Dear all,

I absolutely agree with Marc on the total costs. And I agree with Barbra 
that the only reason for having a museum shop, is making money, not 
burning it. Forget the argument to have a shop because everybody has a 
shop. Most smaller museums would be richer without a shop. This is a 
fact, also here in Europe.

Medium size museums with medium size visitor rates can generate 
additional income (monthly rents) by renting/leasing some space to a 
retailer or bookseller with experiences in the museum world.

Another solution is spread risk for smaller museums: an agreement with 
_strong _"Friends of the museum" running the shop. If they make losses, 
it would not harm the museum, if the raise money from the shop 
activities, they have to turn it over to the museum.

Christian


Am 07.04.2018 um 12:12 schrieb Marc A Williams:
> Folks,
> I have consulted at several hundred museums in my career as a 
> collections conservator.  While I was not specifically engaged to look 
> at museum stores, it is part of the overall assessment.  I am going to 
> take a "Shark Tank" perspective here.  Stores in virtually all smaller 
> museum situations lose money.  Think of them as offering local artists 
> an opportunity to showcase their wares.  Think of them as supporting 
> some museum educational concept and message.  But do not think of them 
> as generating positive cash flow.  They will not if taking into 
> account all expenses.  Someone has to run the store.  Even if they are 
> volunteer, someone who is paid has to manage them.  Someone has to 
> choose what is sold, someone has to order and reorder, and someone has 
> to track the sales, including accounting and tax returns.  Space is 
> taken up that could be used for other purposes, and virtually no 
> museum in their considerations actually accounts for that cost.  Then 
> there is heat and electricity and other utilities which should be 
> pro-rated for the store space.  Again, I doubt most museums account 
> for that.  Museum stores in the BIG museums probably turn a positive 
> cash flow, but in the small museums and historic houses, it generally 
> is a losing proposition cash wise.  Maybe the educational message is 
> worth it, but please do not expect to actually "make" money.  If 
> financial issues are important, museum stores in small museums 
> generally lose money.  Perhaps ironically, most smaller museums also 
> lose money on renting their facilities for events like weddings. Wow, 
> that $800 looks good on the books, but when one actually looks at the 
> staff time, insurance costs and lawsuits (and yes, these do occur - 
> someone in high heals sued for turning their ankle because it sank 
> into the ground on the lawn - this really happened), utilities, wear 
> and tear/damage, and all the other real costs, it is a negative cash 
> flow.  Yes, it is true that maybe some of those wedding guests will 
> contribute to the museum down the road (probably not true of 
> purchasers in a museum shop).  But in the current fiscal year, 
> museums, even local historical societies, may want to look at 
> themselves more as businesses.  Absolutely it is OK to support your 
> institutional educational goals via events and stores, but be honest 
> about the cost.  The FULL cost.  I for one believe in subsidizing to 
> put forward one's educational agenda.  Just don't fool yourselves 
> thinking you will "make" money.  And as far as feeling guilty charging 
> a decent price if you do have a store, just watch a few episodes of 
> Shark Tank.  That should set things straight (hint, it is about make 
> money, make money, make money).  YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).
> Marc
>
> *From:* B. Broidy 
> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> *Sent:* Saturday, April 07, 2018 3:31 AM
> *To:* [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> *Subject:* Re: [MUSEUM-L] Museum Gift SHop Income
>
> Regarding the response from Jessica at the Fraunces Tavern Museum,
>
> I must respectfully disagree with her museum's current method of 
> pricing objects for sale in the museum store. There is a very common 
> misconception that being a nonprofit organization means that you 
> should feel guilty about making too much of a profit on any endeavor.
>
> Just the opposite, you should be making a profit on items that are 
> sold in the museum store - the entire reason for having such an 
> amenity is to raise additional funds for the museum. It's a pointless 
> activity to dedicate real estate (however small) and manpower (even 
> volunteer time) to something outside of the interpretative areas of 
> the building if its not earning its keep so to speak. This is an 
> opportunity that is not being taken advantage of in my humble opinion.
>
> Barbra Broidy
> MA Johns Hopkins University, Museum Studies and Nonprofit Mgt.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jessica Phillips <[log in to unmask]>
> To: MUSEUM-L <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Fri, Apr 6, 2018 4:29 pm
> Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] Museum Gift SHop Income
>
> I don't know about statistics but at our museum (30k annually 
> visitors/open 7 days a week/6 fulltime employees/4partime) we have a 
> small "gift shop" which consists of one tall bookshelf and a case. The 
> person who sells admissions handles gift shop items sales. The 
> Director of Education handles the sourcing and purchase of sale items.
> Our unwritten "policy" is that we never spend more than we make in the 
> fiscal year, which averages about $1,000 (we see about 30k annually 
> visitors, are open 7 days a week and have 6 fulltime employees). We 
> also don't price things higher than what is needed to cover our costs 
> of wholesale purchase, shipping and administration.  This means we 
> don't usually make a profit but our stock sells because it's more 
> affordable.
> Jessica B. Phillips
> Fraunces Tavern Museum
> *From:*Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask] 
> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>] *On Behalf Of *Liz Taylor
> *Sent:* Friday, April 06, 2018 1:24 PM
> *To:* [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
> *Subject:* Re: [MUSEUM-L] Museum Gift SHop Income
> Thanks for replying Maren! We are a very small Museum - only 4 
> full-time staff - and MSA isn't within our budget. Up until now our 
> gift shop has always been run by a volunteer, but it has recently come 
> under my direction. I'm just needing some basic numbers to justify 
> expenses to our Treasurer!
> Liz Taylor
> Creative Director
> ameliamuseum.org <http://ameliamuseum.org>
> On Fri, Apr 6, 2018 at 1:06 PM, Anna Bassford-Woods 
> <[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
> I would also like to hear answers on this.
> On Fri, Apr 6, 2018, 12:05 PM Liz Taylor <[log in to unmask] 
> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
>
>     Hi all - super quick question! Does anyone know the statistics on
>     what percentage of income a museum gift shop should be generating?
>     I can't seem to track down any numbers on this.
>     Thank you!
>     -- 
>     Liz Taylor
>     Creative Director
>     ameliamuseum.org <http://ameliamuseum.org>
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> -- 
> Liz Taylor
> Creative Director
> ameliamuseum.org <http://ameliamuseum.org>
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