The Museum of Vancouver (MOV) has partnered with local businesses to breathe new life into artifacts and make them available for culture lovers to take history home with them via a new retail collection.
In an initiative that goes beyond the traditional approach of cultural institutions of hosting a gift shop on location, the MOV has created a model that works directly with local retailers to produce and stock items inspired by the MOV collection.
“This new model is a great way to take the MOV brand and our array of historical artifacts out to the city,” says Kate Follington, Director of Development at the MOV. “Given that we can only ever display a fraction of our collection, it is a way for us to breathe new life into artifacts and raise funds to continue our work.”
The project sees the MOV working with multiple Vancouver businesses, including Harvey Burritt’s 2nd Century Rug Company, Country Furniture, Cascade Room Restaurant & Bar, Walrus, Make Vancouver, Vancouver Special, Bookmark at the Vancouver Public Library, London Drugs, and Murchie’s Teas.
“When the MOV approached us to be part of the program, we jumped at the opportunity,” says Harvey Burritt of 2nd Century Rug Company. “We are known for our ability to create high quality, custom area rugs from items that are meaningful to our clients. We have applied this ability to the treasure trove of MOV’s collection. I can’t think of a better way for my family to support one of our city’s cultural institutions.”
In addition to the rugs, products include keychains, coasters, T-shirts, pillows, beer glasses, and a specially concocted Smilin’ Buddha tea from Murchie’s. Each product comes with a history of the original artifact and a catalogue number so that buyers can look the artifact up on openMOV (openmov.museumofvancouver.ca). Products and locations can be found online at www.museumofvancouver.ca/retail.
The retail line is part of a project supported by the Vancity Social Enterprise Portfolio and is being developed as an alternative line of revenue for the MOV. Funds raised through the retail initiative will benefit MOV’s special exhibitions and its school programs that reach 10,000 elementary school students annually.
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The Museum of Vancouver is an independent non-profit organization which holds a mirror to the city and leads provocative conversations about its past, present, and future.
