First Retail Group is a recognised specialist in driving new revenue streams and enhancing visitor engagement. With extensive experience across the arts, culture, and heritage sectors, we help destinations transform their public appeal into sustainable commercial success.
Visitor Experience
We design museum retail and hospitality strategies that enrich the visitor experience and strengthen audience engagement
Revenue Growth
We help cultural and heritage institutions unlock revenue from their assets and visitors – fully optimising commercial potential
Broadening Relevance
We design innovative product and experience strategies that captivate new audiences to boost visitation, revenue, and brand advocacy.
What We Do
First Retail Group are experienced museum retail and hospitality strategists, leveraging extensive cultural and heritage knowledge and a deep understanding of visitor behaviour, trends and storytelling to unlock opportunities, drive commercial performance, and navigate challenges across diverse visitor destinations and experiences.
Our award-winning approach has earned the trust of progressive museums, galleries, libraries, attractions, and cultural organisations, delivering strategies for immersion, secondary spend, growth and connection. We partner with institutions of all sizes – from regional galleries to major museums and heritage bodies – translating knowledge and insight into actionable strategies tailored to your needs, timeframe and budget.
How We Can Help
Concept Development
We design compelling retail and hospitality concepts aligned with your collection, identity, and audience – creating experiences and ranges that are authentic and irresistible to visitors.
Feasibility Planning
From commercial modelling to operational planning, we build robust business cases that give your organisation the confidence to invest in retail and hospitality growth.
Visitor Journey
We map and reimagine the end-to-end visitor journey, identifying key consumer touchpoints – from entry to exit - to maximise dwell time, customer engagement, and secondary spend.
Case Studies
Sarjeant Gallery Whanganui
FRG partnered with Whanganui District Council from the outset of this epic restoration and expansion project. Our goal was to develop a hospitality offer and experience that reflected the Sarjeant’s standing as an innovative, community-centred gallery with a world-class reputation—perfectly befitting Whanganui's UNESCO City of Design accreditation. The café and event spaces are fundamental to the gallery’s success, serving as natural extensions of its immersive, engaging environment.
Te Ngākau Civic Square
Te Ngākau Civic Square is a cornerstone of Wellington’s CBD, and its redevelopment is central to the City Council’s regeneration efforts. By uniting key civic venues—including the library, art gallery, town hall, and premier performance spaces—the precinct is already driving economic uplift. FRG delivered critical commercial and precinct strategies designed to unlock this potential, ensuring the surrounding area can fully leverage these emerging opportunities.
Museum Retail Strategy