MAGIC STORE Meg tells us why the new shop is worth the wait The Harry Potter Store recently opened near the Flatiron building this summer, and I was lucky enough to go in after an almost 4-hour wait. The store opens and puts a QR code outside every morning at 7 a.m. and they leave it there for a few hours until their virtual queue is full. It’s very hard to get into the queue, but, if you’re lucky enough to get in, the experience in the store is breathtaking. It’s two floors of all the Wizarding World merchandise you can think of. Outside the store, you can find the elder wand with the Wizarding World flag. When you walk in, you are greeted by Fawkes, Dumbledore’s iconic Phoenix along with exclusive Harry Potter and the Cursed Child merchandise that you can only get in the store. Further in, you come up on wands from all of the main characters, such as Hermione, Ron, Harry, Voldemort, Newt, Porpentina, Sirius, and Bellatrix. You can even get a wand and personalize it with your name downstairs on the second level. There’s an interactive section in the wands where you can learn about it along with duelling between Harry and Voldemort’s wands. On the way down to the second floor, you can see the Phoenix statue from Dumbledore’s office which also rotates. Throughout the store, you can find iconic objects and characters such as the golden snitch and Nagini emerging from the ceiling. There are key QR codes which you can scan to reveal a hidden spell, and, at the end of your visit, when you go to checkout, you tell the cashier the spell it reveals to get a free pin. Overall, the store is very immersive and gorgeous to visit. I definitely recommend going if you ever get the chance.
Fans are greeted in large ways from the basilisk in the cellar to the Griffin guarding the Atrium of Awe.
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Art Department Weekly • Summer 2021
