By: Kyra Melizanis
In the heart of Astoria, Queens—often called “Greek Town”—visitors find an array of Greek restaurants, coffee shops, and churches. On the corner of 31st Street, the train buzzes overhead, music spills from shops, and the typical NYC chaos hums all around. But as soon as you walk through the doors of this charming storefront, you’re instantly transported. Inside Hellenic Aesthetic, the vaulted ceilings, limewash walls, and fresh notes of KORRES perfume transport you—not to a typical NYC boutique—but somewhere much warmer, calmer, and unmistakably Greek.
“People tell us, ‘I feel like I’m in Greece,’” says founder Marianthi Vlachos. “And that’s the biggest compliment—because there’s no place I feel more relaxed and at home than in Greece.”
Marianthi Vlachos launched Hellenic Aesthetic in 2017 as a creative outlet and passion project for her. After college, she spent a lot of time traveling in Greece, shopping in Athens and the nearby islands. She was immediately inspired by the emerging Greek designers, whose work was unlike anything she had seen in the U.S. She thought, “Why doesn’t anyone sell these items in the US…” as there was not anything like Hellenic Aesthetic at the time in 2017, “so I thought why can’t that person be me.”
Soon after, she launched her e-commerce site, and four years later, in 2021, she opened the brick-and-mortar store in NYC. Creating the brand not only gave Greek designers more of a platform and presence in the U.S. market, but also solved a problem for consumers, since shipping even a single item from Greece can be very expensive. It was also important to her to showcase contemporary Greek design in fashion and art, rather than the typical Greek exports everyone knows—like olive oil, feta, or yogurt.
The boutique showcases fashion, accessories, home goods, and art—all sourced from Greece. Marianthi built her roster by traveling extensively, reaching out to brands on Instagram, connecting through family ties, and forming relationships with PR showrooms. Today, many brands come to her, drawn by her loyal customer base and her deep appreciation for Greek craftsmanship. She now works with over 50 brands.
She noted that while some of the pieces she carries can be found in Greece, not all of them are easy to track down whether it’s finding the exact brands or specific styles. “I want people to go to Greece and spend as much money as they can and support as much as they can there,” she says, “but we’re always here for you when you get back.”
With a background in Art History, Marianthi developed a sharp creative eye and a deep understanding of design and art. She was always entrepreneurial at heart, even running an Etsy shop in college selling wreaths. “I always knew I wanted to work for myself…I just didn’t know what that would look like.”
She took her creative pursuits one step further by launching her own fine jewelry company, Anthi Jewelry. Named after herself, Anthi, which means “blossom” in Greek. The line gave her something unique and personal to build. “Designing the jewelry scratched that itch for me again,” she says. She works with a workshop in Athens that supports all of her ideas, her “biggest cheerleaders,” as she calls them.
Her inspiration for this line stems from the nostalgia of her early trips going to Greece being with her grandparents. The feeling of “digging through your moms and grandmother’s jewelry case… Little charms and trinkets, ancient greek coins and things like that really inspire the brand.” She created this brand as a standalone brand apart from Hellenic Aesthetic, making it clear that she is the designer behind these pieces, using symbols and designs that hold personal meaning for her.
Marianthi never could have imagined the community she would build through Hellenic Aesthetic and Anthi Jewelry. She has found success by staying true to herself. “I just share the things that I think are special…people who understand it will find it,” she says. Her inspiration for her platform and social media presence is very niche—“sometimes the most random, weird things like a crumbly wall,” she notes.
“If I love something or if I think it’s special, there’s going to be at least one other person out there who understands that.”
Her clientele has expanded from mainly female Greek Americans shopping on her online store to a diverse set of customers visiting her brick-and-mortar shop, including people who aren’t ethnically Greek but are looking for a cool place to buy thoughtfully made items.
As the market evolves and more stores begin to sell similar items, Marianthi continues to stand out—thanks to being first to market, building a strong and credible presence, and maintaining close relationships with the brands she works with. She believes there’s room for everyone in the space. “Everyone can have their different perspective—this is my perspective on it,” she says.
She’s also started collaborating with other brands and Greek entrepreneurs in the NYC area, hosting book signings, wine tastings, and pop-ups, including a recent partnership with Kefi Jewelry, based in the East Village.
“It’s important to me that I give an opportunity to people that wasn’t always given to me when I was first starting,” she says. Marianthi began by doing pop-ups at Greek festivals around the country and often wished there had been a space like hers—somewhere that could host new brands, even just for a day or weekend. “So I try to be that for other brands and other people,” she adds.
As for the future, Marianthi plans to keep growing both Hellenic Aesthetic and Anthi, while continuing to offer a space for connection. “I want this to be a place where people can chill, maybe learn something or just hang out.”
In the middle of the world’s busiest city, Hellenic Aesthetic is a little slice of Greece—rooted in heritage, fueled by passion, and continuing to blossom.
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