Building the PA Wilds experience: a sneak peek at our new gift shop

[heading size=”2″ color=”e.g. #000″]Building the PA Wilds experience: a sneak peek at our new gift shop brand[/heading]

Happy 4th of July! The new visitor center at Kinzua Bridge State Park is open to the public for the first time this weekend, but the grand opening won’t be until mid-September. As I mentioned a few weeks ago, our nonprofit will be operating the gift shop at this new facility. We are so excited about this, and a big part of the reason is that it is going to create new work opportunities for local producers and other small local businesses involved in The Wilds Cooperative of PA. We’ll be writing more about that later this week, but for now, I wanted to share our new store brand, which we developed with the help of the PA-based creative firm Swell.

Kinzua Bridge State Park Visitor Center

Kinzua Bridge State Park visitor center exhibit

For the name, we landed on “PA Wilds Conservation Shop,” which can be tailored to fit future locations where we might expand.

PA Wilds Conservation Shops

We’ll focus on three key messages at the gift shop – 1. That sourcing local leaves a smaller energy footprint; 2. That buying local has a ripple effect on our rural economy; and 3. That store profits go to support the PA Wilds Center’s nonprofit mission.

Kinzua Bridge State Park online gift shop

Kinzua Bridge State Park online gift shop

We’ll be launching an online store with the gift shop, so visitors who might show up after hours, during the shoulder season or are traveling by bicycle or motorcycle (where it can difficult to carry extra baggage), can be served by an iPad kiosk and have popular gift shop items delivered directly to their doorsteps.

We are shooting to have the store open by early August. For information about opportunities in merchandising, vending services and employment, see the Wilds Cooperative of Pennsylvania website. Several organizations are helping us get the gift shop off the ground, and we’ll be writing about them in coming weeks, too. Stay tuned!

5 Comments

  1. Deb Anderson on July 7, 2016 at 11:14 am

    This is so exciting!People may not realize the interesting range of talent that makes up the Pa Wilds.These folks create quality art work,jewelry and useful products to use in your home.I can’t wait…

    • Ta Enos on July 7, 2016 at 11:27 am

      Thanks Deb Anderson! 😉 We are excited to create this new market for local products and to be working with DCNR to push foot traffic from these signature attractions to the local business community!

  2. Vivian Reese on August 20, 2018 at 9:31 pm

    I can tell you, my numerous visits to the education center, hiking the trails, walking the skywalk, never get old. The artisans I previewed at the gift shop this past week was beyond impressive, from the hand-carved bowls, to the jewelry and unique gifts, they were so enjoyable to see and purchase. Keep up the great work, it is paying off!!

  3. Carol Goodenough on August 12, 2021 at 3:57 pm

    We were there a few weeks ago and loved it. Was wondering though if I can purchase any items on the website? Thank you.

    • LaKeshia Knarr on August 26, 2021 at 8:14 pm

      Hello Carol! We are so happy to hear you enjoyed your experience at the shop! You can check out products sold at the PA Wilds Conservation Shop and many others at http://www.shopthepawilds.com. We hope you find just what you’re looking for and thank you for shopping #pawildsmade!

Leave a Comment





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.