Children's Creativity Museum

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.

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

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

• Children's museum
• Interactive exhibits
• Hands-on learning
• Creative education
• Museum memberships

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core 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.

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• South of Market Community Action Network (SOMCAN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCM 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 GalilacoreOthersMultimedia 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 BonifaciocoreOthersArtist 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 EngineeringmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoordinated development of the Step into the Mural AR Walking Tour project, providing technical expertise for the augmented reality experience.
• Kinfolk AppcoreTechnology or IntegrationAR 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)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReciprocal 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)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReciprocal membership network providing Play Passport holders access to science and technology centers across the network.
• Reciprocal Organization of Associated Museums (ROAM)majorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReciprocal membership network for cultural institutions, expanding Play Passport holder benefits to diverse museum experiences.
• Filipino-American Development FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation supporting Filipino American organizations and programs throughout San Francisco, including SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District where CCM is located.
• SOMA PilipinascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFilipino 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 NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork connecting museums using LEGO-based playful learning experiences, supporting Build the Change exhibit programming.
• PLAY Theatre CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPerforming 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

Others

• 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

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/creativityorg
• Facebookfacebook.com/childrenscreativitymuseum
• Instagraminstagram.com/creativityorg
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@childrenscreativitymuseum

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Children's Creativity Museum