In Silver Lake, Calif., Mohawk General Store has long been a fixture for directional, design-led fashion in Los Angeles. After nearly two decades of steady growth, co-owners and husband-wife duo Kevin and Bo Carney have doubled down on men’s, expanding their footprint on Sunset Boulevard by merging two adjacent spaces into one unified, 2,100-square-foot men’s store.
“We just kept building a solid following and community on our side of town, and all over L.A. really,” said Kevin Carney, who first opened the shop in Echo Park in 2008 before moving it to Silver Lake two years later. They have a total team of about 25, with a women’s store operating as a separate location next door.
What began as a way for Bo to find community, new to L.A. after the couple met in Milan, has evolved into one of the city’s most influential retail destinations; they’ve built a loyal clientele of Hollywood creatives, stylists and international fashion lovers.
This summer, however, the usual flow of international visitors has noticeably slowed, a trend Carney links to the shift in U.S. politics.
“We used to have a lot more internationals before [President] Trump,” he claimed. “Now we don’t have any international anymore. It’s kind of crazy. It all dried up.”
Still, the store holds its momentum with strong community ties. Carney, who just returned from the men’s shows in Paris, continues to bring a curated mix of independent and luxury brands to the neighborhood. Longtime partners Our Legacy and Dries Van Noten are among the best sellers, alongside newer labels Auralee, A.Presse and Comoli.
“We haven’t been safe with our buy,” Carney said. “It’s really paid off.”
Footwear, from Lemaire, Hender Scheme, Dries and more, has also seen growth, alongside jewelry, apothecary and a select edit of athletic brands like Satisfy and Salomon.
“The men’s business has just been so strong,” Carney said of expansion. What was once their photo studio has been reimagined to expand men’s, at 4015 West Sunset Boulevard. The result is a thoughtfully remodeled interior showcasing continuous rails that guide shoppers through the space, with three dressing rooms and a large VIP area.
It also creates room for in-store events and brand activations. Mohawk recently housed an installation with Japanese brand Cale and will debut another for the Studio Nicholson and Beams Plus collaboration.
“It’s going to be nice to have all the extra space, so we can work with some of these brands,” Carney went on. “If it’s a new brand, introducing them to the U.S. market, or at least our clientele.”
The expansion underscores Mohawk’s enduring ethos, with an eye for design and grounded in intimacy. “I think we know our clientele really well,” Carney added. “We can literally just carry what we want, and we can make the store exactly the environment that we want.…That’s what keeps us in the game. That’s what keeps us happy.”
