Shops open for business
Three gift shops at state museums have reopened with new concepts, more merchandise, after closing due to pandemic
The long winter is over for gift shops at state museums in Santa Fe.
The Museum of New Mexico Foundation reopened three of its shops Thursday, more than a month after their partner museums.
Shops at the New Mexico History Museum and New Mexico Museum of Art had been closed since Jan. 1, while the Museum of International Folk Art’s gift shop closed in October.
The museums themselves reopened in staggered fashion in February. The Museum of Indian Arts & Culture/Laboratory of Anthropology and its gift shop will remain closed into May because they are undergoing renovations, said Jamie Clements, the foundation’s CEO.
The closures allowed staff to rethink the gift shops and reopen with new concepts.
“Prior to the shutdown, lots of merchandise went across all four shops,” Sara Birmingham, the foundation’s vice president of retail, said in a news release. “I’ve tried to really fine-tune each shop’s selection to reflect the mission of that museum.”
Previously, similar items could be found at all the shops. Now the merchandise will be focused on reflecting the host museum.
“The most dramatic change will be at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture,” Clements said in an interview. “We made the decision to have only Native items. We will highlight textiles, which we haven’t done before. We’re featuring Native glass art. We will have a whole wall of Native glass art that we have never done before.”
The art museum gift shop will have more merchandise connected with the exhibitions as well as art from local artists.
“Artists have had a really tough time the past year,” Clements said. “We will have more of their art available in the shops.”
Like many businesses, museum gift shops have been considering how to remain relevant in changing times.
“It’s a time of rethinking,” Clements said. “You look back and rethink the shops and merchandise. These will be improved spaces with a more refined choice of merchandise.”
Clements said she believes visitors to Santa Fe have an appreciation for museums and history.
“I think it will resonate with visitors that there is more of an alignment with the museum and gift shops,” Clements said. “People really pay attention when they come to Santa Fe.”
Through its gift shops, the foundation raises funds for museum exhibitions and education programs.