If there’s one thing that goes together like peanut butter and jelly with an amusement park, it’s a water park. Typically neighbors owned by the same company, water parks pack in the same type of clientele — those looking for adventure and seeking thrills, but in a wetter atmosphere. The gifts and souvenir offering have to reflect a more aquatic environment.
Jessie Hayes, retail manager and group sales manager for Port of Call, Raging Rivers WaterPark gift shop in Grafton, Illinois, says everything from flip flops and swimsuits to stuffed animals and jewelry are up for grabs in the waterside shop.
“The most popular that I’ve had to order multiple times would be flip flops and water shoes,” she says. “We did have water squirters for kids and those sold out every time. Jewelry as well.”
Plush supplied by First & Main is also a shoo-in as a top-tier souvenir for water-related stuffed animals, like dolphins, sting rays, sharks, whales and jellyfish, according to Hayes. “The stuffed animals are very popular. I know they can’t take them in the water, but they buy them on their way out every time,” she stresses. “They don’t actually say anything about Raging Rivers on them, they’re just regular stuffed animals.”
Name-drop products from Logo-It Apparel include T-shirts, swimsuit cover-ups, tumblers and magnets, while jewelry from Cruz Accessories, sunglasses from Cliff Weil Eyewear, Norty footwear, Sun Bum sunscreen and Pepsi products round out the list of must-haves.
A new brand added this year was Del Sol, which includes hair accessories, nail polish and shirts that change color in the sun. Also new to the lineup which no outdoor water-park gift shop could be without — a Hershey’s ice cream case; additional sweets include cotton candy and jelly beans.
Parents appreciate the “puddle jumpers” available for toddlers as well, notes Hayes.
Although practical for hiding a drain in the floor, Hayes says a big rack in the middle of the store that people have to walk around to get into the park has proven successful, as children clamor to find their favorite stuffed animal.
And another profit-ringer — routing traffic through the gift shop to get to the water park. “It’s something they did right before I started here and it’s really helped us out a lot,” she notes.
So if you’re looking for the perfect souvenirs on the wetter side of theme parks, think poolside comfort and beachfront-relaxation add-ons — things that are going to make customers want to stay a little longer.
