Washington, D.C

D.C. souvenir shops know what teens want: Bucket hats and Trump merch

Published

2 years ago

June 15, 2024

D.C. souvenir shops know what teens want: Bucket hats and Trump merch

WASHINGTON, D.C. — From the moment I Love DC Gifts opens at 8 a.m., Khalid Ismail is ready for “the storm.” A pair of tour buses can roll up at any minute and unload a hundred teenagers to speed shop at his family’s store.

“It’s literally like a hurricane,” said Ismail, 30, who quit his corporate job in Dallas to help his father, Kadri Ismail, open the store two years ago. “They’ll just drop off 100 kids, 115 kids, 130 kids multiple times a day, every single day. … It’s a completely different level of busy.”

Most tour groups have just 15 minutes for a souvenir mad grab before it’s back to sightseeing.

Despite reports of an empty downtown D.C. still gutted by the pandemic, the city’s souvenir shops see such deluges on a regular basis. The gift shop is a core component of the quintessential student trip, and D.C. trips are a year-round industry.

Peak season strikes during spring break and the first six weeks of summer, says Brooksie Robbins, vice president of North American Operations for EF Explore America, one of the many tour companies that were out shopping on a recent Tuesday. Between June and August, the company has thousands of students on hundreds of trips and tours in D.C.

On the same day, six tour buses were idling in front of another souvenir shop a few blocks north of the White House. A blond chaperone held the door open for her flock of tweens in matching red T-shirts commemorating the trip.

“This is what you’ve all been waiting for!” she chirped as they filed inside.

Students flooded in for merch — keychains, mugs, flags, ornaments — candy and soft drinks, or just a break in their educational agenda. And bucket hats. Lots of bucket hats. American flag ones, Washington, D.C. ones, political ones.

“This fits my personality,” one boy said, wearing a white bucket hat with Donald Trump’s name stitched across the front.

“Where’s the RFK Jr. stuff?” another student asked.

Trump visors and RBG bobbleheads

Back at I Love DC Gifts, Khalid Ismail said the best-selling item is a cherry blossom sweatshirt that says “Good Vibes.” Even in June — months after the city’s famously fleeting flowers have come and gone and daily temperatures approach 90 degrees — the sweatshirt dominates. Ismail said he’s never seen anything bewitch customers so fervently, although Trump merch is a close second: T-shirts with his mug shot and visors with fake orange hair flowing out the top.

“We have no horse in the race, politically. Like, we don’t care, but man — people love him,” Ismail said. “Anything Trump-themed, anything with his name on it … people are buying it.”

Luke Wilbur has noticed the same. Wilbur, 56, used to own Washington DC Gift Shop on Pennsylvania Ave. The pandemic forced him to close, and now he runs DCgiftShop.com. Although he tries to stock an equal amount of Republican and Democrat items, Wilbur sells significantly more of the former.

Wilbur’s not convinced that means much for the outcome of the presidential election. Only that “conservatives purchase more products by far,” he said.

Plus, “when Trump has rallies, they’re all wearing the hats,” Wilbur said. “He’s a marketer … I mean, Trump was selling water.”

Some souvenir purchasing behavior is seasonal. Across the street from the U.S. Treasury Building at White House Gifts, anything with eagles sells out around the Fourth of July. Christmas tree ornaments are hot year-round. So is anything with the presidential seal or the likeness of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

“Even though she’s passed, everybody loves her,” the shop’s owner, Jim Warlick, said, pointing at an RBG bobblehead lined up alongside ones of America’s most famous presidents. “We’ve never had anything for a Supreme Court justice other than her. She’s just so popular.”

Warlick, 71, opened White House Gifts in 2008, a dream that stemmed from his interest in American history and entrepreneurship. There was also a fateful trip he took to D.C. when he was 12 and bought a bust of President John F. Kennedy.

“I said ‘One of these days, I’m going to live in Washington,’” Warlick remembered.

In his younger days, Warlick dropped in and out of college to work for political campaigns and elected officials, then realized he could make far more money selling campaign buttons. He expanded his offerings, making campaign posters and stickers, and eventually opened his first Washington gift shop in 1992.

Five presidents later, the American public is still hungry for patriotic merch. Our appetite for what to buy, however, has evolved. Postcards barely sell these days and political pins are out (because people don’t want to put holes in their clothing, Warlick guesses); pet gear and fast fashion sunglasses are king.

“Ten years ago, people didn’t buy socks, but they do now,” Warlick said alongside a rack of novelty pairs knit with famous faces. Counter to Ismail and Wilbur’s findings, Warlick’s supply of President Biden’s socks were sold out last week while his rival’s version remained plentiful.

Warlick also gets a different clientele than the other shops. More of his foot traffic comes from White House tour runoff than big bus loads.

“We get some,” he said of the bus business, but not as many as he could. Warlick said some shop owners with round-the-clock bus drop-offs “pay the bus drivers.” He said he’s been approached to go into deals with drivers, “but we can’t give away half of what we sell.”

Robbins, of EF Tours, said “there’s no financial relationship that we have with any of the gift shops” but that some are better suited for big bus groups than others. Shops need to have a “diversity of inventory,” including both snacks and souvenirs, maybe a bathroom and the infrastructure to handle and process a swarm of young adults.

I Love DC Gifts meets that criteria. The store is across the street from Ford’s Theatre, where President Abraham Lincoln was shot, and directly next door to the Petersen House, where he was carried after the assassination. Ismail motioned to a wall of tourist T-shirts. “We share walls with where Lincoln died,” he said.

That proximity alone isn’t enough to guarantee customers.

“Buses are stopping in front of us, but that doesn’t mean they’ll come to us,” Ismail said. “It’s the positivity from the bus drivers and tour guides, the relationships we built … we go to dinner with these people, we know their families.”

Warlick is doing fine without the bus business. White House Gifts averages 3,000 customers a day in the summer, and he’s knee-deep in side hustles.

For example, Warlick had five replica Oval Office structures built that he rents out to movie studios. One’s set up in a building around the corner from the gift shop. Customers who spend at least $50 in the store can have their photo taken behind the desk, or from a replica White House press briefing room at no charge.

Or the traveling exhibit he created about Kennedy, populated with historic artifacts Warlick bought at auction. Exhibits included one of Jackie’s bathing suits, one of JFK’s shaving kits and two of his limousines.

“It’s just part of preserving history,” he said.

History isn’t necessarily part of the equation for Ismail. He’s hooked on the chaos and joy of dealing with hoards of customers at I Love DC Gifts.

“It gives me a purpose for life … it gives me energy, like vigor, if that makes sense,” he said. “How many people live and die to have an opportunity like this?”

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Washington, D.C

Storm Team4 Forecast: Thick fog to clear before storms, rain Thursday night

Published

6 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Storm Team4 Forecast: Thick fog to clear before storms, rain Thursday night

4 things to know about the weather:

Grab the umbrella
Big temperature ranges
Thunder possible Thursday night
Warmer days on the way

Heads up commuters! For Thursday morning, there will be some thick fog in spots with some rain possible, especially around the Mason-Dixon line. The fog should clear out by 10 a.m.

Throughout the day, some sunshine should develop with highs warming into the low 60s. Those in Northern Maryland could see some showers throughout the day but those near the D.C. area will stay relatively dry except for a stray shower or two.

Some rain and evening storms by 8 p.m. will impact the area Thursday night. Although it’s a bit unusual for this time of year, don’t be surprised if you hear thunder Thursday evening.

Warmer temperatures coming this weekend

These next few days will come with some major forecast challenges.

Much, much warmer air is just to our south and cold, high pressure is moving into New England. The front separating the 40s from the 70s will be laying right across our region for the next two to three days.

So keep in mind, when you’re looking at the forecast highs in the text below, that it will be warmest in Fredericksburg, VA and coolest in northern Maryland.

Friday’s weather will be similar as a front system remains just over the area, separating chilly air to the north and warmer air to the south. There might be a stray shower or two, too.

For the weekend, Saturday looks to be the warmer of the two days with highs in the low to mid 70s. Some rain overnight Saturday will lead to cooler temperatures on Sunday.

Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.

QuickCast

THURSDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Stray Shower Possible
Big Temperature Range
Wind: Southeast 5 mph
Chance of Rain: 40%
HIGHS: 62° to 72°

THURSDAY NIGHT:
Cloudy And Chilly
Rain Likely
Some Thunder Possible
Wind: Northeast 5 mph
Chance Of Rain: 70%
LOWS: 44° to 54°

FRIDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Cooler For Most
Isolated Shower Or Two
Wind: East 5-15 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 52° to 68°

SATURDAY:
Partly Sunny
Breezy And Warmer
Isolated Shower
Wind: Southwest 10-20 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 66° to 78°

SUNDAY:
Mostly Cloudy
Cooler
Few Showers Possible
Wind: Northwest 5-15 mph
Chance of Rain: 20%
HIGHS: 64° to 72°

Sunrise: 6:35 Sunset: 6:05
Average High: 53° Average Low: 36°

Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.

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Washington, D.C

Tax expert explains DC filing season amid Congress-District dispute

Published

18 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Tax expert explains DC filing season amid Congress-District dispute

WASHINGTON (7News) — D.C. taxpayers may be confused by back-and-forth between the D.C. City Council and Congress over taxprovision. The city’s financial officer sent a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser and D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson, that said the District’s tax laws will not change, despite recent actions by Congress.

7News spoke to director of Tax Policy at the Center for American Progress Corey Husak to explain the complicated tax policy.

“The short answer is, nothing changes. Filing Season can continue as it has been, continue as planned, and according to the laws as we understood them in January,” said Husak.

“If you’ve already filed your taxes, you don’t have to change anything. And if you want to file your taxes, the rules are still the same as they were on the books before,” said Husak.

RELATED | DC Council Chairman talks taxes, budget, bodycams, federal surge

Chief Financial Officer Glen Lee’s revenue estimate issued Friday does not include an estimated $180 million expected this fiscal year from the city’s decoupling law, “due to the uncertainty of the associated revenue as a result of Joint Resolution 142,” according to a released letter.

“The CFO was in a tough spot here. If he agreed with Congress, then businesses and overtime workers will get bigger refunds. But if he agreed with the Mayor and the Attorney General, then families with children and lower income workers would get bigger tax cuts,” said Husak.

SEE MORE | Development of new Commanders stadium scrutinized at DC oversight hearing

“We as District residents can’t control, you know what happens in the courts, what happens in, you know, what Congress does in the future,” said Husak. “But for now, the CFO has said, you know this is, this is a law as it stands, and the law that I’m going to enforce so, you know, file your legally obligated taxes, and maybe in the future, there’ll be a surprise.”

WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW

7News spoke to director of Tax Policy at the Center for American Progress Corey Husak to explain the complicated tax policy (7News).{ }

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Washington, D.C

CHERRY BLOSSOM COUNTDOWN: Peak Bloom prediction drops Thursday

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

CHERRY BLOSSOM COUNTDOWN: Peak Bloom prediction drops Thursday

WASHINGTON (7News) — The nation’s capital is just about ready to be transformed into a breathtaking pastel landscape of cherry trees in bloom. The famed blossoms around the Tidal Basin are not only a symbol of spring’s arrival, but also of a long-standing friendship — a gift of more than 3,000 trees from Tokyo, Japan, to the United States in 1912.

So what is considered “Peak Bloom”?

The National Park Service (NPS) defines peak bloom as the time when at least 70% of the Yoshino cherry trees around the Tidal Basin have opened their blossoms. This is the period when the blossoms appear most full and spectacular and most ideal for photos, and soaking up spring’s beauty here in DC.

Because cherry trees respond to the cumulative effects of winter and spring weather, especially daily temperatures, it’s very difficult to predict peak bloom more than about 10 days in advance. Warm spells accelerate blooming; cold snaps slow it down.

Average Timing — What History Shows

Since 1921 overall, national data indicate peak bloom typically fell around early April (April 4), based on historical averages.

Average date peak bloom – cherry blossom trees Washington DC Tidal Basin

Since 1990, the average has kept shifting earlier and earlier. In fact, the last 6 years our peak has occurred in late March.

These shifts reflect how warmer springs have nudged peak bloom earlier over the decades.

Earliest & Latest Blooms on Record

Earliest peak bloom: March 15 — recorded in 1990.

Latest peak bloom: April 18 — recorded in 1958.

Of course, most years fall between those dates, with the last week of March to the first week of April historically being the most consistent window for peak bloom.

Earliest Peak Bloom Washington DC

Recent peak blooms show how variable and climate-dependent the timing can be:

2025: The National Park Service predicted peak bloom between March 28–31 (and confirmed the official peak around March 28).

2024: Peak bloom arrived very early, on March 17, several days ahead of NPS projections — tied for one of the earliest peaks in decades.

These examples demonstrate not only how much each season can differ, but also a trend toward earlier spring blossoms in recent years.

What to Expect for Spring 2026

As of early March 2026, the cherry trees are still dormant. The buds haven’t begun significant growth yet. The weather will become more critical in the weeks leading up to the bloom will be the biggest factor in determining when peak bloom happens in 2026.

Heavy winter cold, as experienced this year, tends to delay bloom compared with recent early springs. In contrast, an early warm stretch could push peak bloom earlier — as long as it doesn’t come with subsequent frost.

Look for the green bud stage first. This is when the buds are small, tight, and green, with no sign of petals yet. Trees are still several weeks from blooming.

Tips for Cherry Blossom Visitors

Plan in the “sweet spot” — peak bloom often lasts a few days to about a week, but weather (rain, wind, heat) can shorten that window.

Visit slightly before or after the predicted peak dates for smaller crowds and extended color. Blossoms can be gorgeous even before 70% bloom or as petals begin falling.

Check NPS updates and First Alert Weather forecasts in late March for tweaked peak bloom dates.

The cherry blossoms of Washington, D.C. remain one of the most iconic harbingers of spring in the U.S., and while exact bloom dates vary year-to-year, history and natural patterns point to late March through early April as your best bet for seeing the Tidal Basin in full floral glory.

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