Co-founded by sisters Chelsea Reale and
Rachel Geisler, and their mother Diana Rice,
Sissy + Marley is a natural outgrowth of the
trio’s expansive skills. While expecting her first
child in 2008, former fashion executive Chelsea
found herself faced with the challenge of looking chic. Meanwhile, Rachel’s background as a
pediatric physical therapist had her on speed
dial when all of their friends began having children.
Their mother Diana’s talent in interior design
and work as a private chef was the final piece
of the puzzle, and together the trio realized
they had both the skill set and the Rolodex to
create a one-stop service for busy moms who
want the best. Sissy + Marley launched in
January 2011, and so far, the future is bright.
Chelsea spoke with Sweet Paul Magazine about
the conception, gestation and birth of Sissy +
Marley.
them decorate their nursery, tell them what
products are best, find the best photographers,
plan their shower…anything the expectant
mom needs.
What inspired the name?
My sister called me Sissy growing up, so
instead of calling me Aunt Chelsea, her children called me Sissy, too. Rachel’s daughter’s
name is Ryan Marley and she was the first
grandchild in our family. So the name came
before the business.
How did the idea come about for
starting Sissy+Marley?
We’ve been talking about doing something
together forever and we couldn’t figure out
what it was going to be. We’re all creative in
our own different ways. My mom is a private
chef and interior decorator. My sister is a physical therapist, but she also has a passion for
social stationery and fonts. She could never
find invitations and announcements she loved,
so she started making them for us.
I’m a stylist, so when I was pregnant I was
obsessed with making sure the nursery was
going to work with our existing décor. Through
all of this, we thought how wonderful it would
be to have an all-inclusive resource to pull
everything together for expectant moms.
We can help
How long did it take from first having
the concept to the launch?
It was a year in the making, long enough to
have a baby! Mainly because we do so many
things, we’re not just event planners or interior decorators, we’re also perfectionists. Lucky
for us, we have friends and family who love
what we do so we had clients without having
a website.
How do you divide up all of the services you offer?
My mom and I do the interior decorating.
She’s also handling our food service called
Nourish where she teaches our clients to make
homemade organic baby food.
My sister handles our Play service and teaches
parents creative ways to play and stimulate
their children and edits their toy box. This is so
important to a child’s development. She also
oversees the Write service, which is our social
stationery.
I oversee the Spoil and Style services which are
personal shopping—not just for a child, but
also for women who are expecting. A lot of our
clients have a very big social schedule, and
it’s hard to dress for that when you’re
pregnant.
an inspiration board and shopping list of everything you need to buy, with
links to order it and a floor plan of where
everything can go.
Style is also virtual—if you would love to have
a stylist dress you or your child but don’t live in
New York City we put together a look book for
you in line with your style and budget and you
have a season’s worth of looks.
What services are just for the New York
Tri-State area?
Nourish—the baby food preparation classes;
Capture—the photography service. Our Play
dates are also local.
And what other services do you offer?
Nest is our decorating service and
Celebrate is event planning. If you give
us a budget we can do your invitations,
plan the menu, tell you where to find
the favors or make them for you. It’s
for the busy client who has no time to
sit and research.
We can do a lot of services virtually.
If you want us to do your interior
and don’t live in New York, we can
speak to you on the phone and get a
sense of your style and budget. You
can send pictures of the room and
measurements and we put together
What type of client has gravitated to your services?
It’s a mixture of working moms and the mom
who has a full social calendar. Also, the client
who uses concierge services who has the money
to pay someone to do research for her.
What is the ultimate goal for Sissy + Marley?
It’s so expansive and so unusual, it really hasn’t
been done before.
We’ve got so many ideas brewing, we don’t
sleep at night! Our plan is to take it as far as
we can and we’ll learn as we go. Our ultimate
goal is to create a beautiful beginning for all of
our clients.
Readers can explore all Sissy + Marley has to
offer at
sissyandmarley.com.
