Bowne & Co. Stationers

home to several antique letterpress machines that still work, bowne triples as a museum, a stationery store, and a custom letterpress printing site. pay a visit to explore something esoteric alone or with other enthusiasts. journal prices are lower than those at competing retailers in the city: the midori md a5 is $14 at bowne. staff is very knowledgable about their inventory, services, and the history of seaport/letterpress methods to boot. some of them are clearly artists themselves - so impressive.

A lovely store with lots of unique hand printed cards, stationary and other gifts, plus it’s a working letterpress print shop. The staff enthusiastically demonstrated some of the presses for curious parents and kids that were in the store, which was just too cute. I got distracted while asking about workshops that they host and I accidentally left a couple of cheap stickers that I bought on the counter! The staff saved them and remembered me when after almost a week! Thank you, nice girl in glasses.

You simply must stop in. This is a cute, old-fashioned stationery packed with a unique variety of cards, writing supplies, and prints (Among other tantalizing Knick-knacks and gadgets). Everyone working here was a treat to interact with. They even tipped us off to this cozy private area behind the store, which was a delight to explore.

This is a wonderful stationery shop with friendly staff, and an interesting history. I love the atmosphere of this place, and you can sometimes see them making stationery on antique letterpresses when you enter the shop. A must-see on any visit to the South Street Seaport historic district. They also do custom stationery and business cards.

Amazing collection or printing presses and antique equipment that the team here uses to print beautiful stationery. Very skilled craftsmen and lovely customer service. Definitely a unique place to get locally made/sourced gifts and souvenirs that aren't the traditionally kitschy cheap plastic.

The folks at Bowne were conducting a demonstration of their printing presses yesterday at the South Street Seaport - have to mention how friendly the staff were, how well they knew their craft, and how accessible the experience was for my 4yo. We spotted a typo on one printing (a 'u' that was upside down making it an 'n') and the young man conducting the demo helped us learn why and how the mistake happened, and showed us how he went about correcting it - made the experience so, so much deeper and engaging. Really excellent stuff!

Very Cool things

Lapin and I came across this store when we were attending the Taste of the Seaport event. The cute stationary store offers prints, letterpress cards, stationery goods, along with a couple of odds and ends. Lapin found a vintage map of NYC for $7 (in the same dimensions as Ikea frames), which he ended up getting. The proprietor of the store was friendly but at times he kept repeating the same things and didn’t quite understand what we were asking him. He was friendly and did offer us a free bookmark that was leftover from an event the other night. He mentioned that couple of the products were produced in the store using the letterpresses in the back. A cute store with decent and affordable selection, we would definitely visit again.

I love this place! Beautiful old New York. The stationary is beautiful and the unique offerings make this store one I keep coming back to. Stop by around the holidays for one of a kind cards and stationary no one else has. The money goes to preserve the South Street Seaport Museum so shop away!

This is essentially the gift shop for the South Street Seaport museum. It's small but has a decent selection of printed and paper goods.

In a world of vanishing stationery stores, this stationers has always stood out. They still--in 2017--print letterpress, with antique presses! They sell ephemera, cards, and curiosities; whenever I'm in this neighborhood, I'm pulled to this store. They have useful things, quirky things; almost everything is very affordable. They have sealing wax--and stamps, of course--which is increasingly hard to find. As is mentioned in other reviews, this store is part of the South Street Seaport museum. It's one of the best stores in NYC.

This review is for both the stationary store and the Bowne Printer next door. The stationary store sells amazing $5 cards. Some of the items are printed on the machine displayed at the store. The Bowne Printer, which is part of the South Street Seaport Museum, also sells cards, posters & postcards made from the 19th century printing machines. Consider signing up for a fun, interactive, educational class online for just $10. The place hosts two sessions a month. You get to make your own cards. This is an AMAZING place that too few people know about.

If you like paper goods, cute stationary, ephemera, rare books and publications this is one of the best shop downtown NYC, and a not-to-miss stop in the Seaport historic district. It's managed by the South Street Seaport Museum, and it has a working collection of 19th century printing presses and types really beautiful and unique. The staff is super friendly, and most of time I was there, if you show them interest, they demonstrate how printing press works. I never exit without buying something. Everything is made locally, or within Europe. Nothing mass-productive or made in China.

This is the type of place that makes trekking downtown worthwhile. Part of the South Street Seaport Museum, this store displays printing-related machinery, so its a pseudo-museum of its own, but sports lots of old-fashioned/modern-day memorabilia. You'll find greeting cards made my local artists from the area, books related to the waterfront, postcards featuring old-time pictures of the area, in addition to gift quality sort of stationary items. The person behind the counter was super-friendly, and was also informative as to the museum and happenings related to the museum. Places like this give the Seaport an authentic feel, rather than feeling like you're at the mall. Finding an Abercrombie & Fitch isn't what makes the Seaport special, but the hidden treasures like Bowne & Co.

Visited on a Monday on December 5th, at about 6:50, arrived finding the place pretty much empty. There are actually two parts to Bowne, one regular, general store, and then the next door store, where I think they take specific orders. I was greeted by a rather sullen young man upon walking in. He didn't seem to thrilled about his job, but pointed to where the Christmas cards and whatnot. Honestly, Bowne's selection didn't impress me, and the cards that I saw were too expensive. I found a better selection at the printing section of the store next door, and got like 3 cards for $15 (ouch). I may come back just because this place is close and I'm lazy, and they do indeed have nice cards- just not as nice as I had anticipated.

This place is a stone's throw away from my workplace so I enjoy paying a visit. It's actually the faux birthplace of Bowne Corporation but I appreciate that they give a nod to their humble beginings. The souvenirs up front are really touristy but they do have some more original greeting cards. The guy working the counter on my most recent visit started out as a volunteer and stayed on as a printer, loved it that much. The minimum for print orders is 50; they mostly do wedding stationary etc. but if you fancy some fancy business cards they do that too. Also social stationary. I really want some custom printed goodies so I will either be sending fake wedding invitations or take up letter writing.

Lapin and I came across this store when we were attending the Taste of the Seaport event. The cute stationary store offers prints, letterpress cards, stationery goods, along with a couple of odds and ends. Lapin found a vintage map of NYC for $7 (in the same dimensions as Ikea frames), which he ended up getting. The proprietor of the store was friendly but at times he kept repeating the same things and didn't quite understand what we were asking him. He was friendly and did offer us a free bookmark that was leftover from an event the other night. He mentioned that couple of the products were produced in the store using the letterpresses in the back. A cute store with decent and affordable selection, we would definitely visit again.

Pulled prints with my husband in a class run by New York Adventure Club at Bowne & Co. Stationers. The class was run by the wonderful Operations Director, Bob. It's rare to find someone so passionate about his work, and Bob spoke with a level of gusto that I may never see again of someone called in to work at 8p on a Saturday night. He was electric and had the attention of everyone in the room as he spoke. Additionally he went above and beyond in the education he provided us! Beyond teaching us how to use some of the presses, he went over time in continually bringing out relics that peaked our interest as we looked at presses we had not discussed that night. We learned so much about old fashioned letter press and so grateful that the printing museum continues on there to share this interesting art with others! Thank you Bob!

This place doesn't have that many things to buy, as I am an avid journaler and always searching for stickers and tapes and things, but it's so charming and so pretty! And the older gentleman working there was adorable. Love the store, love the printing press, love the area! I did buy a bunch of stickers, which I think are Cavallini but were sold separately, which was kind of nice, as I could pick and choose, but also made it a bit more expensive.

This place is part of the South Street Seaport Museum, and kinda functions as their gift shop. It's also a working example of an old-fashioned print shop - you can take a look at the old moveable type and the letterpress printers. Browsing around, I got an intense sense of nostalgia. I really never thought I'd be nostalgic for seventh grade... but back in middle school we had a half-semester printing class, where we learned to set type and use a printing press just like the one on display here. In retrospect... what a totally useless, but yet rather cool thing to learn. And how bizarre to think that it was just the next year that we were all required to learn BASIC programming... (which, in the long run, turned out to be about equally useful.) The souvenir items here are pretty cool, and mostly printing-oriented. I really liked the reproductions of antique postcards. They've also got old-style paper dolls, rubber stamps, pencils, and, yes, stationery.

Wonderful stationery store. Best part, it is a working print shop. I loved seeing the huge letterpress machines. The selection of cards is really unique and worth the trip.

Gorgeous stationery store! Unique finds and high quality products! The cashier can be a bit eccentric but he obviously just has a unique personality

An amazing space with an amazing history! Robert Warner is kind, smart, creative and very welcoming! Don't miss this place when you are in New York City!

First heard about Bowne's in the Downtown Broadsheet newsletter and was amazed that I didn't know about it sooner! The history about the shop is part of it's recreation charm. It's a good place to buy small, unique gifts.

I highly recommend you stop by. I went in because I needed some inspiration and typography is what had brought me into the Design world. I was in the shop for a good hour taking in all I could and speaking with Robert, the shopkeeper. He told me so much about everything. He is very knowledgable and loves printing. You will be very very impressed with everything that catches your eye. Look at the presses and the typefaces. For me it was a magical experience, I could feel myself being drawn into the 19th century. I learnt so much, I wish I could be able to go beyond the front of the store though. lool :( When you go in, purchase something.. everything is just beautiful:)

It's places like this that make me love New York. Travel a mere half-block from the tourist hell that is South Street Seaport, down a cobble-stoned street and into Bowne & Co. Stationers, and you'll feel like you've stepped back in time. Last time I was there, there was a grizzled old man wearing, I kid you not, an apron and a pair of spectacles, cranking out beautiful wedding invitations on an antique letterpress. This is a pretty tiny shop, and unless you're fascinated by printmaking like I am, it won't take you longer than 10 minutes to look around. But this is definitely the place to find a birthday card for your quirky friend who's obsessed with Jane Austen (I remember one that says something like "Best Wishes to you, Madam, On Your Special Day" with a silhouette of a long line of people bearing gifts for a lady wearing a big hat). There are also some cute old-timey toys, posters, journals, and of course stationery. The staff are incredibly friendly and know all about how everything is made. Conversely, this place makes me depressed when I have to return to contemporary New York. I'm looking on their website now and seeing that you can volunteer here and be trained as an apprentice printmaker. Hmm....

The best place in the whole seaport complex. Beautiful UNIQUE gifts to purchase. Nothing made in China here!

My girlfriend called me from this store to ask me if I wanted her to buy something she'd found in there - the shopkeeper threw her out rudely for using her phone and 'disturbing' him. No sale. Jerk.

This place is awesome and deserves some neighborhood love (read: please spend money there). On a recent visit, I overheard the shopkeeper regretfully turn down a potential order for wedding invitations because right now he's a one-man operation, running the shop during the day and the letterpresses at night. He mentioned he's looking to hire a job printer to pick up the backlog. ---ATTENTION BOOK ARTS PEOPLE. Years ago, I had change of address cards printed here. The quality was excellent and I got exactly what I wanted.

Very cute, albeit tiny, old-fashioned print shop. The man behind the counter looked like he stepped out of the 19th century. If you're into this sort of thing then it's definitely worth a trip to the Seaport to see it, and if you're not, I think it would still be fun to visit if you're in the area. Picked up a few Valentine's Day postcards for something like $2, and they were much nicer than what's available at most cookie-cutter card stores. They also had some neat gifting items like little books/journals, stamp sets (which we got to play with!), etc. Would definitely go back if I had a need for custom printing, or more cards/presents.

I love everything about this historic shop. As soon as you walk in you're hit by the smell of incense, old creaking wooden floors and the feeling of stepping into your grandparents house. Next store they do all of their letter pressing, it's amazing to see all of their machines and to watch them work. A great shop for stopping in and picking up a little fun present for anyone!

My groom and I had visited the South Street Seaport while we were dating. We instantly liked Bowne & Co. and said that we would come back if we ever had the opportunity. We met with Robert who was delightful and offered great suggestions. He really understood the tone we were trying to convey on our announcements. He also overran our order a little, so we had a few more printed pieces than we paid for which was lovely of them to do. In fact, my husband was so impressed with the work, he has since gone back to order business cards from them!

Pick your way over fish-stained cobblestones and between construction equipment in South Street Seaport, and you might just stumble upon Bowne and Co., Stationers. Both printshop and museum, it's is a recreation of a 19th century printshop and is actually in operation. The front is a yuppie paradise of charming prints and chatchkas, and the back is a real live printing studio. You can order business cards, wedding invitations, announcements and letterhead printed on antique presses, using their huge collection of wood and metal type, or browse in the charming front part of the shop. They have reprints of old maps, books printed by small presses all over the country, and limited editions they print themselves (I saw a beautiful copy of Emily Dickenson's poems for $125, but you can also buy "An Incomplete List of Cat Names" for $7). The space is lovely: dim and dusty-seeming (that is to say, it's quite clean, but covered in the dust of history) and full of energy. The guys who run it are passionate about type, and they give tours to groups of schoolchildren. What's not to like? Go and buy something and support those trying to keep an ancient art and a piece of history alive...

A very cute little shop and a feel-good place to shop because revenue goes to support the adjacent museum. The cards and accoutrements were of excellent quality and they had some nifty little knick knacks. I withheld a star because I would expect a stationary store to have stationary! They have beautiful cards and a few writing pads, but no letter-sized stationary or envelopes, which is what I was looking for. I was very pleased with the thank you cards that I ended up purchasing though!

Everyone reviewing this store is right...Bob is the nicest shopkeeper ever! This store is not only quaint, but its stationery and gift items are tastefully curated...the selection is superb. The prices are also affordable and much more competitive than other gift shops. Bob is very helpful and explained to me that the item I was interested in was made by Indian women and it helps their community (perfect find for making wedding favors). I highly recommend his store if you are looking to do crafts and DIY projects because he has tons of unique items for sale. Lastly, I asked about a flier with an art exhibit at a university museum (my alma mater) and it turns out Bob curated the exhibit. Not only is he a great shopkeeper passionate about printing and stationery, he also is an artist! Like everyone else on yelp, I intend on going back to support this store, and I think you'll love it too.

Dropped in from the connected Seaport Museum and appreciated the presses and history here far more. Well, aside from the supremely rude staffer who thrust his attitude upon folks who didn't even so much as look in his direction. Just one of those days, I suppose...

if you like the smell of ink, this is the place to go. i love letterpress, so naturally this is one of my favorite newly reopened places in south street area .. they sell cards and misc letterpress goods, and the staff was super-nice. the guy running the press said they had been closed for a while and just reopened. hopefully i can catch a workshop here some day soon.

Wonderful! Everything is beautiful and mostly handmade on location. The selection changes all the time and is the best place to find a special gift or unique card.

For its location, this little, easy-to-miss stationary store is a true gem. Every item in here is reminiscent of a bygone era and made with exquisite taste and craftsmanship. I'm not sure to what extent the work is done in-house, but I believe all of the printing is done there. In fact, old printing presses consume a large portion of the store. The cards are lovely, fun, have amazing deckled edges and come with beautiful envelopes. When I bought cards over Christmas, the owner, an extremely friendly and helpful man, even gave me a discount although I was only buying five cards. However, the greatest part about this store, to me, is that it is a true independent store. When you buy something, the owner thanks you for supporting the store and you can tell it is coming from his heart. If you ever need a card and are in this area, there is just no reason why you would ever go anywhere else. So, with that in mind, do like the kind gentleman running Bowne & Co suggests: support this store!