The story of comedy lives at this Jamestown, New York, museum, where laughter unites people from all walks of life. Housed in a restored railroad station in comedy legend Lucille Ball’s hometown, the National Comedy Center is ground zero for comedic culture.
Interactive exhibits celebrate old jokes and new ones alike, from early vaudeville to viral memes. The center has been named a Top 25 Family Weekend Getaway by U.S. News & World Report on a list that includes Walt Disney World, and its gift store is an extension of the experience.
The Comedy Shop is a conduit for connecting visitors who rehash their experiences while discovering a “second act” of products.
“The museum is about creating connections and joyful experiences, and that happens in the shop as well,” says Kate Rinko, retail manager.
In many ways, Rinko is a curator who filters through the vast marketplace of comedy products to find memorable, suitable items for the store.
Because of the shop’s location as the exit point with street access for visitors who only want to shop, it’s also a meeting place for visitors, Rinko points out.
Simple yet bright T-shirts that feature The National Comedy Center name drop are sure to sell, as well as funny magnets.
Photos: Oksana Miro
“Groups may break up to see exhibits they’re interested in, meet up back here and they share their experiences,” she says. “We overhear their funny stories, they talk about the products they find, and they might see someone they ran into in the museum and didn’t know before but now they’re talking about exhibits and finding products together.”
Indeed, comedy unites, and the net effect for The Comedy Shop is customers who are tickled by finds they want to take home. The store is stocked with name-drop apparel and souvenirs along with books, games, decor, gag gifts and witty finds like socks with cheeky messages and magnets with laugh-out-loud one liners.
“The museum experience is personalized and shopping here is, too, because comedy is so subjective,” Rinko explains. “We try to cover many different categories so each guest will find a connection to something they like, whether a TV sitcom, movie or favorite comedian.”
The funniest buying job
Sourcing merch for The Comedy Shop comes with an occupational hazard: avoiding the product rabbit hole of vendor sourcing.
“Comedy is so expansive and can go in so many different ways,” Rinko says. “It takes a lot of collaboration and teamwork because we want everyone to purchase something they think is funny.”
Purchases are highly subjective, sometimes tied to the National Comedy Center experience and other times more general “funny stuff.”
“Anything that might get a reaction, a smile, a laugh, a giggle, make you feel good — that’s what we’re looking for when we purchase,” says Rinko, who leads a lean team of four dedicated retail staff members. In addition to her team, she also gathers new product ideas from museum staff.
Keeping up on relevant comedy can be a full-time job, though. This is why inviting many voices into the buying process is important, Rinko says.
Rinko leads the charge and has support from the guest services staff that is trained in all sides of the museum, including merchandise. The staff members convene with marketing and are on the museum floor as eyes and ears, too.
“Buying can also be challenging because what I think is funny, you might not think is funny,” she relates. “And we try to cover all of the comedy categories, whether it’s nostalgic like Dick Van Dyke, pop culture, ‘Saturday Night Live’ or what’s trending on TikTok.”
The Comedy Shop’s products are organized by department, with signage directing guests to products related to TV, movies, comedy stars highlighted in the museum, branded apparel, games, books and feature displays that relate to current exhibits.
“We tailor the categories to align with what guests see in the museum, but because the shop is so big, we make it easy to navigate by arranging gifts by department so people can find what they’re looking for,” Rinko says.
For example, the TV Classics section includes items related to “I Love Lucy,” “Golden Girls” and “The Three Stooges.”
“And we have a home and general funny section with items that aren’t tied to a specific franchise but will just make you laugh and smile,” says Rinko.
For instance, the home section is stocked with witty dish towels, candles bearing funny sayings and serveware containing punchlines. Rinko says many people laugh when they see socks that read, “Personally victimized by middle school.” Items with words that guests wouldn’t want their kids to repeat at school are covered with placards.
A holiday section is chock full of apparel and souvenirs related to National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and the Elf movie.
In the dedicated children’s area, parents get that kid-in-a-candy-store feeling, too, when they find funny ha-ha goodies like whoopee cushions, rubber chickens and the top-selling Show of Hands finger puppets that multiply your digits times five. Tiny hands suited on guests’ fingers triggers giggles.
While the staff cruises the store floor to help guests navigate the merchandise, Rinko also finds that laughter is contagious and leads visitors to displays when they overhear others chuckle.
“Sometimes, it’s about finding those little things that will go viral and making them available in the shop,” says Rinko.
Laugh out loud online
Everything funny can’t fit in the shop, and for the most part, in-store inventory lives online, too. This gives customers an option to order drop-shipped items if they can’t find a size or merchandise that speaks to an in-the-moment comedy movement, Rinko points out.
There’s a strong cross-selling connection that allows one-time visitors to be gift shop customers for life. When guests begin their highly interactive, multimedia experience in the museum, they provide credentials — including an email address.
“We are not shy about reaching out during holidays and throughout the year to offer opportunities to buy,” Rinko says. “The reason why it’s named The Comedy Shop instead of the National Comedy Center Shop is because we want to be a one-stop shop for all things funny including our branded merch and other gifts, too. We’ve positioned the shop to be a go-to for comedy products.”
But here’s the juggle. The National Comedy Center runs brick-and-mortar and online shops for The Comedy Shop and the nearby Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum Gift Shop it operates. The in-house team is charged with seeking out cool inventory, snapping pics for web merch purchases while also creating engaging store displays. The small but mighty crew fulfills, packs and ships many of the online orders, as well.
The drop-ship option online frees up some labor and gives The Comedy Shop an avenue for offering more without taking up additional storage, Rinko says.
“The biggest takeaway from our online store is that you’re never going to do anything if you just don’t do it,” Rinko says. “Ours is a very grassroots situation, and we’re doing it all here — the store, the online shop. It’s about organization, communication and not being afraid to take a risk.”
There will always be screw-ups, but those are smoothed into buying opportunities.
“You can’t take it to heart,” Rinko says. When a show, movie or comedian is trending, customers are grabbing for the gear. If the season is over, so to speak, an in-store display and online offer encourages buys from those who might have been on the fence.
“It happens sometimes — comedy can go in waves, and a lot of times it also comes back in,” Rinko says. “We try to move the product and feature it in a different spot in the store or feature it online, too, to get attention.”
Rinko adds, “It’s not scary when items go out of a fad because someone else will come back to that fad. They’ll catch up to the comedy or show they were missing and get excited about it.”
Everything old can be funny again.
And in divisive times, the lightness of finding souvenirs and gifts with a laugh factor is comedic relief. Rinko says, “The way comedy brings people together is incredible to witness and we get to see that every day.”
