Hopetown Darlington is a brand new award winning 7.5 acre visitor attraction which tells the story of the birthplace of the railway industry in Britain.
Creative agency Memory Lane was brought on ahead of opening to produce a suite of bespoke visitor guides. Here Louise Sword, Head of Creative at Memory Lane tells us her tips for creating materials for a cultural heritage attraction still very much in the making.
Tell us a little bit about the Hopetown project.
Well, when we were first approached, Hopetown was still being built! Creating visitor guides for an incomplete site was a new challenge for us. And with only three months until the grand opening the schedule was very short. Our client’s priority was preparing for the opening day and so they had very little time to dedicate to this project. They placed their trust in us to work independently and with initiative. The final result was a suite of three publications:
1. A dual-purpose Souvenir Guide, produced as a concertina fold-out publication. On one side it presents the history and importance of the Stockton & Darlington Railway in a timeline format. On the reverse it acts as an essential visitor guide.
2. A ‘Steam Power’ Factivity Book for older children (KS2) – transposing information from the Souvenir Guide into age appropriate, educational STEM facts, puzzles and games based on the attraction and its history.
3. A ‘Steam Power’ Activity Pack for younger children (EY & KS1) – further adapting content from the Factivity Book into age appropriate entertainment.
What are your tips for delivering a project such as this?
Research, define and plan…and yet more planning! Immerse yourself in the subject matter, draw on the expertise of your writers and illustrators and of course the curators at the attraction or museum. They are invaluable collaborators and are often delighted to share their in-depth knowledge, and their enthusiasm is always infectious. Working alongside the education department on children’s publications is also a must. And throughout it all, make sure the retail team are happy. Keep the communication flowing back and forth – always remember it’s a team effort.
What have you learnt during the process?
That every site is unique and every customer has its own requirements. We have to listen hard and make sure the product is tailored to the customer’s needs. That’s the key to genuinely bespoke product. Whether its Titanic Belfast, St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle or The Battle of Britain Bunker, they are all fascinating sites with unique historical stories to tell and we are privileged to be able to be a part of the telling of those stories.
During the Hopetown project it was so interesting to learn about another pocket of our tiny island! I’m a Londoner, originally from Devon, so to visit the North East and delve into the importance of the railway history there was an enriching experience.
Working sustainably is important for cultural heritage attractions – how can agencies such as yourselves support this?
As an agency we are fortunate to have more flexibility to source sustainably and locally. Using UK printers and manufacturers is important – it cuts down on lead times as well as the carbon footprint. For example, with Hopetown we chose to package the activity pack in a paper envelope and used cardboard packaging for the colouring pencils, eliminating waste plastics. Oh, and our printing partner is the world’s first carbon neutral printer!
For our gift range designs we use UK manufacturers – many of these exhibit at the Cultural Enterprises Trade Show and have become trusted friends and colleagues. We also know the quality of their goods are exceptional – Crawford Henderson, and Countryside Art for example. We draw on the experience of these manufacturers, which is essential when we’re colour-matching across a wide range of materials, for example.
Any last thoughts?
Essentially the retail and end user experience must always be top priority when producing bespoke products. At the end of the day it has to sell, represent the attraction in a sustainable way and enhance the visitor experience. If these factors are at the forefront of every project then that’s a very good starting point!
“The Souvenir Guides are just fantastic and a huge asset to you and your team who have poured your passion and focus into this to get it spot on perfect! To see it in people’s hands yesterday opening it up quietly as they sat in our outdoor café reading through it was heartwarming to say the least.”
– Natalie Collins, Visitor Experience Manager, Hopetown Darlington (pictured right with Andrew Humphries, Director, Memory Lane)
Memory Lane is a creative agency specialising in delivering bespoke publishing and custom gifts for the UK cultural heritage sector. Visit our website or come and see us at the Cultural Enterprises Trade Show if you’d like some advice on bespoke products and publications.
