museum of Science & Industry (GMSI) in Chicago has been around since 1933, it’s anything but old-fashioned.
As the largest science museum in the Western Hemisphere, the 400,000 square feet of hands-on exhibits includes everything from a World War II submarine, five-story movie screen, and a 40-foot tornado and a flight-proven Dragon Spacecraft, to the world’s largest pinball machine, and an immersive Spider-Man exhibit that showcases rare comic books, props, costumes and life-sized statues from the iconic “Spider-Man” movies.
Each exhibit is carefully designed to spark and inspire scientific inquiry and creative genius in the more than 180 million guests of all ages who have walked through the doors — and into the gift store that offers “the perfect souvenir and gift items for the techie and tinkerer in everyone.”
INSPIRING EVERY GENERATION
Walking through the doors of the gift stores, visitors will find a number of merchandise stories throughout that highlight the unique exhibits with a balance between museum-specific and science-based offerings, as well as fun science activity items for younger guests.
The museum currently has its main store — dubbed “Launch Pad” — in the space center that sells space-themed items, as well as a recently opened store to showcase items specific to the “Spider-Man” exhibit. From November through January, the museum adds a fourth store — “Christmas Around the World Holiday Shop” — based on a GMSI holiday exhibit of trees decorated in the style of various countries, an exhibit that’s been an annual tradition since 1942.
“We’re here to help create lasting memories for our guests, whether it be with a Pioneer Zephyr figurine or a Blue Paradox tumbler made of recycled plastic,” said Lecy Quiroz, museum store director at the Griffin Museum, who has been in retail management for 25 years. “We receive a lot of traffic from school field trips, so we really strive to get science-based toys and activities into young hands to be a catalyst for a genuine interest in science.”
To that point, the museum’s education initiatives strive to create learning experiences inside and outside the classroom by showcasing diversity in STEM fields, providing developmental courses to elevate science teaching in schools, and offering programs like after-school science clubs and weekend youth programs for those who might otherwise face barriers that exclude them from participating. That educational focus extends to the gift store.
“To spark creativity, our stores offer National Geographic STEM items, such as our Microscope and Marble Run, as well as kits that allow kids to make their own thermometers and clocks,” Quiroz said. “We offer an entire section of science- based activities to inspire young minds.”
UNIQUE NEEDS, UNIQUE PRODUCTS
What items are consistently popular in the store? Quiroz said that children look for tactile items — anything squishy like plasma balls or those with fidget-type qualities — while exhibit-related apparel is most popular with adult guests.
“Our bestselling offerings include space-centric plushies, such as our NASA penguin, and our small chick plushies that relate to our chick hatchery,” she added. “We also offer Vortex Lamps that relate to the Science Storms exhibit and U-505 T-shirts and model build kits that are consistently top sellers.”
When it comes to choosing the perfect items to reflect the mission of the museum, that responsibility is handled by the purchasing team of its partner, Event Network, with input from the museum’s other partners and the store itself. Every season they have multiple meetings to narrow down what their customers will enjoy and what will best represent the museum.
“Merchandising decisions are a collaborative effort between store leaders and Event Network’s visual team,” she explained. “Stores are given the freedom of merchandising to suit the needs and interests of our particular guests. We’re able to use both reporting and guest feedback to create an environment that’s easy to navigate and enjoy.”
As for sourcing those products, Quiroz said a lot of the credit goes to their purchasing team.
“They’re able to source some excellent products through a combination of several well-established and local vendors,” she said. “We also have quite a few items that our product team creates specifically based around science. They’re terrific at developing fun, colorful items that pique the curiosity and creativity of children.”
While online shopping is more popular than ever, that’s not necessarily the case for the Griffin Museum of Science & Industry. In fact, Quiroz said that guests tend to choose items that are related to their favorite exhibits at the end of their visit, and any online sales are typically from guests who didn’t purchase something they saw while in the store and experienced that all-too-familiar non-buyers’ remorse when they got home.
“I love the supportive environment I get to work in and the ability to evolve and cater to our unique customers’ needs,” she said. “We want all of our guests to leave the museum with something in hand that inspires curiosity and wonder.”
