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Fashion Police
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Network Gift Shop Goes High-Tech
They're all features of The NBC Experience, a fancy take on the old sweater-and-mug memorabilia shop, due to open Tuesday at the Peacock's Rockefeller Center complex in Manhattan.
"For us brand is everything," says Barry Leffler, NBC vice president of retail operations. "For us just opening a store display didn't make a whole lot of sense without a feel...of the network."
Which brings us back to Conan O'Brien, who along with fellow network employees Jay Leno, Today weatherman Al Roker and sports guy Bob Costas, was roped into taping a special segment for the venture. The interactive attractions--complete with TelePrompTers--allow visitors to pretend they're guests on Late Night. (Or Tonight. Or trading barbs with Roker and Costas.)
The 20,000-square-foot facility also features a 40-seat HDTV theater that, in addition to hyping the network's wares in an eight-and-a-half-minute promo, gives viewers a good look at the new high-definition video technology.
"You don't see this in the average store," Leffler says. Which is exactly the point.
While the studios, led by Disney and Warner Bros., long ago carved out splashy identifies for themselves in the retail market, networks have been slow to move past the corner gift shop.
The NBC Experience is expected to boost attendance at the Peacock's New York City venue from 200,000 annually to 450,000.
But don't let the 250 TV monitors and camera-ready studio plug-ins overwhelm you. Friends mugs are still available on the first floor.
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