Flight 001 is a fantastic store where you can buy all manner of travel accessories: suitcases, maps, airplane comfort items, passport cases, guidebooks, etc. The shop started on Greenwhich Avenue in the West Village and recently opened a shop on Smith Street. Haven’t been yet but hear that it’s bigger than the original shop. Can’t wait to see. Here’s a New York Times interview with someone associated with the shop They also have stores in LA, San Francisco and Chicago and online.
What’s the right way to pronounce the store’s name?
Flight One, which was the first commercial trip around the world—a Pan Am flight in the fifties and sixties. Our stores are set up to be retro-modern, like right out of old Pan Am footage. This new Brooklyn store is a little bigger.
How have the recent flight regulations affected what’s in demand?
Our three-ounce clear-bottle sets in a clear bag are a huge hit, as are Search Alert locks. It’s a government-approved combination lock to which all airports have a universal key, so they can open the lock without snipping it. There’s a display that changes color from green to red if they’ve opened your lock.
What kind of luggage do you own?
Mine is Rimowa, a German company that I love. They’re the guys that started the original money-and-drug-laundering aluminum suitcases. Now they’re made out of a super-lightweight plastic composite that doesn’t bend, which is good because airport luggage-handlers are like gorillas.
Best travel guide?
The new Wallpaper guides have good destinations and comprehensive info, and they look nice.
What do you do for in-flight anxiety?
I take a Valium and do a shot at the bar. Klonopin works really well, too. I’ve made the mistake of taking it too early, passing out, and drooling all over myself while everyone else was boarding. So, twenty minutes before boarding is a good time to take it.
Love the Brooklyn store.