Marina Glazman wants you to love your home. The former corporate strategist is on a mission to bring high style homes to busy professionals. She recently launched Suitely.com, an online home décor retailer that offers curated suites of furniture and home accents.
“Suitely came from the idea that I’m not a professional designer, I don’t need an apartment to look like the Met. I just need a beautifully stylish, high quality apartment and I don’t have weeks and weeks of time to do the shopping, I just want it done,” Glazman said.
Items from Suitely’s Mid Century essentials collection.
It’s almost like having an interior designer on call. Whether you’re looking for traditional, modern, eclectic, vintage or even French country style, Suitely offers recommendations on the style, themes and color combinations.
I spoke with Glazman about the Suitely mission, what she’s loving right now and her tips for refreshing a home on a budget.
Long Island Pulse: Can you tell use a little bit about your background?
Marina Glazman: Professionally, I did not come from the design world. I have an MBA and worked in corporate strategy, but I’ve always loved design and retail. I’m fascinated by it, and I had the opportunity to work on this idea for Suitely.com and test it out.
Pulse: How did the idea to launch Suitely.com come about?
Glazman: Personal experience. I was living in New York and had just left a corporate job but wasn’t really sure what I was going to do next. I downgraded my life, moved into a tiny, tiny, little brownstone studio, which was beautiful from the outside but then you went inside and it was a cave. I had a budget limitation and I was trying to turn this little place into a Mediterranean villa for under $1500. No design background. I can’t DIY. I started doing tons of research figuring out how to decorate and I thought this is too hard, why isn’t there some kind of website out there where I can get designer advice, not have to buy a whole lot and still get a good deal. I realized there had to be a way to build something where you could select what you like and create a curated selection of items and that led me to Suitely.
Suitely bright electric essentials.
Pulse: What do you look for when selecting the products for Suitely?
Glazman: Quality levels are very important. I want to build a brand that people are going to trust. There’s a lot of vetting. As far as inspiration I do some of the sourcing, designers do some of it. It really starts with designers and artists making recommendations and then our product team will go out and try to find those items and bring them in and then go back to the designers to make sure it works.
Pulse: How often will you get in new items? How often will suites change?
Glazman: Once we get further into the launch, we’ll be changing more frequently. We’ll have core offerings and then we’ll have some seasonal styles, adding them with the same scheduling as a department store.
Pulse: Can you highlight some of your favorite items currently on Suitely?
Glazman: I really love the Glen Rose Vases we carry. They’re just beautiful. Another piece I love is some of the bone boxes from Verdigris. They’re stunning and that’s one of the challenges of online, is letting people see how beautiful they are.
Pulse: What are a few of your favorite tips for refreshing a home on a budget?
Glazman: It’s really about building out of basics. Have some basics that are core and neutral and that you love, and then refresh them with printed and patterned throws, pillows, vases. You can do a lot with a few number of pieces if those pieces are very strong and have a ton of impact.