Where Gifts to Wear Shine Apparel Trends at Museum Stores

Among the hottest trends at Laura Ingalls Wilder Museums in both Walnut Grove, Minn., and Mansfield, Mo., is a style that’s been out of fashion for at least 100 years: bonnets. The same kind worn by the female characters in Wilder’s “Little House on the Prairie” novels, and by Wilder herself.

The hand-sewn calico toppers — in sizes for infants, grandmas, and everybody in between — fly off shelves at both museums. “In a good year, we sell 700-800 bonnets,” said Amy Foster , executive director of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove. “It’s a big business.” For Midwestern women, bonnets are not only nostalgic but also practical: Foster said the hats protect against dust and bugs in the garden.

Foster recruits local women, including her own mother, to sew the bonnets and matching aprons and dresses. “They’re all grandmas, and they’ll bring their friends,” explained Foster. Two- and three-piece bonnet sets are favorite gifts, and pink and purple are the most sought-after colors.

At the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home & Museum in Mansfield, Mo., Gift Shop Manager Susie pioneer style favored by modern shoppers. Mansfield shoppers can even find jewelry incorporating replicas of Wilder’s silverware pattern.

Of course, both stores also do a brisk trade in logo T-shirts and sweatshirts. In Mansfield, Choate said light yellows, blues and pinks are hot this year. “We got a new embroidered design last year that was pretty popular, too,” Choate noted.

“I have daughters in their 20s, and these are just a big thing right now. You can throw them on over a tank top, or if the air conditioning’s too cold.”

Choate also finds local women to sew the best-selling bonnets, aprons and dresses, which come in a variety of ditsy-floral prints. Both Wilder museum stores also carry vintage-style coonskin caps for men, another

The Walnut Grove store carries a full range of shirt styles, from zip-ups to crewnecks and hoodies. Olive green, scarlet red and purple are top colors, and a three-quarter-sleeve shirt in a trendy buffalo check has been the surprise best-seller for three years running. “It has the state of Minnesota and a star on it, and we keep having to restock it,” Foster said.

Another hit is the long-sleeved hoodie in a thinner,

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Where Gifts to Wear (From page 84)

T-shirt material, rather than the more traditional sweatshirt. “Teenage girls just love those,” noted Foster of the shirts, which come in gray and purple. “They’re the perfect weight for a cool morning.”

Lightweight hoodies have also done extremely well at the Colorado Railroad Museum gift shop in Golden, Colo. “I have daughters in their 20s, and these are just a big thing right now,” observed Gift Shop Manager Beth Glandt . “You can throw them on over a tank top, or if the air conditioning’s too cold.”

The Railroad Museum sees a lot of international as well as domestic visitors — and they all have to walk though the shop to enter or leave. “It’s a strategic setup,” laughed Glandt. Many patrons are passionate about trains; favorite souvenirs include a denim hickory-strip engineer cap for kids and blackand-white caps for adults. Bestselling tees and sweats, with graphics by a local designer, are those that feature popular engine numbers. “We have three historic locomotives, and all three have been really big,” said Glandt. “Our rail fans grew up with the railroad, or their parents or grandparents did, so it really resonates.” When Engine #20 debuted last year — after a 15-year, $3 million restoration — “everyone wanted it” on a shirt, Glandt said.

Kids’ shirts are more fanciful, with the museum logo on the sleeves. The boys’ best-seller shows a train going through sunset mountains, while the top girls’ shirt has glittery flowers around a train in hot pink. “We have been around for 60 years, so we have our standby vendors that do great work,” Glandt said. “We’re lucky to have those relationships.”

Museums in many states were closed far longer than other venues; in some parts of the United States, non-local visitors were restricted as late as June. As attendance gradually returns, museum retailers are trying to gauge shoppers’ moods.

The gift shop at the Ulrich Museum of Art, on the Wichita State University campus in Kansas, launched a T-shirt line for the first time shortly before the March 2020 shutdown. “People were excited for them. Those shirts really took off,” recalled Joanna Ramondetta , finance and office manager. Once the museum finally reopened earlier this year, tees in larger sizes were the first thing to sell out. This year’s new item, an Ulrich logo ball cap, is launching this summer, and Ramondetta expects it to do well.

While Ramondetta restocks, the Ulrich gift shop will emphasize its online store during a summer building renovation. “I hope people find us there,” Ramondetta said of the website. In fall 2021, Ramondetta expected increased foot traffic from a new student lounge.

Which T-Shirt Designs Does Best For You And Why? “O

ur best-seller has our logo with our farm house graphic on it.” – Gift Store Manager Susie Choate, Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home & Museum, Mansfield, Mo.

“We’ve got a single design - a black tee with our logo on it - and it does very well.” –Finance and Office Manager Joanna Ramondetta, Ulrich Museum of Art, Wichita, Kan.

“A long-sleeved tee that’s got stuff written all over it. It has the name of the program and lots of other details on the sleeves, the back, even the pocket. I wasn’t sure about all that writing, but our printer told me, ‘Listen, it’s been selling well for a long time, stick with it.” – Executive Director Chris Faye, Hui o Laka/ Kokee Natural History Museum, Kekaha, Hawaii

“Our top design shows our covered wagon being pulled by oxen. It’s also got our museum name along with Walnut Grove.” –Executive Director Amy Foster, Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum, Walnut Grove, Minn.

“Our lightweight hoodie tees branded with our Engine #20 have been a real big seller, especially for rail fans. People know our particular locomotives. You can’t get this design anywhere else.” — Gift Shop Manager Beth Glandt, Colorado Railroad Museum, Golden, Colo. ❖

When COVID shut down the Kokee Natural History Museum in Kekaha, Hawaii last year, Executive Director Chris Faye had a huge inventory ready for spring break. After a five-month closure, the museum, in the Koke’e State Park on Kauai, reopened — but only to locals. Visitors were restricted from the island until May 2021, and during months of slower-thanusual attendance, the ongoing uncertainty led Faye to hold off on new buying.

“We’re selling a lot of tees and sweats, all basically stock from before the pandemic,” said Faye. Shortsleeve tees, in neutral gray and blue, do well in summer, while long-sleeved shirts are a top item for chilly vacationers. “We’re at 3,600 feet, and many people buy them just because they’re cold when they get up here,” Faye noted. These shirts come in forest green and hunter orange — the latter designed specifically for local hunters, who are required to wear long sleeves in bright colors. Logo caps sell well with kitschy park slogans like “May the Forest Be With You.”

As more tourist buses pull up to the museum, Faye said the store is filled with vacationers who don’t have many options. “So many businesses are still closed that we’re filling a niche right now,” she said. “We’re not back to normal yet. But I’m not sure how long this will all last.” ❖

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