Peña-Peck House

What Peña-Peck House does

Peña-Peck House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit historic house museum and gift shop located at 143 St. George Street in downtown St. Augustine, Florida. The property, built circa 1750 by royal decree of King Ferdinand VI of Spain for Royal Treasurer Juan Estevan de Peña, is one of only 35 surviving First Spanish Period buildings and has been owned by the City of St. Augustine since 1931. The Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine — a volunteer-led nonprofit founded in 1892 and one of 14 remaining members of the National Federation of Woman's Exchanges — has operated the property since May 1, 1932. Core offerings include self-guided audio tours, family scavenger hunts, private and group tours, an on-site gift shop selling handcrafted items from local artisans (artisans receive 70% of sales), and a garden venue rented for weddings, receptions, and private celebrations.

The business model is a hybrid of donation-based cultural programming and transaction-based revenue generation. Museum tours are offered free with donations encouraged; gift shop sales operate on a consignment-style model where the Woman's Exchange retains 30% and artisans receive 70%; wedding and event venue rental is quote-based and undisclosed publicly; and tax-deductible donations are accepted both on-site and via a Square online checkout. The organization funds a scholarship program for women over 25 pursuing career education at St. Johns River State College, having disbursed over $300,000 cumulatively over 20+ years with 25 awards in the most recent year and a 98% graduate success rate. The current operating model is constrained to Wednesday–Saturday, 12:00pm–4:30pm, and the museum is temporarily closed for tours due to an air conditioning system failure while the gift shop remains open.

There is no disclosed technology platform, no AI or digital product capability, and no formal headcount; the entire operation is run by volunteers. The marketing approach is community- and event-led, relying on the organization's website, email newsletter, social media, and referral partnerships with Holiday Inn Express and Hyatt Place to reach tourists, wedding clients, and gift shop customers. In 2016, the organization received the Adelaide Sanchez Award from the St. Augustine City Commission for its preservation work.

Name

Peña-Peck House

Legal name

Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine

Website

https://penapeckhouse.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1750

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Peña-Peck House is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating a circa-1750 historic house museum, artisan gift shop, and wedding/event venue in downtown St. Augustine, Florida, managed by the volunteer-led Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine, which also funds scholarships for women over 25.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Historic House Museum and Cultural Heritage Services

NAICS

Historical Sites (71212), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAJAAAC

Museum & Landmark Guided Tours (Skip-the-line/Docent-led)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Guided Tours (City, Cultural & Historical)

Keywords

• Historic house museum
• Heritage tourism
• Artisan gift shop
• Wedding event venue
• Women education scholarships

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Augustine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Gift Shop Sales: The Peña-Peck House operates a gift shop selling handcrafted items from local artisans. Artisans receive 70% of sales; the Woman's Exchange retains the remainder to support operations and scholarships.
2. Donations and Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Woman's Exchange accepts tax-deductible donations to support historic preservation, scholarships for women, and community programs.
3. Venue Rental - Weddings and Events: The historic garden venue is rented for wedding ceremonies, receptions, bridal showers, rehearsal dinners, and other celebrations. Revenue supports the nonprofit mission.
4. Museum Tours: Self-guided audio tours and family scavenger hunts are offered Wednesday through Saturday. While audio tours are complimentary, donations are encouraged to support preservation and scholarships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Peña-Peck House operates a circa-1750 Spanish colonial historic house museum offering self-guided audio tours, family scavenger hunts, and private/group tours. It runs an on-site gift shop selling handcrafted items from local artisans, hosts weddings and private celebrations in its historic garden, and administers a scholarship program for women over 25 through the Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine.

Product overview

Peña-Peck House operates as a historic house museum and community nonprofit offering multiple integrated visitor and community services. The core offerings include the Peña-Peck House Museum (historic 1750s Spanish colonial property with audio and scavenger hunt tours), the on-site Gift Shop (selling local artisan handcrafted goods), and event venue rental services (wedding ceremonies/receptions and general celebrations in the garden). The Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine, which has operated the museum since 1932, also runs a scholarship program for women over 25 continuing their education. These services are interconnected: gift shop sales and venue rentals fund museum preservation and scholarships, while visitors can experience tours, shop for artisan goods, and book the venue for events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $300,000 donated in scholarships over 20+ years
• +1 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Holiday Inn ExpressminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPreferred hotel partner offering discounted rates for Peña-Peck House event guests. Guests must contact the hotel and mention the Peña-Peck House to receive preferred rates.
• Hyatt Place St. Augustine Vilano BeachminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPreferred hotel partner offering discounted rates for Peña-Peck House event guests. Located in Vilano Beach area of St. Augustine.
• City of St. AugustinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 1931, Anna Gardner Burt, Dr. Peck's granddaughter and the last family owner, entrusted the house to the City of St. Augustine. In 1932, the Woman's Exchange assumed responsibility for managing and showcasing the home on behalf of the City.
• National Federation of Woman's ExchangescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine is one of 14 remaining individual exchanges in the Federation. The Federation unifies exchanges, supporting growth, entrepreneurship, and shared values of empowerment and community.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Lightner Museum: Also a historic-house-turned-museum in downtown St. Augustine (former Alcazar Hotel). Closest direct peer: comparable heritage museum, gift shop, and event venue serving the same tourist and wedding customer base on St. George Street.
• Flagler College / Ponce de León Hotel Tours: Flagship historic landmark in St. Augustine offering guided tours of a former Gilded Age hotel; comparable tour-based heritage attraction targeting tourists and group visits.
• Castillo de San Marcos National Monument: Adjacent First Spanish Period fort and the dominant heritage attraction in St. Augustine; competes for the same tourist mindshare and educational-tour segment.
• Ximenez-Fatio House Museum: Adjacent historic house museum in St. Augustine operating as a nonprofit with tours, gift shop, and event/wedding venue rentals; near-identical operating model and customer segments to Peña-Peck House.
• Oldest House Museum (González-Alvarez House): Historic Spanish colonial house museum in St. Augustine run by the St. Augustine Historical Society; directly comparable colonial-era museum attraction serving the same tourist flow.
• St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum: Nonprofit heritage attraction with museum, guided tours, gift shop, and event programming; comparable nonprofit-driven museum operating model in the same destination market.
• Colonial Quarter: Living-history attraction in downtown St. Augustine offering guided tours of reconstructed Spanish colonial buildings; closest experiential/guided-tour competitor.

Others

• National Federation of Woman's Exchanges (network peers): Federation to which Woman's Exchange of St. Augustine belongs; peer exchanges operate similar gift shops, artisan platforms, and historic-preservation missions in other U.S. cities.

Regional players

• Fort Matanzas National Monument: Nearby Spanish colonial-era site operated by the National Park Service; comparable First Spanish Period interpretation, but located outside the downtown core and operated federally rather than as a local nonprofit.

Broad incumbents

• Ripley's Believe It or Not! St. Augustine: Large, well-funded tourist attraction housed in the historic Castle Warden estate; competes for the same walk-up downtown tourist traffic and tour-group itineraries.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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 Peña-Peck House