The Cut | The Pharmacist Who Wants to Go Back to Basics
After a year of no touching and no trying, it sounds like a dream to aimlessly wander the aisles of a store, peer into glass countertops, and leave with a handful of things you had no intention of ever buying. Few places are better suited to that sort of wandering than C.O. Bigelow, the beloved Greenwich Village family apothecary that’s been serving New Yorkers since 1838.
Inside the time capsule, you’ll find effervescent antacids and headache relievers hanging out with Turkish rose water, Italian toothpastes, British boar-bristle brushes you know by first and last name, sparkly things to stick in your hair, and that teal, breath-freshening lip balm of early-aughts fame. You’ll also find Ian Ginsberg, pharmacist, president, and the third-generation owner. He’s the person responsible for filling the institution with personal-care finds from around the world and homegrown Bigelow products with updated takes on archival recipes, and he’s kept his doors open during the pandemic.