Printers Inc. Bookstore

Printers Inc. Bookstore (1978-2001) was an independent bookstore which served the Stanford University area. The original store was located on California Avenue in Palo Alto. A second store was located on Castro Street in Mountain View, California.

The Golden Gate
Author Vikram Seth wrote portions of his first novel, The Golden Gate, in the Printers Inc. Cafe (Palo Alto), while still a doctoral student in economics at Stanford University. He directly alludes to both the cafe (which had originally been inside the bookstore, later moving to the building next door) and the bookstore in sections 8.13 and 8.14 of the The Golden Gate.

Closing
In December of 1998, Printers Inc. announced that it would be closing, ,. The local community protested the closing and in March 1999 Printers Inc. found new management. This management lasted until 2001 when Printers Inc. Bookstore closed for good. The Printers Inc. Cafe remains open to date.