Children's Creativity Museum
Children's Creativity Museum is a nonprofit children's museum in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens that operates interactive art, design, and technology exhibits to build creative confidence in children, families, schools, and corporate clients through admissions, memberships, events, and grants.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1990
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Children's Creativity Museum does
Children's Creativity Museum (CCM) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) children's museum located at 221 Fourth Street in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens, within the SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District. Originally founded as Zeum in the 1990s through a downtown San Francisco community development effort and rebranded to its current name, the museum operates two floors of multimedia exhibits and is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10am-4pm. Its mission centers on building creative confidence in children through hands-on art, design, and innovation experiences built around an "Imagine-Create-Share" creativity cycle.
The museum's product portfolio spans approximately ten core exhibits and cultural installations, including Animation Studio (stop-motion animation with LEGO/DUPLO), Build the Change (LEGO-based design thinking), Community Garden (digital art via iPads by artist Jordan Graves), Making Music Studio, Track Makers: Design, Build & Race!, Mystery Box Challenge, Lil' Critter City (early childhood play space), Waterways (interactive water play funded by an IMLS grant), the Kahayágan Filipino cultural public art installation, and the Step into the Mural augmented reality walking tour developed with Verizon, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, and the Kinfolk app. Supporting programs include Play Theatre Company performances and cultural programming rooted in the surrounding Filipino-American community.
CCM generates revenue through a diversified mix: general admission at $20 per person, the Play Passport annual family membership at $239 per year, group and school visits at $15 per person, birthday party packages starting at $600, corporate and event rentals ranging from $3,500 for a single floor to $30,000 per day for full-museum buyouts, corporate memberships from $2,500 to $25,000+, and donations plus grants from sources including the Institute of Museum and Library Services, California Cultural and Historical Endowment, and corporate matching gift programs. Memberships are bundled into reciprocal networks (ACM, ASTC, ROAM) covering 800+ institutions nationwide. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via on-site walk-ins, online ticket sales through Blackbaud, the website, and email, with corporate and event sales handled by named staff (Katharine Greenbaum for partnerships, Dave Garrett for rentals). The museum is governed by a Board of Directors chaired by Raj Kapoor with no parent company or subsidiaries.
Children's Creativity Museum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Children's Creativity Museum
- Legal name
- Children's Creativity Museum
- Website
- https://creativity.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1990
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Children's Creativity Museum is a nonprofit children's museum in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens that operates interactive art, design, and technology exhibits to build creative confidence in children, families, schools, and corporate clients through admissions, memberships, events, and grants.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Children's Creativity Museum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Children's Museum
- NAICS
- Museums (71211), Fine Arts Schools (61161)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Children’s Museums (THAJADAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Kids & Family Learning Workshops (Family Crafts, Junior Maker Classes) (THAJAKAO), Creativity, Art & Music Learning Apps (EDACANAE), Art Museums (THAJADAA)
Keywords
Where Children's Creativity Museum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Children's Creativity Museum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- General Admission: Visitors pay $20 per person (age 1+) for all-day museum access with same-day re-entry. This is the primary revenue stream from individual/family visitors.
- Play Passport Annual Membership: Annual family membership priced at $239/year covering two named adults and children/grandchildren under 18. Includes reciprocal benefits through ACM, ASTC, and ROAM networks. Provides recurring revenue from engaged families.
- Group Visits and Field Trips: Schools, camps, and youth groups pay $15 per person for all-day group access. Booked year-round through reservation system.
- Event Rentals: Corporate and community events hosted in museum spaces. Pricing ranges from $3,500 for first floor rental to $30,000/day for full museum buyout. Includes theater rentals (162-180 seats) and gallery spaces.
- Birthday Party Packages: Private birthday party bookings at $600 for up to 20 guests, including all-day admission, dedicated party space for 2 hours, tables/chairs, mini-fridge, and microwave. Additional guests at $20/person.
- Donations and Charitable Giving: The museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit accepting donations via check, Donor Advised Funds, wire transfers, corporate matching gifts, and payroll deductions. All admission proceeds support educational work and outreach.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | General Admission - $20 per person |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Group Visit Rate - $15 per person |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Birthday Party Package - $600 base |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | First Floor Event Rental - Starting at $3,500 |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Theater Rental - Half or Full Day |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Full Museum Rental - $30,000/day |
| Subscription | Annual | Play Passport Annual Membership - $239/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Corporate Membership - $2,500 to $25,000+ |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels7 records
Children's Creativity Museum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Children's Creativity Museum is a nonprofit children's museum that operates a two-floor, multimedia interactive exhibit experience at 221 Fourth Street in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens. Visitors engage with hands-on art, design, technology, and maker exhibits under an "Imagine-Create-Share" creativity cycle. Revenue comes from daily admission, annual family memberships, school group visits, birthday party packages, and private event rentals.
Product overview
Children's Creativity Museum is a nonprofit children's museum offering a portfolio of hands-on, interactive exhibits centered on an 'Imagine-Create-Share' creativity cycle. The core visitor experience spans two floors of multimedia exhibits including the Animation Studio (stop-motion animation with LEGO), Build the Change (LEGO design thinking), Community Garden (digital art with iPads), Making Music Studio, Mystery Box Challenge, Track Makers, Waterways, and Lil' Critter City (early childhood space). Cultural programming includes Kahayágan (Filipino arts) and the Step into the Mural AR walking tour. Supplementary offerings include Birthday Party Packages, Group Field Trips, Play Passport annual memberships, Event Rentals for corporate/community use, and Play Theatre Company live performances. The museum generates revenue through admission ($20/person), memberships ($239/year), group visits ($15/person), event rentals, and birthday parties ($600+).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Animation Studio Interactive exhibit where visitors create stop-motion animations using LEGO and DUPLO bricks and minifigures, with staff guidance; finished animations can be saved and emailed. Designed for families and school-aged children visiting the museum.
- Build the Change: Design the Future of San Francisco LEGO-based design thinking exhibit where visitors envision the future of Yerba Buena Gardens and surrounding community, exploring environment, accessibility, and joyful interactive spaces. Aimed at families and youth.
- Community Garden Immersive art and technology experience in which visitors use iPads to draw flower petals that transform into full flowers displayed in a communal digital field. Designed by artist Jordan Graves. Includes analog activities like spirographs and coloring sheets.
- Lil' Critter City Early childhood play space for crawlers through age 5 featuring wind tunnel experiments, magnetic felt building panels, a reading nook, puppet theater, and soft play area. Targeted at young children and caregivers.
- Making Music Studio Music creation studio featuring a Dancing Dots carpet, DIY instrument-building stations, and a My Soundtrack recording station for creating original songs with rhythm, melody, sound effects, and vocals.
- Mystery Box Challenge Invention-focused activity in which visitors receive age-appropriate design challenges with curated recycled materials, tape, and scissors to prototype solutions, fostering design thinking and engineering skills.
- Track Makers: Design, Build & Race! Interactive physics exhibit featuring custom car track building with ramps, loops and boosters, magnetic ball runs on a giant wall, and train track systems for exploring gravity, speed, and engineering concepts.
- Kahayágan: Filipino Arts & Culture at CCM Public art installation featuring stained glass portraits celebrating Filipino American community heroes, developed in partnership with SOMCAN and local artists Wilfred Galila and Ramon Bonifacio. Located on the Spiral Gallery windows.
- Step into the Mural AR Walking Tour Augmented reality walking tour using the Kinfolk app that brings murals to life with animations and interactive content. Features 10 murals by local artists in SOMA Pilipinas and Chinatown districts with multi-language narration.
- Waterways Interactive water play exhibit featuring water tables, flumes, and water play features that teach visitors about water movement, flow, distribution, and resource management through hands-on exploration.
- Birthday Party Package Two-hour private party experience including dedicated Birthday Party Room, all-day museum admission for up to 20 guests, tables, chairs, mini-fridge and microwave. $600 base, $20 per additional guest up to 30 maximum.
- Group Visits and Field Trips Educational group visits for schools, camps, and youth groups priced at $15 per person with all-day museum access. Available Wednesday through Sunday, 10am-4pm, with cubby storage and outdoor picnic options in Yerba Buena Gardens.
- Play Passport Membership Annual family membership offering unlimited visits, free admission for two adults and children under 18, caregiver flexibility, reciprocal benefits at 800+ museums nationwide through ACM/ASTC/ROAM networks, $10 off guest admissions, and seasonal creative experiences. Priced at $239/year.
- Event Rentals Private event rental of museum spaces including Main Gallery and Patio (up to 300 guests, $3,500+), Creativity Theater (162 seats, 4,680 sq ft), and full museum buyout (15,000 sq ft, $30,000/day). Located near Moscone Center.
- Play Theatre Company Performances Live theater productions by P.L.A.Y. Theatre Company held in the Creativity Theater, featuring family-friendly musicals and plays suitable for ages 0-12. Season tickets available as Family Flex Pass with member discounts.
Companies that use Children's Creativity Museum
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Children's Creativity Museum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Feature3 records
Children's Creativity Museum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- South of Market Community Action Network (SOMCAN)coreCCM partnered with SOMCAN to create Kahayágan, a public art installation celebrating Filipino American histories and contributions through stained glass portraits. This is part of SOMCAN's Reclaiming Our Space (ROSe) initiative combining art, design, and community to increase Filipino civic engagement in urban planning.
- Wilfred GalilacoreMultimedia artist, filmmaker, photographer, and writer who created the stained glass portraits for the Kahayágan installation. Explores postcolonial identity and culture through transpacific-diasporic lens.
- Ramon BonifaciocoreArtist who co-created the Kahayágan installation, focusing on pedestrian safety and youth creative expression through Ignite Open Mic events and murals.
- NYU Tandon School of EngineeringmajorCoordinated development of the Step into the Mural AR Walking Tour project, providing technical expertise for the augmented reality experience.
- Kinfolk AppcoreAR technology platform used for the Step into the Mural walking tour, enabling visitors to interact with murals through their smartphones.
- Association of Children's Museums (ACM)majorReciprocal membership network allowing Play Passport holders access to 800+ children's museums, science centers, and cultural institutions nationwide.
- Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC)majorReciprocal membership network providing Play Passport holders access to science and technology centers across the network.
- Reciprocal Organization of Associated Museums (ROAM)majorReciprocal membership network for cultural institutions, expanding Play Passport holder benefits to diverse museum experiences.
- Filipino-American Development FoundationcoreFoundation supporting Filipino American organizations and programs throughout San Francisco, including SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District where CCM is located.
- SOMA PilipinascoreFilipino Cultural Heritage District located in South of Market area of San Francisco where CCM is situated. Partnership for cultural programming including Kahayágan exhibit.
- LEGO Playful Learning Museum NetworkminorNetwork connecting museums using LEGO-based playful learning experiences, supporting Build the Change exhibit programming.
- PLAY Theatre CompanycorePerforming arts company presenting family-friendly theatrical productions at CCM's Creativity Theater, including Old MacDonald's Farm, Dragons Love Tacos Musical, and She Persisted the Musical.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Children's Creativity Museum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Association of Children's Museums (ACM): Industry association representing children's museums globally and operating the reciprocal membership network used by CCM's Play Passport. Relevant as the institutional ecosystem peer and distribution channel for children's museum memberships.
Direct peers
- Children's Museum of Manhattan: New York City children's museum focused on arts, culture, and early childhood development. Directly comparable in offering hands-on creative exhibits and similar school/family programming in a major urban market.
- Boston Children's Museum: One of the oldest children's museums in the U.S., offering hands-on exhibits, cultural programming, and family memberships. Comparable as a multi-exhibit children's museum with subscription memberships and reciprocal network participation.
- Please Touch Museum: Philadelphia-based children's museum with hands-on exhibits targeting early childhood. Comparable in mission and operational model — single-site nonprofit children's museum with admissions, memberships, group visits, and event rentals.
- Bay Area Discovery Museum: Children's museum located at Fort Baker in Sausalito serving Bay Area families. Directly comparable as a hands-on children's museum focused on creative play, school group visits, and family memberships in the same regional market.
- Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose: Also known as The Tech Interactive (San Jose), a Bay Area hands-on science and technology museum. Comparable as a regional children's museum serving families and school groups with interactive STEAM exhibits and a similar membership/event revenue model.
- Madison Children's Museum: Wisconsin-based children's museum emphasizing hands-on learning and creativity. Comparable as a single-site nonprofit children's museum with exhibit-based programming and family membership revenues.
- Children's Museum of Pittsburgh: One of the largest children's museums in the U.S., focused on maker-based, hands-on creative learning. Directly comparable as a nonprofit children's museum with interactive exhibits, maker programming, and similar earned revenue streams.
Regional players
- Exploratorium: San Francisco-based science museum focused on interactive exhibits and learning. Comparable as a Bay Area cultural attraction serving families and school groups, but oriented toward science/STEM rather than the arts-and-maker focus of CCM.
Emerging players
- Habitot Children's Museum: Berkeley-based children's museum focused on early childhood (0-5). Comparable as a Bay Area nonprofit children's museum with a smaller footprint, similar mission of hands-on creative play, and overlapping target customer base.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Children's Creativity Museum social profiles
Digital presenceChildren's Creativity Museum compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Children's Creativity Museum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Children's Creativity Museum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Children's Creativity Museum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Children's Creativity Museum M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Children's Creativity Museum
What does Children's Creativity Museum do?
Children's Creativity Museum is a nonprofit children's museum that operates a two-floor, multimedia interactive exhibit experience at 221 Fourth Street in San Francisco's Yerba Buena Gardens. Visitors engage with hands-on art, design, technology, and maker exhibits under an "Imagine-Create-Share" creativity cycle. Revenue comes from daily admission, annual family memberships, school group visits, birthday party packages, and private event rentals.
Is Children's Creativity Museum a public or private company?
Children's Creativity Museum is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Children's Creativity Museum founded?
Children's Creativity Museum was founded in 1990. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Children's Creativity Museum based?
Children's Creativity Museum is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Children's Creativity Museum make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. General Admission is the primary driver. The others are play Passport Annual Membership, group Visits and Field Trips, event Rentals, birthday Party Packages and donations and Charitable Giving.
Who are Children's Creativity Museum's main competitors?
Association of Children's Museums (ACM) is listed as an others. Direct peers are Children's Museum of Manhattan, Boston Children's Museum, Please Touch Museum, Bay Area Discovery Museum, Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose, Madison Children's Museum and Children's Museum of Pittsburgh. Exploratorium is listed as a regional player. Habitot Children's Museum is listed as an emerging player.
Does Children's Creativity Museum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Children's Creativity Museum.
What industry is Children's Creativity Museum in?
Children's Creativity Museum's product category is Children's Museum. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJADAE, Children’s Museums, with a secondary code of THAJAKAO, Kids & Family Learning Workshops (Family Crafts, Junior Maker Classes). Its NAICS code is 71211 and its SIC code is 7900.