From Acadia to Yosemite, the parks have become a brand unto themselves. But not all merch is legitimate merch.
If you have n’t noticed , national parksare having a moment . Park visitation hassoared , campingis nerveless again , and theNational Park Service ’s X accounthas cause downright quippy . There ’s even afresh rack up podcastby theWashington Postthat explore the complicated history of the parks . And then , of course , there ’s the merch — loads and lots of it — from “ Yosemite ” sweatshirt to tees emblazoned with “ Arches ” and “ Zion . ” Some of these items are prescribed gear mechanism sold by the parks themselves , but many of them are not .
Enthusiasts do not have to be anywhere near a pine tree or mountain to see parks protrude up on shirt , mugs , and stickers . From interior green - centric retailer that donate proceeds to the commons and sustainability attempt ( likeThe Landmark Projectand theParks Project ) to a“Montana National Parks Adventure ” sweatshirtyou can bribe at Forever 21 , color - blocked sunset and ballpark names are now a top fashion alternative .
This rise in the frigidness cistron of national parks has left many visitors wondering who their purchases benefit : The car park themselves , or the scoop of private ship’s company . It turns out the answer is complicated . Jeff Stebbins , a public affair specialist atGrand Canyon National Park , says there are two authorised concessioners for the Mungo Park ( XanterraandDelaware North ) that provide merchandise at park gift shop class and other hospitality services with the full livelihood of the National Park Service ( NPS ) . For commons stans looking for official collaborations across the nation , he directs consumers to check off out the NPS ’s list ofauthorized concessioners .
Parks Project
Many National Park Service sites utilize third - party vendors in this way , and the family relationship between the two can be confusing for shopper . In Philadelphia , for example , Independence National Historic Park(which is superintend by the NPS ) has a third party vendor manage merch . Laura Smythe , the communication theory manager forVisit Philadelphia , explains how various local organizations work together . “ The retail computer storage at Independence Visitor Center is cope by a company calledEvent web , and that contract bridge is managed by the folks atPhiladelphia Visitor Center Corp. , a nonprofit . ” The nonprofit invite a portion of the takings of sales , which benefits the ballpark directly .
The NPS also officially partners with some online retailers , like the aforementionedParks Project , which has been donating proceeds to the park in an official capacity since 2016 . They ’ve given over $ 2 million to the parks to escort . There are also low organizations , such as Asheville’sNature Bound Co. , that do not formally partner with the NPS but do donate a portion of their sales to conservation efforts . For each football tee purchased , Nature Bound Co. plant a tree throughOne Tree Planted .
She says that travel itself has become a status symbol for a genesis that has been priced out of the real acres market . “ The national parks ply a tranquil — and societal media - friendly , in many cases — antithesis to our bright earphone - addled metropolis living , and that seems to be stoke by other economic issues facing younger generations . I suppose park product is one fashion of showing pride for something you sleep together . ”
Parks Project
She encourages visitors to do their inquiry and shop class responsibly while following this trend , though , ensuring the return of their purchases go to helping the park . “ Some of them give back 10 % of profits to trail building first step or to theNational Park Foundation , which is a great start , but it ’s a drop in the bucket compared to supporting small business in and around the park themselves . ”
Pennington ’s own favorite piece of park merch come in instantly from a park gift shop . “ When I nail the John Muir Trail in 2021 , I finished sore , sweaty , and tired inYosemite Valleyand find a trippy John Muir quotation computer graphic on a cheap unisex T - shirt in the gift store . ” Filthy and break out , she swapped tops before maneuver house . “ I buy it immediately to mark the occasion and love the feeling of ultimately commence to wear thin a clear T - shirt on the shuttle tease back to my motorcar . ”
That enjoin , no matter how much you have it off America ’s national parks , it ’s worth getting a complete picture of how and why they exist before shelling out for merch . Karl Jacobyis a professor of American account in theDepartment of History and Center for the Study of Ethnicity and Raceat Columbia University . In hisbookCrimes Against Nature : Squatters , Poachers , stealer , and the Hidden story of American Conservation , he takes a cryptical dive into the complicated history of the National Park Service .
Hawai‘i Pacific Parks Association
“ Despite the popular mind that the national Park protect wilderness , they actually created wild through the removal of Indigenous peoples from the landscape painting , ” he explains . Jacoby say this does not intend it is awry to bask the parks — or their T - shirts — but wants people to be aware and always learning . “ One involve to be alert to the history of the parks , and realize that what you are seeing is not primal nature but rather a created landscape painting that came about at considerable cost to aboriginal nations . ”
Jacoby says that despite their deeply political past , the parks can feel like a neutral good to today ’s traveller . “ interior parks bet brawny roles in American culture as reservoir of supposedly pristine nature , places untouched by either human beings or history , ” he articulate . “ As a result for many Americans , the Mungo Park are places where they experience most in liaison with what we might call the sacred or the divine — with Nature with a majuscule N. I distrust that this is why the Mungo Park are produce in popularity . At a meter of political polarization , they seem to offer a hideaway from the all - too - human universe that skirt us on a daily basis . ”
National Park Service
