Smoky Mountain Gift Show Section

Where Business Is Blooming (From page 48)

and additional labor didn’t pay off, “especially in today’s world, where everyone expects free shipping,” he noted. And Allegany shoppers, Marino concluded, are typically campers who visit in person.

After a huge spike last summer, attendance is back to 2019 levels at Minnewaska State Park Preserve in Kerhonkson, N.Y., said Assistant Park Manager Jorge Gomes . “We’re back at average levels of busy, not as crazy as we’re hearing from some of our national parks and forest lands like Niagara,” he noted.

Minnewaska’s gift shop is located in the visitor center, which reopened a year ago after a pandemic closure. Gomes and his team took advantage of the pause to reevaluate inventory, discontinuing certain items and adding others. “We’re building as we go,” said Gomes of the retail section, which occupies a 10-by-10-foot installation featuring five shelves.

This year, the best-selling souvenirs have been $3 park stickers designed by a staffer who moonlights as a graphic designer. “I think the low price point of stickers makes them an easy memento for folks to take home with them,” observed Gomes. “We’ve sold hundreds of them. They move very, very quickly.”

His top service tip: “Be open to customer suggestions.” Lately, visitors have been clamoring for magnets. And after repeated requests for postcards, the store ordered some, featuring park scenes by a local artist. “We keep a running file of items that have been suggested, and it’s been very helpful in stocking what people want,” Gomes noted. ❖

RSN 04