
Target has been selling an exclusive line of "Stranger Things" merchandise with items such as shirts that say, "What would Barb do?" But the one thing missing from its collection has been that one thing that went viral: the purple "Thunder Lizard" hoodie.
The Minneapolis-based retailer is rectifying that situation in a partnership with the Science Museum of Minnesota, whose world was turned upside down when the shirt it briefly produced in the mid-1980s made a surprising appearance on the second season of the Netflix hit series.
Rushing to capitalize on the moment, the museum hustled to reproduce the shirt and has sold more than 30,000 of them since November. In addition to the science museum's name, the hoodies features a picture of a brontosaurus skeleton.
Target will sell the unisex hoodie (in sizes XS thru XXL) in about 1,400 of its 1,800 stores starting later this month. It will not, however, be sold on Target.com.
Kim Ramsden, a spokeswoman for the Science Museum of Minnesota, said the sweatshirts sold by Target will be virtually identical to the ones the museum has been selling except for the inside tag which will say Target on it. A portion of the proceeds will go back to the museum and its education programs.
"We're thrilled because it's a way to continue to support the mission of the museum by seeing more 'Thunder Lizard' apparel out there and boost awareness of the museum across the country," she said. "We're grateful for the partnership. They're a Minnesota company and we're a Minnesota museum."
At the same time, the science museum will continue to sell its line of "Thunder Lizard" apparel in its gift shop and on the website it created late last year to sell the items.
As the science musem began exploring the idea of reproducing the shirts back in October, Ramsden said Target was one of the entities the museum initially reached out to for advice in how to sell it online since the museum didn't have an e-commerce site and to feel out if it made sense to do a partnership. She added that Target is already a big supporter of its education programs and has had some executives sit on its board in the past.