Those of you who follow me on instagram probably noticed that in early June I enjoyed New York City for about 10 days. During These days I had the chance to browse around several shops, and four of which were obviously Pen Stores. If you’re in New York, you must visit them if you want to discover a great selection of pens to bring home as a NYC “Souvenir”.
Now, I have to say, for New York City, that’s not a great number of luxury pen stores. You’ll only find four places with high-end writing instruments in the Big Apple. Three of the four are flagship brand stores. Fortunately, the surviving retailer is a giant in the industry, famous for launching an annual catalog sent to millions of people in the US. But New York used to have more than one retailer. There was ArtBrown, near 5th Ave, where I hosted a Trunkshow in 2012 with Edelberg.
There was also Joon Pens, located in Trump Tower and Grand Central Station. All of these stores have unfortunately closed their doors due to declining demand in the Digital Age. But the dark times have come to an end and we’re glad to see our industry starting to shine again. So, let’s find out where you can still buy pens in the city that never sleeps.
Montblanc Madison Avenue
Opened its doors in 2013, the Madison Avenue Boutique is a wonderful location for every Montblanc lover. If you’re looking for the full range of Montblanc, that is the coolest location to shop Writing Instruments from the Hamburg-based Maison. You will obviously find the full range of Montblanc that goes from Men’s Accessories such as Cufflinks, to Timepieces, Leather Goods, Jewelry and more.
635 Madison Ave, New York
Fountain Pen Hospital
I have such a nice connection to this store and his owner. I used to come here when I was setting up my worldwide distribution for Edelberg and hosted some amazing Trunkshows. It was always amazing to arrive Downtown, near Wallstreet and then head to Warren Street to FPH. Terry and Steve Widerlight are the Owners of Fountain Pen Hospital and they’ve been quite Moguls when it comes to how they’ve set up their Business in the 90’s. The FPH Catalogue was legendary, full of pens of brands from all over the world. Their Showroom was never the fanciest and most luxury place to go, but hey, still just an incredible spot to visit if you love Fountain Pens and everything that goes around this beautiful World. Brands that FPH carries are really a lot, but you will especially find Krone, Montblanc, Montegrappa, Aurora, Visconti, Graf von Faber-Castell, Caran d’Ache. Make sure to pay them a visit if you are around. You won’t be disappointed and it’s really one of the most legendary Stores to visit in New York.
10 Warren St, New York
Montblanc in Westfield World Trade Center
When I visited the Westfield World Trade Center, which is in the famous Oculus, I found it to be pretty empty. Even if there is quite some traffic of people due to the Subway that brings Downtown. But the Montblanc Boutique looked great next to the other high-end Boutiques. The same principles apply here as in the other Flagship store. You will find the full range of Writing Instruments and Inks but also all other wonderful items designed and manufactured by Montblanc. This location was opened in 2016.
185 Greenwich St LL4040 in Westfield World Trade Center
Lamy Flagship Store
Unfortunately, I missed the chance to visit Lamy’s Flagship Boutique located in Soho. However, it’s really cool that they managed to open it and you’ll find an amazing selection of the beloved German brand. Range that can be found goes from Lamy Safari up to Lamy 2000. Quite affordable and incredibly reliable, we all know Lamy is great for everyday scribing. The Lamy Boutique opened up right before Covid, so definitely not a great timing, but New York is picking up again and I’m sure that being located in one of the most hip area of New York it will find a nice affluence of local and tourists. The grand opening of the Lamy Boutique took place just before the pandemic, so it certainly wasn’t a good time, but with New York coming back to life and thanks to the good positioning in one of the coolest areas of NYC, the store will enjoy a constant flow of locals and tourists as well.
452 W Broadway, New York
You totally missed out not visiting Yoseka over in Greenpoint, and Kinokuniya across the street from Bryant Park.