After splitting with her husband last year, Chiara Giovanni finally felt ready to revamp her space, cancel the clutter and “sever some of the emotional hangovers” of items that were hard to part with.
asserted
that → split → items
“I wanted to take steps toward making this a forever home,” said Giovanni, a management consultant, of her Astoria rental.
asserted
Giovanni → want → rental
She knew she lacked the wherewithal to do it herself, so she hired Melissa Riepe, a professional organizer who lives in nearby Sunnyside and finds herself with many post-breakup clients.
asserted
who → know → clients
“I had complete paralysis around anything that belonged to my ex,” Giovanni, 32, told The Post.
asserted
Giovanni → have → Post
That included a sentimental Bronx Science sweatshirt.
asserted
That → include → sweatshirt
It is now boxed with his other things, awaiting the day — which is approaching — when she feels ready to give it back.
asserted
she → box → it
“Now I have a home that feels like my own and not a waiting room for another partner,” Giovanni said.
asserted
Giovanni → have → partner
Breakups are bad business, but they mean business for professional organizers like Riepe, who says they’re among the biggest reasons clients call on her the most.
asserted
clients → mean → her
And when it comes to needing help, there are plenty of people — primarily women — like Giovanni who contribute to the growing demand.
asserted
who → come → demand
Indeed, organizing has become a huge growth industry since its inception 40 years ago, said Jalene Bowersmith, executive director of NAPO, the National Association of Productivity & Organizing Professionals, which has around 2,000 members.
asserted
which → become → members
A report commissioned by NAPO shows the market size of professional organizers in North America is around $3.5 million this year, projected to reach around $6 million in 2031.
asserted
size → commission → 2031
“People can always try to do it themselves,” Bowersmith told The Post.
asserted
Bowersmith → try → Post
“But on Tiktok, you see a before and after, and a quick video of a messy room being organized.
asserted
room → see → before
You are not seeing the whole process.”
asserted
You → see → process
To proceed in earnest, plenty of people need the helping hand of a sympathetic ally.
asserted
plenty → proceed → ally
“The emotional side of it is one reason organizing professionals exist,” Bowersmith said.
asserted
Bowersmith → exist → it
Of course, it all comes at a cost.
asserted
it → come → cost
Prices vary widely, but can range up to $250 an hour on the high end, with organizers typically offering half-day or full-day sessions, and packages of several sessions.
asserted
organizers → vary → sessions
Not surprisingly, huge life changes stand out as key moments when people are finally ready to get their apartments, and their lives, in order.
asserted
apartments → stand → order
And they must be emotionally ready to declutter, which is the first and most necessary step.
asserted
which → declutter → ?
“Decluttering automatically solves a lot of organizing challenges,” said Riepe, who always had an itch to organize — to the point that “it became this guilty habit where I would organize my friends’ kitchen counters as we were chatting.”
asserted
we → solve → counters
She started her business a year and a half ago, after she was laid off from her job in corporate sustainability.
asserted
she → start → sustainability
She couldn’t help but notice that many of her clients were demographically similar to her — women in their 30s in the aftermath of a recent breakup.
asserted
many → help → breakup
“I think a breakup usually hits women pretty hard,” she told The Post.
asserted
she → think → Post
“It really is a crossroads moment when they end a relationship in their 30s and have to evaluate their life moving forward.”
asserted
they → end → life
Over several months, Riepe also helped Giovanni cull the wardrobe of her younger self to usher her into a new era.
asserted
Giovanni → help → era
“I had a lot of grief around needing to adjust my wardrobe so dramatically,” Giovanni said.
asserted
Giovanni → have → wardrobe
But she knew it was best to donate the stilettos that caused foot pain.
asserted
that → know → pain
“I really see a change in my clients, said Riepe, who calls her business Honeybee Home Org, and posts before and after photos on Instagram.
asserted
who → see → Instagram
(“Melissa” means “honeybee” in Greek.)
asserted
Melissa → mean → Greek
“I can see them taking ownership over their lives, and that is very gratifying.”
asserted
that → see → lives
Her post-breakup clients feel plagued by the residue of an ex-partner, she said.
asserted
she → plague → partner
She has seen abandoned hoodies, basketballs and climbing shoes.
asserted
She → see → hoodies
Some cope with the breakup by compulsively shopping, and are buried under piles of brand-new clothes, items with tags remaining and unused hobby equipment.
asserted
Some → cope → tags
“They describe themselves as out of control,” Riepe said.
asserted
Riepe → describe → control
“They open the door with embarrassment and shame.”
asserted
They → open → embarrassment
Another big reason for hiring an organizer: planning a family.
asserted
reason → hire → family
Riepe also sees plenty of clients in the baby-prep stage.
asserted
Riepe → see → stage
Those people often failed to pare down when they paired up, and worry about squeezing a baby into a small or badly configured space.
asserted
they → fail → space
That was a problem for Lara Roth, a software engineer planning for a baby, who has felt overwhelmed with clutter for nearly five years, ever since her husband joined her in her Greenpoint railroad rental.
asserted
husband → plan → rental
…and 14 more, not listed.
The Aporia
