Blackpool Pleasure Beach has spent 130 years building an identity around traditional seaside rides, classic wooden roller coasters, the Big One and live shows. Less visible, but central to the guest experience, is its retail operation. Damian Jackson, the resort’s head of retail, oversees stores, e-commerce, ride photography and merchandise development, and describes a model in which retail is treated as part of the attraction rather than a souvenir stall at the exit.
The flagship shop sits at the main entrance in the Casino building, supported by outlets across the site. The Kiss Me Quick store is among the spaces intended to help visitors take home memories, celebrate favourite attractions and continue the fun after they leave. Jackson says his role combines creative work with commercial and operational responsibility, from developing a new attraction range to reviewing sales, stock availability, pricing, presentation and guest experience. He works closely with Amanda Thompson from initial concept through design brief, product development, sampling and final approval.
Ranges built around customer missions
Jackson describes a diverse audience: families on a first visit, school groups with limited spending money, teenage friends and couples, international tourists, lifelong fans and serious roller coaster enthusiasts. Their reasons for buying differ. A family may want a traditional souvenir of the day; an enthusiast may seek an accurate collectable tied to a particular ride. Teenagers may respond to confectionery, accessories and trend-led apparel, while heritage-minded guests often value nostalgia, craftsmanship and the stories behind the resort.
That diversity shapes the range architecture. Jackson says the portfolio is built around different customer missions, price points and levels of engagement. It includes impulse purchases such as confectionery, magnets, keyrings and badges; practical products such as bottles, bags and ponchos; fashion-led apparel and accessories; children’s products and plush; and premium or limited-edition pieces for enthusiasts and collectors. Attraction-specific merchandise sits alongside broader Pleasure Beach branding, licensed ranges, playful products and heritage collections. The aim is not unlimited choice but a carefully edited range in which every product has a purpose, a target customer and an appropriate price.
He argues that a single approach would never be enough. The team combines commercial data with direct observation and guest feedback. Sales reports show what is selling, but understanding why requires time in the shops, conversations with staff and listening to guests. Jackson says the team repeatedly asks whether a product is desirable beyond carrying a Pleasure Beach logo: whether someone would wear it away from the resort, whether an enthusiast would display it, whether a child would be excited to receive it and whether it would genuinely remind a family of their visit.
Attraction-led design and the Aviktas example
Aviktas, a new attraction, is Jackson’s example of retail being involved early. Rather than treating the range as products carrying the ride logo, the team built it around the attraction’s complete visual world: its golden snake, emerald colouring, mythology and sense of mystery. The range includes Aviktor, a snake plush tied to the storyline. Jackson also cites a run of 50 limited-edition models priced at £250 each that sold out, which he presents as evidence that guests will invest in premium collectables when a product has authenticity, detail and a strong attraction link.
That example has a boundary: a sold-out run of 50 pieces indicates demand from a specific collector or enthusiast segment, not proof that premium collectables can carry a broad strategy. Jackson’s wider point is that different attractions require different treatments. ICON lends itself to a clean, contemporary, fashion-led approach, while heritage rides such as the Big Dipper and Grand National draw on archive artwork, engineering details, nostalgia and guest memories. Quality and attention to detail cover materials, colours, proportions, trims, embroidery, packaging and shop presentation. Commercial fundamentals—intended customer, expected demand, price points, production quantities, lead times and sales locations—sit alongside the creative work.
Heritage, licensing and differentiation
Nostalgia carries unusual weight at a 130-year-old resort. Jackson says Pleasure Beach is not only selling products but representing generations of memories, and its archive of attraction imagery, typography, posters, architecture and stories can be reinterpreted through contemporary apparel, homeware and collectables. The intention, he says, is not to make everything look old-fashioned but to use authentic history in a fresh and desirable way. Playful products, such as Mr Funshine merchandise, make the portfolio more accessible to children, families and casual visitors.
Licensed brands add another layer. Pleasure Beach works with IP owners and approved suppliers on ranges tied to Nickelodeon and Aardman properties such as Wallace and Gromit. Jackson says the strongest partnerships are collaborative: the licensor protects the brand, while the park explains what visitors respond to and how products work in an attraction environment. Differentiation from online retailers comes through relevance and exclusivity—exclusive designs, attraction references, location-specific details, personalisation or products that celebrate the visit.
Jackson reports growing guest demand for products that feel exclusive, authentic and considered, including attraction-specific merchandise, premium apparel, subtle branding, collectables, limited editions and items with a clear story. He also sees demand for merchandise usable beyond the visit, such as a well-designed hoodie, cap, bottle or bag. Generic souvenirs and heavily branded products without an additional story have become less compelling, he says, although keyrings, magnets, mugs and confectionery remain important and must evolve in design, quality, presentation and relevance.
Operational basics, suppliers and staff
The less glamorous side of retail is central to Jackson’s account. Stock accuracy and product availability are, he says, the least glamorous and most critical parts of the operation. An outstanding product cannot generate revenue if it is in a stockroom, has not been reordered, is incorrectly priced or is unavailable where guests expect it. Accurate deliveries, stock movement, replenishment, pricing, signage and daily compliance checks protect the guest experience: clear pricing builds trust, good housekeeping makes products more desirable and effective replenishment prevents missed purchases. Retail success, he argues, is often created through hundreds of small tasks completed correctly and consistently.
Suppliers are treated as creative and commercial partners rather than manufacturers. Jackson says the best understand the story, ambition and intended customer behind a range, bring ideas and translate a concept into a commercially viable product. Reliability matters across quality, communication, lead times, compliance, pricing and consistency. In stores, presentation, location, storytelling, pricing and team confidence influence whether a guest buys. Price architecture lets customers enter at different levels, while trade-up is encouraged through visible value: better materials, greater detail, exclusivity, personalisation or a bundle. Product adjacencies also matter, such as a plush character with an outfit, a ride photograph with a frame or multi-photo offer, or apparel with matching accessories.
Jackson wants retail to feel like another chapter of the day rather than an obligatory gift shop at the exit. That means considering retail during attraction, event and guest-journey planning, and using themed environments, product demonstrations, displays, confectionery experiences, personalisation, ride photography and interactive selling to make shopping entertaining. Retail spaces should reflect their location: a shop connected to a major thrill ride should feel different from a children’s character store, a heritage collection or a confectionery outlet. E-commerce extends the relationship year-round, letting enthusiasts follow launches, previous visitors reconnect with memories and remote customers buy selected products; it also provides insight into demand that may differ from in-park behaviour.
Staff are part of the experience. Jackson describes retail colleagues as hosts, storytellers and brand ambassadors who can demonstrate a product, explain a range, suggest an addition and recognise when a guest needs help. At Pleasure Beach, retail can involve entertainment, from making candy floss and helping a child build a teddy to demonstrating bubbles, presenting photographs or personalising a gift. Gift wrapping and personalisation add value and support gifting beyond the visit. For inspiration, Jackson looks to museums, premium fashion brands, department stores and experiential retailers, while insisting that inspiration is not imitation.