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finding our sign and now this neighborhood
is certainly finding us.”
Royal Collectibles Astoria is co-owned by
Giordano, Nick Mitchell and Joe Gallogly.
The first Royal Collectibles shop was
opened in Forest Hills, Queens, 25 years
go, by Chuck Marrone, who still owns that
location along with Giordano.
Giordano originally started working for
the business when he was 14 years old as a
summer job. He met Mitchell and his close
friend Gallogly about 20 years ago when they
visited the Forest Hills store as customers.
Last fall, the threesome decided to become
business partners and spread the Royal
Collectibles name and service to Astoria.
“From the first time I walked into the shop
in Forest Hills, the vibe, the feel of the staff
and people it just draws you in. It’s such a
mom-and-pop operation. The staff are
friendly, helpful and genuine,” Mitchell said.
“It was a privilege for me and Gallogly to be
asked to partner up. We wanted to keep the
same name, attitude, vibe and experience
and the same honesty and quality.”
Giordano lives in eastern Queens, but
Mitchell grew up in Astoria and still resides
right around the corner from the shop. The
two have been collecting for most of their
lives and made a career from their hobbies.
“I gravitated to comics from, believe
it or not, sports cards back in the early
‘90s,” Giordano said. “Those hobbies were
really intertwined. Most card shops were a
mixture; they were also comic book shops. I
just looked across the stores I was shopping
at as a kid and discovered comics, too. I just
fell for them and the medium.”
Giordano recalls looking at newsstands of
comics while hanging out with friends. His
catwalk demonstration
Photos courtesy of Royal Collectibles
/BOROMAG.COM
