Research Symposium

BIO

I am a first year student at Florida State University from Sarasota, Florida. I am interested in history, archives, and computer science. I was interested in the UROP program because I wanted to gain a better understanding of the day-to-day tasks of an archivist, as this was my intended career goal. In my research project, I worked with my team to scan, organize, and analyze a collection of over 30,000 slides. Because I am now looking toward computer science as my area of focus,
I plan to seek out future research opportunities revolving around the field.

The Retail Experience in Musuems

Abstract

During the scanning and creation of a database for over 30,000 historical slides, the visualization of the museum experience and its impact on the retail experience, manifested as gift shops, was observed. Portraying the museum gift shop as an extension of the exhibitions allows engagement with the museum to continue in the eyes of the visitor (McIntyre 2010). By analyzing the differences within the museum displays depicted in a sample of slides from the collection, the varying approaches to digital gift shops were measured through a pre-existing set of characteristics developed by researchers Volker Kirchberg and Martin Tröndle. Gift shops provide visitors with the unique ability to interact with the artwork being displayed in a museum. Curating the retail environment to visitors creates a source of subtle, but direct, representation for them (McLean 1998). Bridging the past with the present is a leading goal in museums. Because of this, this project argues that when products at a museum gift shop align with the leading identity of its visitors, the museum will experience an increase in engagement, defined by attendance. The findings presented allow for future adaptions in the gift shop experience.

Keywords: Museum, archive, retail