Above & Beyond Children’s Museum

What Above & Beyond Children’s Museum does

Above and Beyond Children's Museum (ABCM) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit children's museum founded in 1993 and headquartered at 902 N 8th Street, Sheboygan, Wisconsin. It operates nearly 10,000 square feet of interactive exhibit space across three floors and a mezzanine — themed around STEAM in Nature, Arts & Culture, and Community & Kindness — plus a free, ADA-accessible outdoor Purple Octopus Playground built in 2022. The museum serves over 30,000 visitors per calendar year and collaborates with an additional 20,000 community members through play-based initiatives, serving families with young children, schools on field trips, low-income families through the Museums for All program, and corporate partners through sponsorships and volunteering.

The underlying technology stack is intentionally light and consumer-facing: a digital membership system using QR code-based cards distributed via email and stored in Apple or Google Wallet for scan-at-door access, an online booking platform for admissions, events, and membership purchases, and email-deliverable gift cards. The museum participates in the Association of Children's Museums (ACM) Reciprocal Network, giving members 50% off access to 200+ partner children's museums nationwide, with a deeper mutual free-admission relationship with the Children's Museum of Fond du Lac funded by the Efroymson Family Fund. There are no proprietary AI/ML systems, mobile apps, or APIs disclosed.

The business model combines earned revenue and charitable contributions. Earned streams include per-visit general admission ($10 child/adult, $9 senior, $3 Museums for All rate), tiered annual memberships (Family $150, Family Plus $175, Grandparent $125, Museums for All $30–$100, Explorer $250, Innovator $1,000), birthday party packages ($200 non-member / $180 member for up to 30 guests), gift cards, and field trip/group bookings. Non-earned revenue includes tax-deductible donations (online, mail, DAF, employer match, planned giving, stock gifts), corporate sponsorships across four named categories, and group volunteer fees. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer via the museum's physical site, its website (abkids.org), Instagram, and an email newsletter, supported by community partnerships such as Acuity Insurance's sponsorship of 12 Free Days of Play annually.

Name

Above & Beyond Children’s Museum

Legal name

Above and Beyond Children's Museum

Website

https://abkids.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Above and Beyond Children's Museum (ABCM) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit children's museum in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, operating nearly 10,000 square feet of interactive play-based exhibits across three floors plus an ADA-accessible outdoor playground, serving over 30,000 visitors annually through admissions, memberships, educational programs, and community partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Museum

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s Museums (THAJADAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Kids Party Entertainment (Clowns, Magicians, Characters) (HSACACAG)

Keywords

• Children's museum
• Play-based learning
• Museum memberships
• Educational field trips
• Birthday party venue

Headquarters

HQ city

Sheboygan

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. General Admission: Per-visit admission fees for children, adults, and seniors
2. Annual Memberships: Recurring annual membership fees at multiple tier levels (Family, Family Plus, Grandparent, Museums for All, Explorer, Innovator) providing free admission, reciprocal benefits, and member discounts
3. Birthday Parties: Room rental packages with admission for up to 30 guests, including 2-hour Wonder Workshop rental
4. Gift Cards: Prepaid cards for admission, events, gift shop, and membership purchases
5. Corporate Sponsorships: Event sponsorships, play partnerships, exhibit sponsorships, and annual fundraising event sponsorships from local businesses
6. Donations: Tax-deductible charitable contributions as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, including online donations, mail-in checks, DAF gifts, employer matching, planned giving, and stock gifts
7. Group Volunteer Programs: Corporate and group volunteer experiences

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Above & Beyond Children's Museum operates a nearly 10,000 square foot physical children's museum in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, offering immersive play-based learning experiences across three floors and a mezzanine of interactive exhibits covering STEAM, arts, culture, and community themes. It sells general admission, tiered annual memberships, birthday party packages, field trips, gift cards, educational programs, and corporate sponsorships, and serves over 30,000 visitors per year as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

Product overview

Above & Beyond Children's Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit children's museum offering physical, immersive play-based learning experiences. The organization operates a nearly 10,000 square foot interactive museum with three floors of exhibits covering STEAM in Nature, Arts & Culture, and Community & Kindness themes, plus an outdoor Purple Octopus Playground. Core offerings include general museum admission, tiered membership programs (Family, Family Plus, Grandparent, Museums for All, Explorer, Innovator), birthday party packages, field trips, educational programs, gift cards, corporate sponsorships, and volunteer opportunities. The museum serves over 30,000 visitors annually and collaborates with 20,000 community members in play-based initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Museum General Admission

Quantifiable outcome

• Serves over 30,000 visitors per calendar year
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Acuity InsurancecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2026Primary sponsor for Free Days of Play program, hosting twelve free admission days throughout 2026 to increase community access to the museum's services.
• Corporate Sponsors (2026)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMultiple corporate sponsors supporting museum operations through Family Event Sponsorships, Tastefully Childish Annual Fundraising, Play Partnerships, and Exhibit Sponsorships. Sponsors include: Little Love, Lake 98.1, MWC-Advertising, LSP, Sargento, OSB, RBH, BCD, Charter Steel, O'Hare, SVCH Prevea, Saco, JustKids, Alliant, Vollrath, Abacus, Dahl Toyota, UMB, Festival, Compu-Tek, MGF, SNS, Grounded Roots.
• Association of Children's Museums (ACM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMember of ACM Reciprocal Network, providing members 50% off general admission to 200+ children's museums across the US including Betty Brinn Children's Museum, Building for Kids Museum, Madison Children's Museum, and Children's Imaginarium.
• Children's Museum of Fond du LacmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerReciprocal partnership allowing members of each museum free admission to the other. Free admission to CMFDL members supported by Efroymson Family Fund gift.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Mid-America Science Museum: Regional interactive science institution emphasizing hands-on STEAM learning for families and school groups. Overlaps ABCM's STEAM-themed exhibits and educational programming in a comparable community-engagement model.

Direct peers

• Madison Children's Museum: Madison, WI children's museum and ACM Reciprocal Network partner. Operates similar tiered memberships, exhibit-based play programming, and community engagement initiatives in the same Wisconsin market as ABCM.
• Children's Imaginarium: ACM Reciprocal Network partner offering hands-on STEAM exhibits for children. Similar nonprofit model, exhibit-based programming, and family-targeted value proposition.
• Children's Museum of Pittsburgh: Mid-sized nonprofit children's museum featuring interactive exhibits and maker-focused programming. Comparable in scale, mission, and STEAM-emphasis to ABCM.
• Building for Kids Children's Museum: Appleton, WI children's museum listed as an ABCM reciprocal partner. Comparable in size, nonprofit structure, and STEAM-themed exhibit programming for Wisconsin families.
• Children's Museum of Fond du Lac: Wisconsin-based children's museum with a reciprocal partnership providing free cross-admission with ABCM. Directly comparable in scale, programming, mission, and geography.
• Betty Brinn Children's Museum: Milwaukee-based children's museum and ACM Reciprocal Network partner of ABCM. Operates a comparable play-based learning model, tiered memberships, and community outreach programs targeting Wisconsin families — directly comparable in mission, scale, and geography.

Broad incumbents

• Boston Children's Museum: One of the oldest and largest children's museums in the US with a comparable nonprofit, exhibit-driven, membership-supported operating model — though at substantially greater scale.
• Please Touch Museum: Larger, established Philadelphia children's museum with broader historical and educational exhibits. Same nonprofit children's museum category but at significantly greater scale than ABCM.
• The Children's Museum of Indianapolis: One of the largest children's museums globally with extensive collections and exhibits. Operates in the same nonprofit children's museum category as ABCM but at vastly greater scale and footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/aboveandbeyondsheb
• Facebookfacebook.com/AboveBeyondSheboygan

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 Above & Beyond Children’s Museum