Cali Meets NYC is an everyday luxury home fragrance brand inspired by how I met the love of my life in candle form. When we met I lived in the Bay Area of Cali and he lived in NYC. Affectionately known as the zip code candles, we're all about a sensory experience because self-care is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.

In true pandemic style I, Melissa Jagessar whipped up Cali Meets NYC to keep my anxiety in check and share my long-distance love story with my now husband, Neil. Our story started with a little help from a mutual friend, sparking something special between myself, holding it down in the Bay, and Neil, doing his thing in Queens. We bridged that Cali-NYC gap, and now we're writing our own love story, together.

I've been making candles since I was 12 years-old, and since then I curated a keen sense for complex fragrant notes.

Together with research and entrepreneurial spirit rooted by my maternal grandmother, I started relearning and perfecting this beloved trade.

As an avid candle collector my intuition was to create a brand that is as unapologetically authentic as I am.

I have a BFA in Advertising Design and a MA in Fashion Journalism, which lays an excellent foundation for my extensive research skills and my minimalistic design approach. This coupled with my candling skills from my childhood is how Cali Meets NYC was born.

I cannot wait to be apart of your self-care, one candle at a time.

My maternal grandmother inspired my dream to become an entrepreneur. For over 20 years she ran and owned a convenience store called 'The Roundup' located in The Bronx.

As one of the only black woman owned businesses in the area she faced many hardships like arson and racism yet these difficulties did not stop Clara who worked tirelessly alongside her husband James and five children. 

Hearing her stories, trials, tribulations are memories I hold onto dearly. Her unwavering determination is rooted in me. Her entrepreneurial blood runs through my veins and has made me what I am today.