Retail tips for museum shops

A successful museum shop enhances the visitor experience and generates valuable income. These practical tips are for museums of all sizes to consider when planning their retail space.

• Use visitor data and feedback to understand who is visiting your museum and therefore your shop space.
• Speak to your front of house staff – they hear visitor questions and requests daily.
• Look at what already sells well and what doesn’t. Consider what your audience values and choose products with them in mind.

• Choose products that reflect your mission, collections or sense of place – think about what makes your museum unique and chose appropriate items to reflect this
• Work with local makers, suppliers and artists where possible – sustainable and more likely to result in unique products.
• For particular products or ranges you can sparingly use label cards to share who made it, why it matters and the connection to your museum or location.

• The size of shop space matters less than keeping it tidy, clean and uncluttered – less can be more.
• Think about the shop from visitors’ point of view, what do they see at eye level, how easy is it to navigate the space for everyone, what draws attention?
• Group products by theme or story to help browsing and encourage exploration

• Encourage staff to greet visitors in shop and chat to them in a friendly way if the visitor is receptive.
• Ensure that shop staff understand the product stories and can speak to visitors about them in an informed, confident but not pushy, way.
• Encourage staff to share insights and visitor feedback.

• Price with confidence – work back from a desired margin not just choosing prices based on ‘what feels right’
• Keep track of your stock and review stock reports or sales data regularly (monthly works for most)
• If something isn’t selling rethink its placement, story or price then decide whether to discontinue
• Where possible test ranges in small quantities first to manage risk and see what resonates with your visitors

• Think about neighboring businesses when choosing products – avoid duplication where possible and look for complementary ranges
• Take seasonality into account (for example Christmas, school holidays, local event) and think how this might change your audiences and what products you would want to stock

• Think about whether an online shop would work well for you considering your location, capacity, audiences and the items you sell
• You can also license your artwork through ArtUk for their online retail platform About the Shop | Art UK Shop

Remember, you don’t need to overhaul everything at once, even small changes (product stories, tidying displays, working with a local artist) can make a big difference.

Visit the websites below for further information about developing your retail offer:

Association for Cultural Enterprise: guides, case studies and training courses for cultural retail

Association of Independent Museums: Success Guide for Successful Retailing in Museums