sustaining cultural sites

ESI works with a wide array of museums, cultural institutions, and other destination attractions. ESI helps clients identify audiences, assess market opportunities, evaluate financial performance and form partnerships with other community organizations.

Our clients include:

• public and not-for-profit cultural experiences and venues;
• commercial attractions;
• non-traditional attractions (e.g. parks systems and scenic roads);

Many of ESI's clients are contemplating a new facility or major expansion. ESI provides business planning expertise to creative ventures.

While the real estate industry has finally accepted that "If you build it they will come" and "location, location, location" are naive, many museums and other attractions lose sight of the economic ramifications of their interpretive and design decisions. In the excitement of choosing which new story to explore, what artifact deserves prominent display and whether a particular exhibit design technique makes sense, it's easy to lose sight of what the decisions portend interms of audience appeal, attendance and revenue.

In our view, economic planning and interpretive planning/exhibit design should proceed concurrently to the extent possible. At the same time, however, ESI insists that while market indicators can inform interpretation and exhibit design, they should never be allowed to dominate the process. Attractions should simply make their decisions with their eyes wide open to maket and financial issues.