Funworld September 2010

by Marion Hixon

When you have a “hot” product, you just know it—the retail items that draw “oohs,” “ahhs,” laughter, and comments from passersby and can’t seem to stay in stock. Customers want something different—whether it’s a fashionable or humorous take on apparel, a souvenir steeped in popular culture, or merchandise that reflects the region. Putting their money down means taking home a piece of the attraction—their experience; so while classic logo souvenirs will always sell, it’s important to offer a variety of options. Retail managers and manufacturers know this and are stocking the shelves accordingly. Here are a few rising trends, services, and retail items permeating the attractions industry.

Three Runaway Ideas
Stone Mountain Park (SMP, www.stonemountainpark.com), in Stone Mountain, Georgia, finds success in reinforcing its brand and the specific entertainment it offers with popular merchandise. “Our ultimate goal at Stone Mountain Park is to create memories worth repeating for our guests,” says Sara Van Pelt, revenue director at Stone Mountain Park. “We are always looking for new and creative ways to send that memory home with them.”


Stone Mountain has one of the longest-running laser light shows in the country, “Lasershow Spectacular.” As a result, kids and grown-ups alike are constantly seen mimicking the nighttime show with SMP-branded light saber swords flailing about. The souvenirs—officially known as “Adlucem Light Show Sword”—light up on each side, change from red to green to blue, and emit action sound effects like a low humming and a crack of action.

“All of our glow products are very popular because the laser show is at 9:30 p.m., and it’s a good accompaniment to the nighttime atmosphere,” Van Pelt says. “On a strong Saturday, we sell about 500 per night.”

Another growing trend is the personalization of customer-created stuffed animals. The Georgia attraction opened the Stone Mountain Park Pet Store in 2010, where visitors get to stuff and personalize their own keepsakes—animals include bears, monkeys, pigs, lions, and frogs—and many of the miniature clothes come emblazoned with Stone Mountain Park logos so customers can remember their trip. “Anything we customize with Stone Mountain Park’s name—from privately labeled candy, jams, or beach chairs— sells really well,” Van Pelt says.

One additional trend at the park is the spike in profits from religious apparel. “It’s sold better than I ever would have imagined,” she says, of the unexpected trend at the park. The apparel line—sold at SMP’s Adventure Center store—is manufactured by Kerusso Clothing and is geared toward teens and 20-somethings. Van Pelt describes the T-shirts as reminiscent of graphic-driven apparel often found at concert venues. “A lot of people are looking for trendy ways to express their faith,” she says.

Flip Through the Memories
Not all great products sit on shelves, waiting to be picked up and tried on. Shawn Kelly realized this over the past four and a half years, and together with his wife, Amy, purchased the patent-pending rights to PicFlips LLC (www.iloveflipbooks.com). The photo flipbook service films customers in front of a 10-foot-square backdrop, captures the video in still frames, and, within a minute and a half, produces a small booklet through which guests flip to watch their video in action. Meanwhile, there are multiple screens where participants can watch themselves and passersby to view the activity.

The interactive souvenir service has a permanent pointof- sale kiosk at Dallas-Fort Worth attractions like Great Wolf Lodge and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! In addition, the Kellys found success in their PicFlip mobile operations, setting up temporary operations at charity organizations, corporate functions, and special events at a range of locations, including the Fort Worth Zoo.

“We really work with the attractions to showcase their facility or the rides people are experiencing there,” Kelly says of personalizing the flipbooks. Great Wolf Lodge’s books are customized with images of its “Tornado” waterslide and the lodge’s main entrance.

And the demographic for the book easily matches that of attractions guests—Kelly says some of PicFlips’ biggest customers are moms with kids, as they want a keepsake to commemorate their experience or to send off to grandparents.

“You’ll notice that a customer is more standoffish beforehand, but when they’re in front of the camera, they cut loose,” he says. “Then they flip through their book immediately after they get it and all their friends crowd around.”

Put a Pouch on It
George Keppler was sitting in his house on a lazy Sunday afternoon when his wife made fun of the size of his stomach, upon which he had perched a beer bottle. After she referred to it as a “shelf,” a lightbulb went off in his head. “The next thing you know, I was running around the house with a beer duct taped to my belly and thought, ‘This could work; it’s a great idea’,” says the co-owner of Brew City Promotions (BCP, www.brewcitypromotions.com) and developer of the beer pouch sweatshirt. The resulting apparel has a regular kangaroo-style pouch for both hands and an additional vertical pouch to hold bottles of soda or beer—or any type of snack. The holding pouch is lined, preventing condensation from “sweating” through the material, and an elastic band keeps the beverage in place.

Brew City Promotions, the brand behind the pouch, began in a mall retail store. When employees started creating their own graphics and products, it quickly grew into the wholesale world. Now the beer pouch sweatshirt has been sold at the Seattle Space Needle and Epcot at Walt Disney World; in the nonattractions world, the company has filled orders for the “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” TV talk show, and Miller Coors gift shop.

“Customer response to the beer pouch sweatshirt has been phenomenal; it is one of the first items they migrate to due to its uniqueness and functionality. And it’s perfect for the many outdoor sports and festivals we have in Milwaukee,” says Kindra Loferski, guest relations manager at Miller Brewery Tour, which sells the sweatshirt in its gift shop.

“People respond to fun and humor, especially if it doesn’t go down the route of being crass or brazen—that philosophy drives a lot of our product concepts,” says Keppler, adding that watching customer reaction in the retail and wholesale markets taught BCP what buyers want. It’s a message to manufacturers as well as retailers to keep shelves and products fresh and not be afraid to take risks.

“When everything looks so bland and the same, it’s important to have something different on the sales floor so customers will remember your place among all the Wal- Marts and Targets in the world,” he says. “We watch people laugh and point to their friends about a product, and then they say, ‘I’ve gotta have that.’”

Contact Departments Editor Marion Hixon at mhixon@IAAPA.org.