Op Ed – The Children’s Museum of the Upstate

Steve C. Spinks
Chief Executive Officer, Spinx Company
November 5, 2013
 

Over 40 years ago, my father began working to make his dream of owning his own business both a reality and a success. Today, The Spinx Company operates over 70 convenience-gasoline retail stores and is the largest retailer headquartered in Greenville , SC. The Children’s Museum of the Upstate began much the same way, with the dreams of several local mothers gathered around a kitchen table 15 years ago. Now the Greenville-based museum is the 7th largest children’s museum in the country and the 10th largest in the world. 

After four years of serving our community, The Children’s Museum of the Upstate has a lot of great stories to share. Some of the stories touch hearts, like this story shared by a Guardian ad Litem. After a court ordered separation, she suggested that her six year old client choose the place she felt safest in the world for her first supervised visit with her parents. Although frightened and shy, the little girl smiled before blurting out “The Children’s Museum (of the Upstate)!” Some of stories inspire, like this one about an eight year old boy. After a visit to the Children’s Museum of the Upstate, his parents reported that he spent an entire afternoon tucked away in his room building his own version of a Rube Goldberg machine out of cardboard and masking tape. I know that Allison and I enjoy watching our own children’s minds ignite with a curiosity and passion for learning as they move from one interactive exhibit to another.

However, there is yet another story to tell, one that is also important to our community – the business story. In a recent study conducted by the Strom Thurman Institute at Clemson University, The Children’s Museum of the Upstate, in just four years, has proven to be a significant driver for tourism and economic development in our community.  Averaging over 100,000 visitors per year – with 46% of these visitors living outside of the Greenville area – the museum is proving to be a valuable financial asset worthy of continued investment and support.

In 2012 The Children’s Museum of the Upstate’s operations helped 111 individuals to gain full or part-time employment, both in and outside the museum. These jobs and related operational expenditures have increased the disposable income in our community by almost $2,000,000 per year.  The total economic impact on the local economy by the spending of these employees and museum visitors’ expenditures hit $4,770,000. In addition, since 2009 the operations and capital expenses of the museum have generated over $1,400,000 in local taxes and fees and $2,500,000 in state taxes and fees. As you can see, not only have the children and families of this area benefited from the opening of The Children’s Museum of the Upstate, but business and government have been aided as well.

The mission of the Children’s Museum of the Upstate is to spark a lifelong passion for curiosity and learning through play. This mission is funded through earned income from admissions and special programs; and contributed revenue generously provided by friends of the museum, corporate sponsors and foundations. My family has been a supporter, both personally and corporately, of the museum from the very beginning. One of the main reasons we feel so strongly about supporting the museum is that it strives to be accessible to all families and children by providing approximately 6,800 free tickets to organizations serving families in need.  This desire to positively affect all facets of the community is one of the foundations of The Spinx Company model. Our foundation is built on giving back to the community and we are grateful that the Children’s Museum of the Upstate follows that business philosophy as well.

Many of you may not know that the Children’s Museum is subsidizing nearly 50% of each admission. Currently, the price of admission to the museum is $9 per child and $10 per adult. However, the actual cost to facilitate each visitor experience is $19 per person. This figure reflects the ongoing costs of personnel, program expenses, maintenance of the 80,000sq ft. building, state of the art exhibits, mortgage, landscape and security. The museum fights to keep its admission affordable, to ensure that every interested family or child can benefit from its unique educational experience. I believe the Children’s Museum has demonstrated that it is a valuable financial asset worthy of continued investment and support. 

Since it’s opening, just four short years ago, The Children’s Museum of the Upstate has become something that we can all be proud of – offering more than half a million visitors from all over the world a one-of-a-kind educational experience, while also contributing significantly to the economic development of our city, county and state. Now, that’s a story worth sharing!