When Blake Geffen set out to plan her 2017 wedding, she quickly discovered that curating the perfect jewelry and accessories for all the celebrations surrounding it was surprisingly challenging. Between the bachelorette party, the bridal shower, the wedding weekend and the honeymoon getaway, she needed a versatile collection of handbags and jewelry. Instead of finding an intuitive destination that catered to modern, style-conscious consumers, she encountered a void in the market where a seamless, elevated one-stop shop ought to be.
“I mentioned this to my fiancé, Wayne, and he said if the concept doesn’t exist, we should create it,” Geffen says.
During their honeymoon in the Maldives, the couple put pen to paper and created a business plan for an exclusive monthly subscription service that would allow clients to rent high-end designer handbags, fine jewelry and luxury watches.
Back in New York, Geffen returned to her full-time job in public relations while tirelessly refining her business plan after hours. She and Wayne set out to raise capital to launch the brand, which they named Vivrelle, in 2018, setting a goal to secure 50 members within the first month.
Photos courtesy of Vivrelle
“We actually had an eager waitlist before we even went live and hit our 50-member target within the first hour of launching,” Geffen recalls. “That’s when we realized we were really onto something.”
The concept of a subscription service that allows customers to rent and swap authenticated designer handbags, jewelry and accessories for a monthly fee resonated immediately with shoppers. Acting as a shared, high-end shopping closet featuring coveted items from houses like Chanel, Hermès, Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Cartier, Vivrelle rapidly built a diverse customer base.
“We have members from every age group, demographic and profession,” Geffen says. “The common thread binding them all together is that they deeply value luxury, versatility and access to high-quality design.”
Geffen proudly describes Vivrelle as a seamless “try before you buy” model. If a member falls in love with an item, they have the option to purchase it directly. Monthly fees help offset the costs over time, offering an intuitive way to invest in designer pieces without a full upfront commitment.
Vivrelle showroom in New York
More Than Accessories
Beyond testing out different brands, Vivrelle offers an array of additional perks. Members receive exclusive discounts with luxury partner brands, ranging from Sakara Life to Noble Panacea as well as invitations to special community events.
For example, Vivrelle hosted a store pop-up in Bridgehampton this summer, inviting members, press and influencers to connect in person while partnering with Kith Women, a globally recognized lifestyle brand, to bring together luxury accessories and curated fashion.
In an era dominated by automated responses and impersonal chatbots, Vivrelle prides itself on offering white-glove customer care. Whether someone wants to swap a handbag after a month or rotate a piece of fine jewelry for an upcoming event, each experience is tailored to the client’s individual needs.
“Our customer service is unmatched,” Geffen says. “We truly value all of our members.”
Every Vivrelle member has access to the company’s experience team, which includes personal shoppers. They can also hop on a FaceTime call with a stylist in the New York showroom to walk through available inventory and style a specific look.
To expand on this high-touch service, Vivrelle introduced Ella AI, a cutting-edge virtual styling assistant that merges borrowable inventory, individual preferences and e-commerce into a single platform. Powered by proprietary machine-learning technology, Ella allows users to input detailed prompts, such as needing an outfit for a rainy-day bachelorette party in Miami, and instantly generates hyper-tailored recommendations pairing clothing from retail partners like Revolve and FWRD with Vivrelle’s accessories. Members can prompt Ella with requests like “Show me what styles are trending” or “Help me style an outfit for my high school reunion,” making it easy to curate a complete look, accessories and all, with confidence.
Philanthropy And Community
For Geffen, a mother of three who resides in South Florida, business growth remains inseparable from community impact. Generosity has been baked into Vivrelle’s operational DNA from day one, from delivering pizzas to healthcare workers during the pandemic to supporting annual breast cancer awareness initiatives.
Her deepest philanthropic connection traces back to her youth, when she served as a dedicated counselor at Sunrise Day Camp, an organization committed to bringing free summer camp experiences to children with cancer and their siblings.
“I was supporting a young child with cancer through an ‘adopt a family’ program, and he asked me to be his counselor that summer,” Geffen recalls. “It made a profound impact on me. Giving back is at my core, and it made sense to bring that into Vivrelle. Our team visits the camp every summer to help out, and with Sunrise opening new locations in Florida, that connection continues to grow.”
Lessons In Leadership And Growth
Reflecting on her journey from PR representative to founder, Geffen points to real-world execution as her greatest teacher.
“Working in PR, I understood what it took to build a brand and tell a compelling story,” she explains. “But what I learned from starting something myself is how to execute, make decisions quickly and avoid overthinking. You need to be comfortable learning as you grow and to trust your instincts.”
While many founders struggle with delegation, Geffen’s approach has been anchored in absolute trust in her team. She started the company with her husband and one employee, both of whom remain with Vivrelle nearly a decade later. From that small team, the company expanded organically.
Her willingness to listen to her gut continues to drive Vivrelle’s growth. The brand constantly seeks new ways to meet its community where they live and travel, through targeted pop-ups and evolving membership tiers.
Vivrelle showroom in New York
Most recently, Vivrelle unveiled Réservé, an ultra-exclusive, invite-only tier specifically for its most devoted clientele. The service offers privileged access to treasures such as coveted Hermès Birkin and Kelly bags and rare Bulgari and Cartier jewelry, along with elite lifestyle perks through partners like CYK Caviar and Marriott Bonvoy.
This evolution from a practical solution for a bride-to-be into a multicategory lifestyle platform highlights the power of being able to fill a unique customer need. By continuously adapting to changing retail habits while maintaining a tight-knit community feel, Vivrelle has redefined how modern consumers approach shopping, proving that access, convenience and curation can seamlessly coexist.
As Vivrelle looks toward its next chapter, Geffen’s mission remains focused on providing a 360-degree luxury experience and staying ahead of trends, while keeping hyper-personalized service at the heart of the brand.
“Customers like the concept of being able to try different things, having one item for a month and then something completely different the next,” she says. “Our members love this flexibility and stay with us for a very long time.”