Of glossy magazines and Persian cats

Who would think of the two together – glossy magazines and Persian cats? I never did, till I heard about this little store called Magazines on Church Street. A colleague told me about the place a couple of years ago and, intrigued, I visited it immediately. Since, the store was totally forgotten, till the OH and I decided to rediscover it one boring weekend. I’m so glad we did!

For those who are not aware, Magazines is tucked away in the basement of the Prestige RR Building on Church Street, quite easy to miss if you aren’t specifically looking for it. In spite of its location, the shop is far from dreary and dull – it is brightly lit, with rows and rows of glossies neatly arranged. Most international magazines are available here, fresh as well as backdated copies, at extremely reasonable prices. The main attraction of the shop, apart from the magazines, are the number of Persian cats that reside there. We spotted three on the day we visited.

These are not your stick-thin, dirty cats that roam the streets, but well-fed and well-maintained balls of fluff. They are quite at home among the magazines, and seem quite accustomed to people coochie-cooing over them. They barely gave passing customers a look, but were ready to be patted and stroked by friendly hands. No wonder that most visitors have their favourite cats here, children especially, and drop by occasionally to say hello to them. 🙂

Magazines is owned by Yahya Sait, whose passion for glossies came from the small stall on the pavement that his father owned years ago. He calls the cats his ‘brand ambassadors’ and states that they came to the store quite by chance. Apparently, a few years ago, Yahya responded to an advertisement regarding the sale of two Persian cats. He bought them, and fell in love with them. He began bringing more and more of them into the store, and it worked as a great marketing concept, too.

Yahya’s friend, Amjad Ahmed, mans the store often, whom we had the pleasure of meeting on our visit. Quite a friendly and warm person himself, he was more than happy to help us make friends with the cats and encourage me to click some pictures of the cuties. The helpers in the store too were well-informed and helpful, we found.

So, the next time you are in the area, don’t miss visiting these beauties!