As the previous post has urged, clarification of the purpose of the Museum Store with respect to the organization's mission is needed. If your Board considers the Museum Store to be simply a source of additional revenue for the organization, then your institution is missing out on the potential branding and marketing benefits of more closely aligning your store inventory with the organization's mission. Such an alignment has potential beyond the possible avoidance of UBIT that has been mentioned in previous posts. What does it say to visitors about your institution when its Store offers cheap, used, thrift-store items for sale, as opposed to mission-related educational materials and/or gift items inspired by popular collection objects? What inventory your organization stocks in its Store also sends a subtle, but important, message to the visiting public.
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John E. Coraor
Cultural Management Partners LLC
Huntington, NY
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Original Message:
Sent: 03-18-2019 09:56 AM
From: Julie Steiner
Subject: Museum stores
You've gotten some great advice here, and it's not too late to create a "mission statement" for your retail store that clarifies the expectations for products: to connect to the collection, history, and education of your museum, to support your museum's brand in merchandise quality and assortment, and to extend your visitor's experience by offering items that uphold these standards.
You can also formalize your "selection process"--I like a "jury" process to de-personalize it, even if the jury is only two staff members. That means the decision is impartial and standardized and doesn't hit conflicts of interest with the board.
Just to clarify one detail from the thread above, however, there is a difference between sales tax and UBIT tax. Sales tax is due to your city and state on all taxable items regardless of whether an item is mission-related or not. It's income tax that is waived for non-profits, and that's UBIT, as linked in an article above. Shops should consult with your accountant or attorney about designations for "mission-related products" and draw guidelines for buyers, and include this designation in whatever point of sale system (or bookkeeping process) that you use.
-Julie Steiner
Immediate Past President, Museum Store Association
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Julie Steiner
Director of Retail Operations
Barnes Foundation
Philadelphia PA
Original Message:
Sent: 03-13-2019 07:41 PM
From: Sharon Bell
Subject: Museum stores
I am on the board of a small museum. Recently our president started bringing in donated thrift shop-type stuff to sell in the store. (Ie cheap costume jewelry, used scarves....). Our director and I are trying to find information on museum store guidelines, and are getting the impression that the store should be sticking to educational and mission-specific items. Can anyone share their purchasing policy with us? ( we can't afford a membership in the Museum Store Association)Thanks! Sharon Bell, Kent-Delord House Museum
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