Origin Story: When Founder Rachel Beider’s first baby was born in March 2020, just a few days following the first shelter-in-place orders in New York City, she realized that her experience as a new mom would be vastly different from what she had planned for and expected. Postpartum anxiety, depression, and loneliness set in. Without a community of moms surrounding her, classes and “baby and me” activities to engage in, or a designated “third space”, she lacked camaraderie with other new parents. A few years later, five months pregnant with her second child, Rachel was determined that this time would be different. She began thinking about how she could build a comforting physical space that would help her and other new parents feel supported. And thus, Canopy was born: a beautiful, safe, and intentionally-designed space where moms, dads, caregivers, and little ones can bond and find community.
Design: The historic Hecla Iron Works Building on North 11th Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, houses both Canopy and the newest location of Rachel’s renowned massage studio, PRESS (which has four outposts across Brooklyn and Manhattan). Gleaning inspiration from the Reggio Emilia and Montessori educational philosophies, Canopy’s open floor plan features soft rugs, cloud-inspired pillows and ceiling fixtures, mini play houses, swings, and plenty of soft toys for babies and young children to explore (all hued with soft earth tones). Crucially for caregivers, the space also boasts comfortable chairs and couches for adults to lounge on. Canopy also provides designated spaces for the littlest members of the community to safely explore without older kids. Canopy is also stocked with a full array of Healthy Baby’s safe and effective diapers, wipes, balm, and cream products for members to use.
Canopy offers founding memberships as well as monthly memberships (more information available here).
Classes: Canopy is much more than just a play space, with a wide variety of class offerings based on a rotating schedule. Classes include World Music, Infant and Child CPR, Hypnobirthing, Baby Wearing Dance Class, Baby Book Club (story hour), Pelvic Floor Workshops, Meditation (adult class), Infant Sleep Classes, Postpartum Workshops, Baby-and-me Pilates, Family Photo Days, Sensory Workshops, Infant Massage Workshops, Postnatal Mindfulness Classes, Interactive Story Time, Baby & Me Yoga, Global Grooves for Little Explorers, Post-Natal Yoga, and Prenatal Yoga.
Classes are open to all (babies aged zero through four, and their caregivers, depending on the class), whether or not you are a member – just sign up online, bring your socks, and enjoy.
Canopy also offers regular “Parent Playdate” – weekly meet ups for the community to enjoy the space.
Parties and Events: Canopy also takes the stress out of planning memorable parties for little ones. With an easy online scheduling tool. Canopy’s base party package includes 90 minutes of open play, 30 minutes of food and cake, a dedicated team of Canopy staff (who will help out from setup to cleanup), plates and silverware, a choice from multiple color theme options, custom baby signage, juice boxes, and bottled water for 15 kids and up to 20 adults. Add-ons like pizza, balloon arches, goodie bags, a photographer, custom decor, temporary tattoos, and birthday cake and mini cupcakes are also available. Full menus and costs are available here.
Meet the Founder:
Rachel Beider is a globally recognized small business expert, bestselling author, and entrepreneur. She is the proud owner of PRESS Modern Massage, a group of award-winning massage studios in NYC. Her work has been published in Business Insider, Forbes, and HuffPost, with features on Inc. Magazine and The Wall Street Journal. She released her first book, a beginner’s guide to massage titled “Press Here” in January 2019, which has since sold over 58,000 copies and been translated into nine languages. Rachel first studied massage in Thailand on a trip through India and Southeast Asia, becoming certified in Thai Massage at the WatPo School in Bangkok. Later she continued her education at the Swedish Institute and became Licensed as a Massage Therapist. She holds certificates from the NY Institute of Aromatherapy and Ciniquieme Sens from Pratt. Rachel was also an Entrepreneur in Residence at Harvard Ventures, working with female- identifying students attending Harvard University.
Member testimonials: “What a great new play space for the neighborhood! The layout is so thoughtful and a great selection of toys and playthings for all little kids from my 18 month old to my 4 year old. Everyone had a blast and immediately napped upon leaving which is always a bonus! Highly recommend!”
“I’m a mom of two and a teacher of littles in a Reggio Emilia-based preschool. Canopy has everything I would want for my kids – and me. It has a wide range of developmentally appropriate activities for the 3 and under crowd. There’s ample space for parents to meet with friends and relax and play with their babies and toddlers. It’s light and airy, spacious, with no overstimulating bright lights and loud materials.”
“Gorgeous, thoughtful & intentional play space for kids under 4. My almost 4 year old had a blast at a birthday party here and the space feels very safe – a rare gem where you can actually relax and let the kids explore independently. The neighborhood was so in need of a fresh space like this. Highly recommend!”
Connect with us:
LOCATION
118 North 11th St, Third Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11249
HOURS
Unlimited open play for members from 9am-5pm
WEBSITE
@thecanopynyc
EVENT & MEMBERSHIP INQUIRIES
PHONE
347-463-9571
SOURCE The Canopy NYC
