‘Popular' bobbleheads of Gov. McMaster benefit SC parks. They're a Statehouse exclusive.

Yahoo

a day ago

Bobbleheads of Gov. Henry McMaster in the Statehouse gift shop on Wednesday, June 4, 2025. (Photo by Skylar Laird/SC Daily Gazette)
COLUMBIA — If Gov. Henry McMaster isn't in his Statehouse office, try a few doors down the hall.
Sitting among the snow globes, notebooks and T-shirts in the Statehouse gift shop is a bobblehead version of McMaster, wearing a dark blue suit and red tie, with his arms crossed over his chest and a big plastic smile beaming out at gift shop visitors. The base reads, 'Henry McMaster, 117th Governor of South Carolina.'
This is the first time staff of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism, which runs the gift shop, are aware of a novelty item featuring the likeness of a governor being sold at the Statehouse, said agency spokeswoman Sam Queen.
And they're exclusive to that store.
The idea for the bobblehead came from a conversation between the agency's director, Duane Parrish, and the governor's chief of staff, Trey Walker. The two got to talking about how people collect coins, Beanie Babies and baseball cards, and Walker wondered out loud whether a bobblehead of the governor might turn into a collectible of its own, he said.
'It seemed like a neat, novel thing they didn't have in the gift shop,' Walker said.
Parrish agreed to the idea, thinking the bobblehead 'would be a unique item to offer,' Queen said.
The figurine officially hit shelves May 20, about two weeks after the 2025 legislative session officially ended. As of Thursday, the gift shop had sold 28 of the 150 bobbleheads it ordered, despite less foot traffic from lobbyists and legislators, Queen said.
'It's been a popular item in the short time it's been available,' she said.
The design was approved by the governor's office. When McMaster first saw the finished product, he liked it so much he brought one back to the Governor's Mansion and showed it off during a gathering that night, Walker said.
On Thursday, McMaster told reporters he found the take on himself 'interesting,' adding he might buy a couple for his grandchildren.
His only concern is the $50 price tag, which the Republican governor said seems a bit steep.
'Fifty dollars for those things — that was a surprise to me,' McMaster said.
None of the money goes to him or his office.
The price is a matter of limited supply, Queen said.
About 12% of the bobblehead's cost will support the gift store's operations. The novelty and scarcity of it will hopefully drive more people into the store to shop, she added.
All proceeds from Statehouse gift shop sales support operations for the parks department. More than 40% of the agency's budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1 comes from self-generated revenue, including store sales, park entry fees and camping fees.
'It brings a smile and brings in a little bit of money for the state, so that's a good thing,' Walker said.
McMaster is the longest-serving elected governor in South Carolina's history. The former lieutenant governor ascended to the job in January 2017, when Nikki Haley became President Donald Trump's first United Nations ambassador. That gave McMaster two years in office before his first inauguration.
He can't seek another term.