Where can you buy a Canned Banana Slug, small pin screen, jellyfish earrings, Buddha Boards, plush Albert Einstein, light-up terrarium, a Gregor Mendel beer stein, hand-boiler or a beautiful little laser-engraved moon lamp? All these and much more are at the MIT Museum Store.
The museum spent years in an unprepossessing building on Massachusetts Avenue. I often took out-of-town visitors there to show them the wonderful Arthur Ganson sculptures and hologram exhibits. Back then its “gift shop” was a simple counter by the second-floor admission desk with a few random items for sale. Eventually it was moved to a larger space on the main floor with a wider range of products, but the shop still had a pretty haphazard air. In 2022, the museum moved to a beautiful new building on Main Street in Kendall Square and the store went with it. It’s a very different place.
When I mentioned to a friend that I was going to do a column about the MIT Museum Store, she looked at me quizzically, probably imagining slide rulers, fancy calculators, maybe even pocket protectors. That’s far from the case. It’s a wonderful shop, and though you could tie pretty much any of its offerings to science, none are boring or overly academic.
Alison Gordon, buyer for the shop since the summer of 2025, loves her job, and it showed as she pointed out various items.
The shop does of course have MIT swag – baseball caps, tote bags, sweatshirts and magnets – but it doesn’t dominate the space. It sells only a few books, mostly related to current museum exhibits, because the MIT Bookstore is a few doors down. (I did see a Row 34 cookbook, which makes sense; Row 34 is a neighbor on the block. Cooks might also like a cutting board displayed nearby, etched with the periodic table of the elements.)
Two of my all-time favorite items are stocked: Kikkerland Design’s rainbow makers, and all 14 of the mechanical “critters” designed by Chico Bialho. These are easy to overwind, so not out on display, but after selling them for years myself, I can attest that all are great. I also love and can give thumbs up to the zany “ZipString” toy.
There’s an excellent selection of the almost-ubiquitous-these-days Speks line of fidget toys, which the company describes as “premium sensory tools for those who need small resets during the day.” Perhaps you’d prefer to paint on a Buddha Board and watch your creation fade away. I appreciated that the store had a display board out for people to play with; it really makes a difference when you can try out a product like that.
Gordon told me that she likes to work with local vendors when she can, and one of the store’s bestselling products is made locally: an “interactive fridge magnet” with a moveable red line MBTA train you can slide across the Charles River and back. She’s also had stickers designed, including “Nerds for a Better America.” She has product ideas developing with local artists and is working to bring in holographic items. Her enthusiasm made me wish I owned a store again.
I found it hard to leave, and I’m finding it hard to end this column, as there are many things I still haven’t mentioned – sophisticated laser art pieces; some very nice jewelry, some very fun jewelry and a Women in Science jewelry line. I loved the Bookrest Lamp that makes an open book the roof of a lit-up house, and the extensive Heroes of Science collection of glasses and steins by Cognitive Surplus.
Last note: The store’s mission is to help fund the museum. Gordon says it’s doing that very successfully, so much so that expansion into adjoining lobby space is possible. The museum itself, which occupies the second and third floor, is fascinating and well worth a visit. And you might want to visit soon: Admission is free through Sunday during MIT’s Future Fest.
The MIT Museum Store, 314 Main St., Kendall Square, Cambridge, with an entrance from the adjoining plaza. Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days.
