Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience

msje.org

Company typePrivate
Founded1986
HeadquartersNew Orleans, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2C
OfferingServices

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
Legal name: Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience
Website: https://msje.org
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1986
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience industry classification

Industry

NAICS: Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)
SIC: Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
akta.pro primary industry: History Museums (THAJADAB)
akta.pro secondary industry: Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film) (THAJADAF)

Keywords

Cultural heritage museum
Jewish history exhibitions
Educational field trips
Genealogical research center
Private event rentals

Where Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: New Orleans
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

Admission Tickets: Visitors pay admission fees to access the museum's core and special exhibitions. Ticket categories include adults ($15), seniors/students/military ($13), children 6-17 ($10), with free admission for members and children under 6.
Private Event Rentals: The museum rents its spaces for after-hours events ($1,000 flat fee + $13/person), extended museum hours ($500 flat fee + $13/person), and daytime events ($500 for up to 3 hours).
Group Visits: Discounted admission rates for groups of 10 or more, with self-guided tours and optional volunteer gallery guides.
Museum Store: The MSJE Store sells specialty books, apparel, Judaica, and tchotchkes. The store is dedicated by Harold Wainer in memory of George and Helen Wainer and Harriet Wainer Kugler. Free shipping for online orders over $100.
Membership Program: Annual membership providing free admission to the museum and benefits including free admission to dozens of museums across New Orleans during Museum Month.
Donations: Individual and organizational donations supporting museum operations, capital projects, and the Mezuzah Society donor recognition program ($1,800+ annually).
Mezuzah Society: Donors contributing $1,800 or more receive permanent recognition on the Mezuzah Society Wall and a limited edition hand-made mezuzah by glass artist Andrew Jackson Pollack.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Adults (18-64)
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Seniors (65+), Students (with ID), Active Military
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Children (6-17)
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Children under 6
Subscription	Annual	MSJE Members
Unit Pricing	Pay-as-you-go	Group Rate (10 or more)
Transaction based/ take rate	Multi-year contract	After-Hours Event Package
Transaction based/ take rate	Multi-year contract	Extended Museum Hours (Exhibits Only)
Transaction based/ take rate	Multi-year contract	Daytime Package
Freemium	Annual	Writing Contest Participation

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience product offering

Product offering

Core offering

The Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience is a nonprofit cultural institution that operates a 9,000-square-foot permanent exhibition space in New Orleans dedicated to interpreting, preserving, and exhibiting 300 years of Jewish history and culture across 13 Southern states. Its core visitor offerings include interactive core and rotating special exhibitions, the Chapman Family Research Center for genealogy and oral history work, K-12 field trip and lesson plan programs, public lectures and film screenings, and a museum retail store. The museum also sells private event rentals and virtual/online exhibitions to extend its reach beyond the physical site.

Product overview

The Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience is a single-location physical museum (not a software platform) offering a unified visitor experience. Its core product is the 9,000 square foot permanent exhibition space featuring three galleries spanning 300 years of Southern Jewish history, complemented by the Chapman Family Research Center for genealogical research. The museum's portfolio includes educational programming (Field Trips, Lesson Plans, Writing Contest), public programming (lectures, screenings, workshops), private event rentals, an online/virtual exhibition component, a retail store, membership program, donor society (Mezuzah Society), and a monthly newsletter. The Chapman Family Research Center houses archival materials, oral history recording facilities, and a reference library. The museum opened in May 2021 and expanded in November 2024 with the Research Center.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

50,000 visitors welcomed in 2025
+2 more outcomes

Companies that use Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience

Customer profile

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience technology and API

Technology

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

St. Charles Parish LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 December 2025Partnership for Americans and the Holocaust traveling exhibition from U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and American Library Association. MSJE Curator Michael Jacobs delivered keynote address and guest-curated parallel exhibition 'New Americans in a New Land.'
unCommon ConstructionminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 September 2025Partnership to build a traditional Sukkah on the museum's rooftop for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The Sukkah serves as a free communal gathering space and venue for a weeklong slate of structured programming during the annual harvest festival.
SerenaBakesBreadminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 30 January 2025Annual partnership hosting King Cake Challah workshops that fuse Jewish food heritage with New Orleans traditions. The fourth annual workshop series took place in January 2025.
Andrew Jackson PollackminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 27 May 2021Glass artist who designed and hand-makes limited edition mezuzahs for Mezuzah Society members, commemorating the museum's opening.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center: One of the largest Holocaust museums in the U.S., with comparable educational field trip programming, special exhibitions, and donor society models — directly overlapping MSJE's Holocaust-adjacent and Jewish educational offerings.
Holocaust Museum Houston: Regional Jewish/Holocaust heritage museum in the South with similar exhibits, school group programming, and donor-driven funding model — a near-functional peer for MSJE's educational mission.
The Breman Museum (William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum): Atlanta-based Jewish heritage museum serving the Southeast, comparable to MSJE in regional mission, collection focus on Southern Jewish life, programming mix, and donor-supported nonprofit structure.
National Museum of American Jewish History: Located in Philadelphia, this is the only other major standalone museum in the U.S. dedicated to the American Jewish experience. It is the closest analogue to MSJE in scope, audience, and operating model.
Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust: New York-based Jewish heritage and Holocaust museum with a similar blend of permanent exhibitions, educational programming, private events, and a retail store, making it a directly comparable Jewish cultural institution.

Broad incumbents

Skirball Cultural Center: Los Angeles-based Jewish cultural center combining museum exhibitions, performing arts, and educational programming. A broader incumbent in Jewish cultural institutions with overlapping audience development dynamics.

Regional players

Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL): Former parent organization of MSJE before the 2017 separation. Still serves Southern Jewish communities through programming and rabbinical services, making it a closely related regional peer with shared mission and origin.
National WWII Museum: Immediate New Orleans Arts District neighbor with overlapping visitor base, Museum Month participation, and event rental market. A co-located cultural tourism peer that competes for tourist time and discretionary spend.
Ogden Museum of Southern Art: Another New Orleans Arts District neighbor focused on Southern visual art and culture. Shares visitor foot traffic, Museum Month cross-promotion, and the Southern cultural heritage framing that distinguishes MSJE's positioning.
Southern Food & Beverage Museum: Co-located in the New Orleans Arts District and a Museum Month partner. While focused on food rather than religion, it shares the Southern heritage museum positioning and the same tourist catchment as MSJE.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience

What does Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience do?

Is Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience a public or private company?

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience is a private company. It is currently operating.

When was Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience founded?

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience was founded in 1986. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience based?

Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience is headquartered in New Orleans, United States, in the North America region.

How does Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience make money?

Seven revenue lines are on record. Admission Tickets are the primary driver. The others are private Event Rentals, group Visits, museum Store, membership Program, donations and mezuzah Society.

Who are Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, Holocaust Museum Houston, The Breman Museum (William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum), National Museum of American Jewish History and Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. Skirball Cultural Center is listed as a broad incumbent. Regional players are Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL), National WWII Museum, Ogden Museum of Southern Art and Southern Food & Beverage Museum.

Does Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience have an API?

No public API is recorded for Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience.

What industry is Museum of the Southern Jewish Experience in?

Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAJADAB, History Museums, with a secondary code of THAJADAF, Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film). Its NAICS code is 7121 and its SIC code is 7900.