Phil’s Stationery

[From How To with John Wilson (2023). Click for a larger store.]

I was surprised and delighted to see Phil’s Stationery make a brief appearance in “How to Track Your Package,” the final episode of How To with John Wilson. When Elaine and I visited Phil’s in 2016, I was hoping to find an Ace hard rubber comb. O, reason not the need. I knew that at one time the store had a cache of the extinct Aces. Not any more. So we just started browsing.

The owner (not Phil) asked, “Are you from a production company?” No, we just liked stationery. It turns out that part of the business is furnishing vintage office supplies as props for film and television. I ended up going through a box of old pencils and picking out some choice ones for a friend who was about to retire from teaching. I remember also buying a magnifying thread-counter. O, reason not the need. Elaine chose some items as well. O, reason not her need either.

How does this store manage to make the rent in midtown Manhattan? If I remember correctly, the family owns the building.

Phil’s has made the pages of Ephemeral New York and Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York. The store has many happy customers, and I am happy to know that it’s still going.