Almost one third of our retail comes from the attraction arena. The largest account is Kennedy Space Center Visitor Center.
Through a robust program of capital improvements, greatly increased marketing expenditures and the highest standards of guest service, Delaware North’s property management team increased KSCVC attendance by more than 30 percent from 1994 to 1997. Almost half of that increase — 13.8 percent — came in 1997 on the heels of the Apollo/Saturn V Center opening, demonstrating a key point: Major new attractions drive attendance.
Through a partnership with NASA, Delaware North’s resort property management staff has developed a near-term (10 to 15 years) Master Plan. This plan is based on the belief that KSCVC should be a physical embodiment of NASA, a place where all of NASA’s activities around the world and throughout the universe can be experienced. It should be a place that attracts, inspires and teaches individuals, as well as student and youth groups.
With the completion of the Master Plan, KSCVC will be a world-class regional, state and national educational resource. It also will be the place where the faces and voices of NASA — the diverse team of astronauts, engineers, scientists, technicians, all those who make NASA successful — can be seen and heard. While still in the planning process, every effort is being made to ensure that NASA’s six enterprises are effectively and appropriately represented at the center:
- Education - (Interpretive and Informal Programs)
- Aerospace Technology
- Biological and Physical Research
- Earth Science
- Space Flight
- Space Science
In order to continue to capture the imagination and passion of young people, it is critical that the center offer exciting, hands-on and immersive experiences. As the exhibits and experiences continue to be upgraded, they will create a compelling reason for Central Florida visitors to make KSCVC an essential part of their vacation itineraries. They will also motivate Floridians to spend a day or weekend with us. And they will provide important new tools to NASA’s and Delaware North’s informal educational programs, interpreting the NASA story as never before to school, youth and adult education groups.
To this end, Delaware North has worked with creative and technical consultants to develop a number of long-term exhibit and infrastructure construction initiatives. The plan includes major new exhibits dedicated to telling important NASA stories such as “Space Shuttle,” “International Space Station,” “Interplanetary Exploration,” “Spinoffs: NASA Technology in our Everyday Lives,” “Cosmology and the Origins of the Universe,” and “Earth Science: Using Space to Understand out Home Planet.” In addition to addressing NASA’s programmatic storytelling and educational needs, these initiatives also remedy decaying or outdated KSCVC elements, create logical visitor flows and greatly improve guest service offerings such as restaurants, gift shops and restrooms.
