Other sources of funding Galleries and museums are increasingly trying to entice those who visit, or who just appreciate an inst.i.tution, to get more involved. Most organisations have their own shop on site and, rather than just selling postcards and copies of the items in the collection, many of these shops are now attractively designed boutiques that can become destinations in their own right. Some of the larger organisations may have several shops, perhaps one for children, a second for more general merchandise, a third selling jewellery, specialised clothing and other high-ticket items, and perhaps a bookshop too.
As well as shops, there is a variety of different establishments available for refreshment, from high-ticket restaurants to cafes and coffee shops and, for many, these venues become a "third s.p.a.ce" (after home and work) where individuals choose to spend leisure time or meet friends, a.s.sociating themselves with the inst.i.tution and the cultural capital it represents in the process, without needing to visit the collection each time. Many galleries and museums have taken out licences to organise events and hospitality and even private functions such as marriages and civil partnerships.
Other sources of income can come from developing aspects of the collection, through an in-house publishing company that produces both exhibition catalogues and a range of a.s.sociated t.i.tles, some co-published with third parties who appreciate the brand. Similarly, image licensing can be profitable this is where the right is given to include an image from a specific collection within a product produced by a third party, and the product may be anything from a television programme to a t-shirt. The trading profits from all these enterprises, which are sometimes housed within a separate company for tax reasons, come back to support the host organisation.
Case Study: Licensing in museums Interview with Brenda Conway, Image & Brand Licensing Executive, NMSI Trading Ltd "It is mostly only the larger museums (or groups of museums) that have their own licensing department, but where these do exist they can provide a substantial income to the organisation. Broadly speaking, their job is to market the intellectual property of the organisation, to create an income stream out of the information housed within the museum, whether this is held within objects or staff. This may mean working with third parties to create a range of merchandise that the public wants to buy, perhaps toys and gadgets, or items specific to a particular location, such as railway-related items that are produced to link with the collection in the National Railway Museum in York. Or it may mean approaching a potential supplier and asking if they can produce something on behalf of the museum, for which we have spotted a potential market.
"Most of the merchandise is sold either through our retail outlets or high street stores, and it also often sells well through "off the page" advertis.e.m.e.nts in the Sunday supplements, where the Science Museum branding can serve to rea.s.sure the customer buying at a distance of the quality of the merchandise on offer. A typical item would be a chemistry set sold through retailers, with particularly high levels of sale at Christmas. Whereas there are other sets on the market, the one licensed by us would contain information from the relevant curators within the museum on the science behind the experiments and have an added educational value; thus everyone buying it would be confident they had a superior product within its specific market, and something they could give as a present with confidence. Sometimes we arrange for merchandise to be created that will not be sold, but rather used as an incentive available only with the buying of a membership package, or as a special offer to those who have already taken one out.
"All this activity has grown since museums stopped charging for entry and were forced to look for a range of other opportunities for funding. Each year we display at the Brand Licensing Show and are active members of LIMA2 (which has its head office in the US but also an office in the UK see Appendix for contact details). We are a separate trading company offering licensing and also an image bank and we make a significant contribution to the museum"s funding. (which has its head office in the US but also an office in the UK see Appendix for contact details). We are a separate trading company offering licensing and also an image bank and we make a significant contribution to the museum"s funding.
"As a career option, most staff working in this area come from an arts licensing, product development or a legal background. It is a sharper atmosphere than other aspects of museum work, with a huge scope for development. For the individual who finds this work interesting, and wants to be part of this development, such a role offers a lot of potential."
Why would people give money to museums and galleries?
"The world is not ungenerous, but unimaginative and very busy."
EGLANTYNE JEBB, FOUNDER OF THE SAVE THE CHILDREN FUND3 Three key points to bear in mind: people may not give unless first asked or if they do give, probably never at the level they are capable of after research, cultivation and a well-managed "ask"; in general, people do not mind being asked for money as much as many people fear and many are pleased (and often flattered) to be asked; asking for too little is a common mistake: you cannot insult by a.s.suming that the potential donor you approach is either more generous or more wealthy than they really are.
People decide to support a charity for a variety of reasons. In The Seven Faces of Philanthropy: A New Approach to Cultivating Major Donors The Seven Faces of Philanthropy: A New Approach to Cultivating Major Donors4, Russ Alan Prince and Karen Maru File describe a variety of different kinds of donor and accompanying motivations, from those who give from a sense of dynastic obligation ("my parents and grandparents supported this inst.i.tution, so it behoves me to do the same"), through the altruistic (wanting to give to the community) to those who rely on business models that make financial sense (it is tax efficient and helps me promote my business or organisation). Different individuals and groups require different messages, and the key skill in securing money is often in spotting (or rather listening out for) what it is that the donor gets from a.s.sociation with a particular museum or gallery.
It is also important to pay attention to the criteria that will influence a decision. Most buying decisions are based on both rational and emotional grounds, and most of us a.s.sume we are rational at all times. In effect, emotional factors are hugely important although, having felt their impact, we may then justify our decisions under the "rational" heading. The effective message of asking for support communicates both emotional and rational messages, which are mutually reinforcing.
Rational reasons for supporting an appeal from a museum or gallery: an effective use of resources; makes good use of financial planning, especially in connection with tax and inheritance liabilities; prominent display of the name and logo and hence wider visibility of the organisation/individual; public support for an organisation that is doing an effective or important job, and hence the resulting halo effect includes you/ your organisation; networking with significant others likely to be useful in future, both within the organisation asking for the money and other patrons you may meet in the process; a springboard for changes you want to implement too, e.g. showing that you are an organisation that values culture or building a culture of optimism and hope by being a.s.sociated with a project that attracts enthusiasm and reveals dynamism.
Emotional reasons for supporting an appeal: a deep sense of satisfaction; an awareness of doing the right thing; learning more about something that is intrinsically interesting; appreciating the opportunity to meet interesting people who have chosen to do the same thing; being valued and validated through the process of involvement; belonging to a community; making a difference.
Explaining the proposition Development staff need to present a message asking for support that potential donors respond to. Different people will respond to different messages, so while one potential organisational donor may be looking for a chance to project their company"s name, another may be looking for the opportunity to make their brand seem more "family friendly" and thus see a link with a cultural and educational inst.i.tution as a mechanism for achieving this.
Individuals may have similar aims, whether subconscious or conscious. Some may like to use the restaurant, and appreciate that by eating there they support an organisation they are proud to be a.s.sociated with; others may relate to a particular aspect of the collection, having been taken to see it as a child, or perhaps because it displays something from the area where their ancestors originated.
Marketing materials need to be written with such core messages in mind and at the same time convey an effective description of the project, the values it encapsulates and the careful husbandry of resources (materials should be tastefully but never over-expensively produced this would imply the draining off of funds that could have gone to the core project).
In return, the organisation will offer its supporters something back, such as free entry for members to special exhibitions, or a newsletter for Friends that reinforces a sense of pride every time they step through the doors. Most organisations are particularly keen on family memberships that develop and extend the sense of belonging into the next generation, a habit of a.s.sociation that children grow up with and so see as part of what they do (and hence pa.s.s on the habit to the next generation).
Case Study: How does it feel from the donor"s point of view?
Mary and Tom are sponsors of a major cultural venue and have been so for six years. Tom made a personal pledge to give 10 per cent of his income to charity a number of years ago and he and his wife support a wide range of charities.
They were approached about sponsorship by an organisation they now support, having progressed through various different types of privileged membership, and were not offended to be asked. Indeed Tom, a management consultant, appreciated the organisation getting straight to the point about what it wanted. The projects it asks them to sponsor tend to be specific, and targeted to their interests, which they feel it has taken the trouble to understand.
Tom says: "In general it"s a positive experience; we all feel at home when we enter the now familiar portals and it"s rare that there is not someone we run into from the management team that we don"t know. This feels pleasant. We have appreciated getting to know more about the organisation and in particular getting our two teenagers involved; it"s somewhere we enjoy going as a family."
As for little niggles, I eventually extracted the following from Tom: "The development people have no idea how my world works and how far ahead I am committed. My diary is full 810 weeks ahead, and so when they ring to ask me to something the following week I always have to say no." After this happened a couple of times, perhaps the development people should have got the message that a lot of notice is needed for Tom to attend, and to match their invitations accordingly.
Development people obviously vary, but I have come across many who are not particularly good listeners, or who take insufficient trouble to empathise or intellectually engage with the sponsors they are looking after. Tom commented: "Sometimes this results in the development people trying to control the sponsors too much; for example only allowing you to visit when they can personally host and insisting that all relationships inside the building are controlled and monitored by them. Sponsorship is often quite formal in that certain levels of sponsor achieve corresponding privileges but the moment anyone tries to put me in a box, I try just as hard to get out of it."
Events which link the sponsors together purely because they are sponsors tend not to be particularly enjoyable. Mary commented: "Just because you all give to the same organisation does not necessarily mean you are going to have lots in common and want to spend time with each other. On one particular evening I got rather irritated by the a.s.sumptive nature of the conversation, which was prompted by a political event that day. I was irritated by the presumption that because you had enough money to sponsor, you automatically voted Conservative. We have not been regular attendees of such events."
How to identify potential patrons, individuals and organisations There is no subst.i.tute for networking and being well connected. You may spot an organisation that could offer support, but it will be key individuals within it who are the means of accessing the funds, so knowing who"s who is very helpful. And, once you have identified the key people, it"s important to develop a personal relationship with both them and the people who influence them often their spouses. You need to know not just names but also inclinations, key values and current giving patterns.
You might invite key individuals to the inst.i.tution to meet members of staff, for a meal, a chance to see something that may specifically interest them, or to a launch event. The impact of "intellectual hospitality" can be substantial you don"t just give them a gla.s.s of wine and a canape, you give them interest, knowledge, the company of pa.s.sionate experts and in doing so spark their curiosity and support, These are things they can"t easily buy. And once they are inside the building you might try to get them further involved in what is planned, perhaps in an organisational capacity, say as a campaign chairman or committee member, in the hope that they may then recruit their contacts to join too. You are in part aiming to persuade potential supporters from an initial stance of "How are you you going to raise the money?" to one of "How are going to raise the money?" to one of "How are we we going to raise the money?" which means they have identified with the cause and now see it as partly theirs. going to raise the money?" which means they have identified with the cause and now see it as partly theirs.
There is also a range of trust funds and charitable organisations that give away money, but can do so only under criteria that link their foundation with the project seeking funding. The skill here is to make the bridge; to establish the basis on which the foundation was set up and make the case for their supporting your specific project.5 Qualities needed by people interested in working in development A wholehearted commitment to the values of the organisation you represent and an eagerness to explain its relevance to the wider world. You cannot do this job without agreeing to this basic principle.
Confidence, to establish that you have the right to ask for support and that the project you stand for merits that support.
Bravery. Asking for money is not an easy thing to do. It takes guts to spot the appropriate amount and push for it. This can only be done effectively if you feel you have a right to ask, and the confi-dence to do so effectively.
Excellent interpersonal skills and, in particular, to be a good listener; to make the case for what you are explaining and at the same time watch out for both potential interest in the donor and the factors that appeal to them most. The particular donor"s interests or career choices can make a really good starting point for developing a relationship with them.
A good memory for names, faces and accompanying details.6 Creativity in preparing a proposal that the market identifies with and wants to support. Creativity in preparing a proposal that the market identifies with and wants to support.
Determination, to keep going and not be put off by setbacks, or take them personally.
Calmness in handling negotiations.
Diplomacy and persuasiveness.
A team player; what you achieve will be through teamwork and it helps if you get personal gratification from this group goal rather than wanting your individual contribution to be recognised.
Appropriate levels of self-presentation. Your style of dress and personal grooming should fit with your organisational brand.
An ability to negotiate.
Patience. Some donations take a very long time.
On occasion, silence. Knowing when to stop talking is a huge a.s.set.
Case Studies Interview with Sandy Richardson, Head of Development for National Museums Scotland "I took a degree in English literature at Aberdeen and my first job was in publishing, firstly for William Collins in Glasgow and later for HarperCollins in the sales and marketing of their t.i.tles. I subsequently took an MBA at Edinburgh and moved into Alumni Relations and fundraising for Heriot-Watt University (also in Edinburgh). This was in the early 1990s when development work was in its infancy; universities were waking up to the fact that they had large numbers of former students who wished them well and might help to sustain the organisation in future. I moved across to work for National Museums Scotland in 2004 and have been involved in development work here ever since.
"For me the best part of the job is the group of highly committed colleagues I work with; they are extremely knowledgeable, pa.s.sionate, and fascinating. The development team consists of nine, but we have the staff of the entire museum as our wider team and often it is the involvement of a specific curator or expert that makes all the difference between a prospective donor deciding to get involved or not. We are facilitators people don"t want to give money specifically to the Development Department, but they understand that we often make the discussions happen that enable them to connect philanthropically with the inst.i.tution, its aims and values and its amazing collections. And when we are successful, it is important to ensure that everyone involved receives credit and that the inst.i.tution as a whole sees how much we are valued by the community at large, which is motivating for us all.
"Our approach is long term and sustained: finding out about those who might like to support what we are doing; building relationships and maintaining contact. For each capital project that is considered, our involvement is from the earliest stages: in weighing up whether what is proposed can generate the required level of support; drafting materials to explain the proposal; perhaps commissioning consultants to take soundings from key potential supporters on what we have in mind and if the project is approved working with colleagues in all departments to see these goals realised. Having established our overall financial targets, we break them down into highly specific targets; trying to establish the interests of individual "prospects" (i.e. individuals, trusts or companies who could give money), what they might seek from involvement (for example, the promotion of their name, the opportunity to find out more about our collection and learn from it or a benefit to society that relates to their own values and ethics) and then work directly with them or through others who know them well (such as trustees or members of a campaign board) to build the connection.
"We have a strong offering to make. We are, after all, the the national museum. Among other things, our collections express the impact that Scotland made on the world. They show the role of Scottish pioneers, explorers, endeavour and the value we have always placed on education. This is one powerful message we can use to approach Scots, both here and those who have settled elsewhere." national museum. Among other things, our collections express the impact that Scotland made on the world. They show the role of Scottish pioneers, explorers, endeavour and the value we have always placed on education. This is one powerful message we can use to approach Scots, both here and those who have settled elsewhere."
Interview with Ruth Gimlette, membership volunteer at the V&A "I have been working at the Victoria and Albert Museum for 15 years, for the last 11 with Gwenda Constant, and before that with someone else. We form a regular partnership, every second Wednesday afternoon running the membership desk in the corner of the main entrance hall. The gallery is open to the public for free, but special exhibitions have to be paid for and our job is to encourage people to sign up for membership, which allows them instant access rather than having to pay and queue for tickets each time. Members get a range of other benefits such as discounts in the shop and restaurants, and of course also save time they can just show their membership card at the entrance to the special exhibition plus they have the satisfaction of helping to support something they believe in. When the queue for exhibition tickets is particularly long, the museum staff like us to walk up and down, reminding those who are waiting that if they had a membership ticket they could just walk straight in.
"Our unofficial function is to be the face of the organisation we are reminded that ours are the first faces many people see. We sit in the corner of the impressive entrance hall and we do have a dress code (black and white). We also function as an enquiry desk, telling people where the nearest bathrooms are, the shop, the restaurants and specific exhibits. Having worked in the museum for so long, we know it very well and it pleases me to be able to direct people.
"I do like working here. Gwenda and I were already members ourselves, but we had to make a formal application and quote references, and of course being accepted was pleasing. We receive training, a regular printed newsletter telling us things we need to know and may be interested in, and at Christmas there is a special party at which the museum"s director thanks us for our valuable contribution. We also have the opportunity to act as front of house staff for events organised for members, and if you turn up and help tick off names and do other administrative tasks, you can then stay and enjoy the rest of the day. There are many memorable occasions here one of the best was when Kaffe Fa.s.sett decorated a huge Christmas tree in the entrance hall. He gave a demonstration of how to make the fans with which he was planning to decorate it, and I eventually had four on display. I was quite proud of that! My family are glad to see me busy and I think working here means friends and relatives a.s.sume I am brighter than I am! I love to bring my grandchildren and show them around the collection.
"You also meet interesting people. It"s fun to watch the arrivals and speculate about who are the fashion students and who are the visitors, and from which country. You can also spot famous people on their way in and out last week I spotted Terence Stamp."
What else can be given?
In addition to the development team seeking money, others within a gallery or museum may have a long-term eye on specific items that might enhance the overall collection, perhaps by filling gaps in what is on view, or just belongs to the public. Most large such organisations will have a legacy department, which considers material (both objects and archives) that the owners may want to pa.s.s on to the nation, sometimes to perpetuate a name or perhaps to a.s.suage the impact of death duties.
For the family of an artist it can be appealing to have significant pieces become part of a national collection and hence ensure that its reputation and significance is safeguarded. Several gallery and museum directors are known as being terrific sweet-talkers; able to explain the benefits of leaving your treasures to be enjoyed by all rather than just the few, and the well-publicised proclamations of the wealthy who determine to leave their children nothing because it cannot be helpful to them to inherit wealth7 have further garlanded this path. have further garlanded this path.
Some regional galleries with much smaller budgets for acquisitions will ask local artists and craftspeople to donate items for the collection, and if these are to be displayed beside fine examples of their particular art form, it is often pleasing to be asked. But the general feeling in the art world is that living artists should be paid.
Case Study Interview with Cortina Butler, daughter of sculptor Reg Butler (19131981) "My father won an international compet.i.tion in 1953 for a monument to The Unknown Political Prisoner. It was due to be put up in Berlin, before the wall went up, but in the end proved too politically charged and was never made. The original model he made for the compet.i.tion was vandalised, but he later remade it and in 1955 produced a working model of the sculpture, which is about seven feet high. My father knew that Tate would like to own this as they have a collection of maquettes of the compet.i.tion finalists. He eventually gave it to them in 1979 in my name and that of my brother. The model is rather large and frequently required for exhibitions, so making the donation solved certain practical problems as well as adding to a national collection. Now the original model is also on display, but as a permanent loan rather than a gift. Both were featured in a major respective of his work in Tate in 1983/4.
I am aware too that the legacy department are in touch with my mother, and would probably like to have his archive some day."
Chapter 8
Commercial opportunities in museums and galleries
By Jo Prosser, Managing Director, V&A Enterprises
Over the past decade, one area of museum activity that has developed hugely is the field of commercial operations. Once seen as a poor relation of "real" museum work, the importance of trading to a museum"s profile is now increasingly recognised. A well-run business will generate both revenue and kudos for the inst.i.tution; done poorly, it will taint the whole visitor experience. In short, it matters and it"s this sense of making a difference that"s attracting many people to the sector.
Show me the money museum trading Whatever type of museum you choose to work in, money (or a shortage of it) is a dominating factor. Within the UK, many museums are regionally or nationally funded, while others are supported by trusts, individuals, businesses, or charities. Others are entirely self-supporting. Whatever the primary source of money, it"s universally true that there"s never enough to cover all the ambitions a museum wants to fulfil.
The result is that "self-generated income" has become a vital source of additional revenue. This "extra" money tends to derive from three main sources: charging (e.g. for temporary exhibitions and displays), fundraising (e.g. corporate sponsorship, private donations, membership) and trading.
Each of these activities is a specialisation in itself: in the world outside museums, each would of course be an industry all of its own. The increasing sophistication with which museums have developed these fields has provided new ways into employment within the museum and gallery sector and widened the choice of job options it offers.
In large inst.i.tutions, the result is high-profile, specialist divisions and departments, and highly focused job specifications which offer a variety of career options. It"s easy enough to envisage the departments within Trading, for example: publishing, retail, catering, maybe licensing. Less well recognised are the specialisations within each of them: international rights management, say, or visual merchandising, or warehouse quality control. In a big place, each is a job in itself.
In a small museum, the opposite is true. The need for all these skills to be embodied in a single individual makes for a very different job indeed. Far from being specialist work, the trading activities of the museum will be looked after by a multi-tasking front of house manager, whose job it is to co-ordinate these with the wider visitor experience.
In terms of a choosing a career, it"s a distinction worth thinking about. On the one hand, larger museums provide the opportunity to apply skills and experience gained outside the museum sector, and to use them in an inspiring and non-corporate environment. This is the motivation for many. On the other hand, a smaller museum gives you the chance to work laterally across the board, to be involved in a wide range of projects and to make the links between them. This variety is enjoyable too. As a result, the world of museum trading is a good mixture of specialists and generalists.
The customer is king Money, and the need to make it, is not the only reason that museum trading activities have risen so rapidly in profile over the past few years. Tempting cafes, professionally produced guidebooks and appealing shops are now recognised as critically important elements of the visitor experience. Museum visitors are highly sophisticated consumers: consciously or otherwise, they rate their visit (and, by extension, the inst.i.tution) not only on the merit of the exhibits, but on how well they were looked after. Many visitors have high generic expectations of museums; they will have enjoyed and remembered experiences elsewhere and are quick to make comparisons.
There is no longer any excuse for second-rate museum trading if indeed there ever was. The increase in attractions and activities competing for people"s time, the focus on customer satisfaction, the quality of the compet.i.tion all these mean that visitors expect trading standards every bit as high as they would find elsewhere. Museum trading has undergone something of a revolution in this respect: its restaurants (National Portrait Gallery, Tate Modern, Pompidou) and its shops (MoMA, V&A) are now often included in the top ratings lists. Many shops within regional galleries and museums are becoming destinations in their own right, providing a showcase for original, innovative and often local work that the high street has lost. Museum bookshops are cited ruefully as the only specialist bookshops left.
Museum trading has an important part to play in the growing trend for alternative ways to combine learning, enjoying and shopping. All of this makes for an emerging and exciting environment in which to work.
The structure of commercial activity In the UK, many larger museums manage their trading activities through a separate company. If you choose to approach the trading operation of one of the big nationals, for example, you will find yourself directed to a limited "Enterprises" company, which works on behalf of the parent inst.i.tution to maximise trading revenues. The company then returns 100 per cent of its trading profits back to the museum at the end of each year.
Although the name of the company might make it sound like a separate business, the reality is that an "Enterprises" operation works very closely indeed with the museum it supports. As a charity, the museum itself is not able to trade as a business but at the same time, it obviously wishes to maximise the benefit of the trading it attracts. The answer is to set up a trading company which can then covenant its profits back to the museum as Gift-in-Aid.
Establishing a separate trading company has other advantages too, which is why many museums choose this model. The company"s primary aim is to deliver the museum a financial profit, and this clarity of purpose is a helpful way of making sure that business activities are run unambiguously. A museum has many parallel objectives, central overheads and cross-charges between departments: it is far easier to track the financial reality of trading if income and costs are managed independently. The const.i.tution of each trading company varies, but it is customary for the director of the museum and representatives of the trustees to sit on the trading company"s board. External board members are chosen for their commercial experience, in whatever fields the trading company may operate. This combination of external objectivity and internal understanding is an important feature of such boards.
Enterprise, museum style By definition, a museum"s trading operation will incorporate a number of smaller businesses; it is the nature of a museum to be involved in a wide range of activities and its trading reflects that.
Whether those activities are managed by one person, or by hundreds, depends on the size of the inst.i.tution.
Whatever the activity, what matters most is that it"s done in the spirit of the museum or gallery it"s there to reflect; that it fits with "the brand" the DNA of the place. The best enterprises work closely with their parent inst.i.tution, articulating each and every commercial opportunity.
Publishing Publishing is probably the longest established of a museum"s enterprises. Whether as a simple printed sheet or a sumptuous 500-page catalogue, the concept of this type of publishing is well understood: museum publications can include anything and everything, from gallery guides to technical journals, children"s books to major exhibition catalogues.
Researching collections and exhibitions is a central part of a curator"s role, and this research forms the core of a museum"s publishing output. Producing books is a specialist and potentially costly business, and so the job of the publisher is to identify the best possible format for a particular project, exhibition or display, and to work closely with the author to deliver this. The publishing team for a larger inst.i.tution will cover all the functions that go into making a book: commissioning, editorial, production, sales and marketing. All are specialised roles, and more senior positions tend to be recruited from the wider publishing industry; experience of ill.u.s.trated books is important for positions in editorial and production, for example.
At a more junior level, however, museum publishing offers plenty of opportunities to learn on the job. Ill.u.s.trated books are labour intensive and complex to produce, and so publishing departments are often able to offer temporary positions relating to a specific project, helping with picture research or seeking permissions to reproduce content. These roles are occasionally paid positions, though often not but an internship of this sort is a great introduction to the work of a museum.
A publishing job in this field is highly rewarding; working with interesting people you play an important part in delivering a lasting, visible manifestation of what the museum is all about. You are responsible for co-ordinating the input of a wide cast of contributors, from authors to designers and photographers to printers. Each project brings a new subject and a new approach. You will work with an exceptionally wide range of colleagues across the museum; as well as authors, you could be liaising with marketing, press, the shop, the photography studio, and more. Many museum publishers are deeply interested in the arts themselves: this is a vocational role.
As for the challenges, many come with the territory of complex project management. You will be reconciling conflicting objectives, managing egos, protecting sensitivities, challenging a.s.sumptions, running demanding schedules, and juggling several projects simultaneously. But if you mind pa.s.sionately about what the museum is there to do, have a great eye for detail and people skills aplenty, then publishing may well be the job for you.
Retail For many visitors, a trip to the shop is now an essential part of the visit to a museum or gallery. Whether it"s a few postcards on a desk at the entrance or a huge emporium full of glossy art books and sparkling reproductions, any self-respecting visitor attraction is expected to provide some sort of retail offer. The aim, of course, is to create revenue for the museum while at the same time adding to the overall visitor experience.
Over the past 10 years, museums have recognised this and worked hard to respond. The difficulty was that it turned out to be a lot harder than it looked. For smaller museums, with limited resources, responsibility for running the shop was often devolved to general front of house staff or volunteers. Staff originally hired to work in the shop itself were expected to take on the buying, the stock control and the cash flow. In contrast, some larger inst.i.tutions went completely the other way, recruiting high street retailers and consultants with little understanding of the context or shopping behaviours in which they were being asked to work. Neither solution really worked.
Of course, there were exceptions, and the best museum shops (as typified for many years by the Metropolitan Museum in New York) have always shown that it doesn"t need to be like this. More recently, museum retailing has grown significantly in profile and reputation, combining more professional retail practices with an increased understanding of its distinct market. In the UK, training provided by organisations such as ACE (a.s.sociation for Cultural Enterprises) and Heritage 365 have done much to improve disciplines and professional understanding although this training is only open to those already working in the industry.
Different museums run their trading in different ways, but there are broadly three disciplines involved: Buying and Product Development, Merchandising, and Operations. A big inst.i.tution will have departments for each, while in a smaller gallery, a single person may have to take on the whole process.
Buying and product development are popular areas to work in. To the uninitiated, the work sounds delightful: buyers and product developers spend time sourcing merchandise to sell in the shop and/ or searching the collections for inspiration. The reality is rather more complex. To buy professionally, your selection will be guided by detailed sales a.n.a.lysis and merchandising data. Much of your time will be spent negotiating the details of price, packaging, labelling and shipping. You will spend a lot of time saying no, and having to turn down hopeful designers and suppliers. You will be juggling your ambitions for the brand with the relentless need to drive sales and profit. are popular areas to work in. To the uninitiated, the work sounds delightful: buyers and product developers spend time sourcing merchandise to sell in the shop and/ or searching the collections for inspiration. The reality is rather more complex. To buy professionally, your selection will be guided by detailed sales a.n.a.lysis and merchandising data. Much of your time will be spent negotiating the details of price, packaging, labelling and shipping. You will spend a lot of time saying no, and having to turn down hopeful designers and suppliers. You will be juggling your ambitions for the brand with the relentless need to drive sales and profit.
There is no formal training available as such, and those positions that do arise are frustratingly few and far between; successful candidates tend to be interns from elsewhere in the museum or enterprise company. There is not much overlap with the wider retail industry, where salary levels tend to be rather higher, career development more structured and buying specialisations more focused. This may change soon with the increase in niche retailing.
Merchandising is the function by which sales are planned and phased and stock is bought. As a merchandiser, you will be involved in forecasting how much is going to sell, of what, where, and when. Merchandisers work with buyers and suppliers to ensure that the right stock is being bought in the right quant.i.ties; their expertise is essential in terms of financial planning. The disciplines of merchandising need to be learnt, and recruitment to specialist positions comes directly from the retail industry, although more junior positions can learn on the job. is the function by which sales are planned and phased and stock is bought. As a merchandiser, you will be involved in forecasting how much is going to sell, of what, where, and when. Merchandisers work with buyers and suppliers to ensure that the right stock is being bought in the right quant.i.ties; their expertise is essential in terms of financial planning. The disciplines of merchandising need to be learnt, and recruitment to specialist positions comes directly from the retail industry, although more junior positions can learn on the job.
The third retail function is Operations Operations. Also called Trading, or Selling, or simply Shop Floor, this is the front line: the shop as it is experienced by the museum visitor. Traditionally, many people working in museum trading started their careers on the shop floor, working as sales a.s.sistants before moving into office-based roles. This isn"t as common as it once was: it"s increasingly recognised that the skills needed to work on the sales floor are as specialist as any other, and retail managers are unlikely to employ people simply looking for a springboard into other positions these CVs are the first to be turned down.
The reality is that working in a museum shop is a career choice in itself and one that suits many. There are growing numbers of senior sales staff who enjoy the working environment of a gallery and the sense that their work is contributing to something important.
It"s also work that suits creative individuals with other interests. It fits well with the increasing "portfolio" trend in employment, providing an interesting and flexible source of income to artists, jewellers and students. Customers have high expectations of museum shop personnel: they recognise the calibre of people who work there, and turn to them as a source of information and reference for the galleries and displays as a whole. Smart museums recognise this, and it"s good practice to combine training and customer care principles across all front of house staff, including cafe and shop staff.
Image licensing and picture libraries Generally known as the "picture library", this is the department which looks after the photographic images that form a central part of most museum archives. The picture library usually supplies both internal and external customers, providing images for use in press, publishing and exhibition displays as well as for licensed commercial use. It"s a business distinguished by large numbers of low-revenue enquiries and, like any archive, requires a great deal of housekeeping activity in scanning, filing, annotating and key-wording. This is good news for anyone interested in a museum career; working in the picture library or archive can be a great way of learning about a collection, and also a good source of opportunities for internships or temporary work.
The culture of museum trading A career in museum trading is not for everybody. For anyone used to the business fundamentals of high street trading or commercial publishing, the juggling of wider objectives can be hugely frustrating. The trading year is dominated by programming and marketing beyond your control; there will be little understanding of your commercial deadlines; the infrastructure, IT and building layouts will conspire against you; indeed, your very mandate may seem secondary or even irrelevant to many of your museum colleagues. If you enjoy the catered certainty of a large corporate company or the rewards and profit-related bonuses that go with it, then this is not the career for you.
On the other hand, you may find huge inspiration in working alongside people with completely different expertise to your own. You may enjoy the sense that your work is directly contributing to something worthwhile, a cause you truly believe in, not just the pockets of shareholders. You may get a kick out of walking past beautiful and remarkable objects every day, a salutary reminder that there"s more to life than your job. And that has to be the best sort of job there is!
How to get in Museum trading can be frustratingly hard to get into. Different places work in very different ways and there is no single business model to help chart a career path. At a junior level, it still holds true that voluntary work and internships are excellent ways of learning more about the way a business works and the collections it promotes. Working in museum trading is a profession in itself and is rarely a way into a job in another museum department: using it as a stepping stone won"t wash.
At a more senior level, recruitment tends to be from the wider industry, i.e. publishers from publishing, merchandisers and shop managers from retail. Museum enterprises often advertise in trade magazines and in the Guardian Guardian, and it is worth keeping up to date with all museum websites, where positions are often advertised first. Reviewing such websites is also an excellent way of seeing the sorts of roles that come up and the types of experience required. Finally, don"t be afraid to write in to a specific department to find out more about opportunities.
Case Studies The shop floor: Interview with Farhanah and Ana, who work in the shop at the V&A "We really like working here. The customers are pleasant and we love the things we sell; very stylish and not available everywhere else. Lots of people come here to buy presents and often ask us to help them make a selection, which always feels pleasant. Although we are working in retail, it feels special the customers have usually enjoyed visiting the gallery, like using the shop before they go and leave in a good mood. We get to know the regulars very well; those we have helped in the past come and say h.e.l.lo or let us know how the present we helped them choose was received. It"s such a romantic place too on Friday nights when we stay open late, the building and gardens are lit, there is music playing, and there is a fantastic atmosphere. It"s lovely to watch couples wandering around and enjoying themselves it"s a very magical time. The shop staff are a great team too a very friendly bunch and our uniforms are smart. We wear black trousers and black t-shirts with a sparkly pink tie printed on the front. Now we sell a version of them to customers too proof that they are really attractive.