Port Lockroy blog 3: A unique gift shop at the end of the world

05/12/2024

Port Lockroy shop manager Dale Ellis talks us through what it is like running one of the world’s southernmost gift shops.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am OBSESSED with museum gift shops. Over the years, I’ve worked at many national museums and galleries in the UK and perusing the shelves of the gift shops is one of my absolute favourite things to do. 

Dale at the Port Lockroy shop (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

I sometimes think the desire to shop at cultural venues can be looked down upon, or maybe I’m just projecting, but if anyone ever makes you feel shallow for being excited about a gift shop you can remind them that you’re actually playing a huge part in supporting the work of charities and organisations.

When you shop at a cultural venue or heritage site you’re actively contributing to its future, as well as supporting the local suppliers and artisan makers that create the gorgeous products you’ll find there. You are directly helping to keep museum or gallery doors open!

Stacked shelves at the Port Lockroy gift shop (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

As well as looking after the Port Lockroy shop, my role also includes fundraising on-site because. The UK Antarctic Heritage Trust works to conserve Antarctic buildings and artefacts and to promote and encourage the public's interest in the continent’s rich heritage. This means every donation we receive and every purchase made in the shop at Port Lockroy or online, helps us fund this important work. 

The question I’m asked most often is how do we get our stock here in the first place and where on earth does it go when living on an island the size of a football pitch? I compare managing our stock intake to a giant game of Tetris and it is a mixed task of physical labour and mental mapping. One of the historic buildings on the island is the boat shed and store built in 1957 which now also operates as the shop store. Here, we keep our stock safe and dry alongside our food reserves. 

The boat shed acts as the shop store (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

The products arrive via cargo drops from passing ships that are timed throughout the season to offer a flow of stock that means we have enough to keep selling throughout our time here without overwhelming these limited storage facilities. Whilst cargo drops are hard work – moving as many as 100 boxes up a snowy hill without touching the ground! – it is a delightful opportunity to spend some time with some new people on the island as the ship bringing us our stock will often send a team of people to help us create a chain on the island. 

As shop manager, I get to stand on a rock with my clipboard and direct everyone between our shop and the boat shed, ensuring everything gets to where it needs to be. It was particularly cold during our last drop and my hand felt frozen around the clipboard but I kept my complaints to myself as everyone else was humping heavy boxes in ankle-deep snow! 

Stock arrives on Goudier Island (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

At the start of the season, we still had lots of lovely products left over from the previous year and one of my first jobs when we landed on site was to do a big stock take, counting everything we had and making sure those numbers matched with what last years’ team said they had left over. This year we counted over 18,000 items. 

After this has been completed, I then get to focus on my favourite bit: merchandising! The shop itself is situated in what was originally the base’s generator room. We still have a genny in there for visitors to see and various artefacts on the shelf that run like a picture rail around the room but now we also have display cubbies and units showcasing our beautiful range of products.  

The Port Lockroy shop generator (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

Whilst many of you reading this won’t get to visit, you can see all our products in our online shop. I’m particularly excited that our penguin Christmas decoration has arrived. I always like to buy one new decoration a year for my family’s tree so whilst we will be celebrating Christmas this year at Port Lockroy, this cute penguin will be adorning my tree back in Yorkshire.

There are lots of things I particularly enjoy about being the shop manager here at Port Lockroy. I love seeing all the different ships come in, all with different vibes, different passengers from different countries from all over the world and all with different shopping habits! As the season progresses you can start to anticipate what people are going to want to buy and all the trends that come along with really getting to know your visitors.  

I also love hearing my team cheerfully chatting to customers about the products we sell and telling our visitors about their adventures south. Our visitors also always have lots of questions for us and wonder about the experience we’re having.

Aoife, Lou and Dale in the shop (UKAHT/Dale Ellis)

It’s also our opportunity to provide our guests with opportunities to support us, such as adopting a penguin, becoming a member or patron, making a donation or simply just signing up for our mailing list so we can keep them up to date with our adventure via blogs and news stories like this one and of course on the broader work of the charity. 

As ever, thank you so much for reading and for supporting UKAHT. I look forward to showing you around the shop sometime, either in person or digitally! 

– Dale Ellis, Shop Manager, Port Lockroy