If people in the Meridian Township area are looking for something to do this holiday season, Let’s Say Cheese is the perfect place. After opening its doors in April 2021 at Meridian Mall in Okemos, an interactive selfie museum has really ramped up since students started returning to Michigan State University, said owner Scott Moore.
These interactive selfie museums are becoming extremely popular around the country, especially in metro areas such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and many more.
Now, MSU students and Meridian Township residents do not have to travel far to spice up their social media feed.
Okemos resident Madeline Hoffmann traveled to Chicago to visit the WNDR interactive museum, and said Let’s Say Cheese was just as fun as the world-renowned WNDR museum that she visited a couple of years ago..
“I almost liked it (Let’s Say Cheese) better than the one in Chicago because it is just as immersive, cheaper, and so close to home,” said Hoffmann.
Compared to other interactive selfie museums around the country that charge anywhere from $30 to $75 to go through the museum, Let’s Say Cheese owner Moore said the prices are extremely reasonable.
Guests can go through the museum for an hour and only pay $15, with special holiday deals, and a $10 entrance fee every Thursday.
Unlike Hoffmann, MSU junior Sydney Stearns had never been to an interactive selfie museum before visiting Let’s Say Cheese last spring when it first opened.
“I had never been to a selfie museum like this, so I think it is a really cool experience for people in the Okemos area since people today seem to revolve their lives around how their social media content looks,” said Stearns.
Let’s Say Cheese features almost 30 different interactive rooms, including an upside-down room and a 2-dimensional room.
“My favorite room was the upside-down room,” said Hoffmann. “It took a little getting used to when I first walked in, but the pictures I took in there were so cool.”
One of the challenges of opening museums like this one is the possibility of one-and-done customers, since each room would only be new and noteworthy the first time people visit. To help with this challenge, Moore said they are always changing rooms and adding new ones so there is always something different when customers visit.
“We also just added a green screen room for people that want to take pictures and videos against a background of their choosing,” said Moore.
Moore also said he has been looking for ways to better promote the store.
“Our biggest thing right now is social media,” Moore said. “Our Instagram, Tik Tok, and Facebook has done a lot of promoting for our museum.”
Moore would love for more people to show as word keeps spreading about Let’s Say Cheese, and guests can even rent out the museum for private events or bring in their own photographer to take any sort of special photos.
“It’s just a fun experience and the possibilities are endless,” said Moore.