Grainne Cashmere Shop in Malverne is filled with supersoft, lightweight wool shawls and sweaters that wrap you in a layer of luxury.
Designer and store owner Grainne Hodgins has specialized in cashmere items for two decades.
“I went to FIT in Manhattan and studied fashion design,” says Hodgins, who’s married with four kids ages 22 to 32. “I worked as a fashion designer for many years.”
Following staff jobs with Liz Claiborne and Pringle of Scotland, she went freelance and launched her cashmere collection in 2005. She started with wraps, a one-size-fits-all accessory. Originally she sold to Long Island boutiques and at private parties, as well as out of her own home.
“I developed a bit of a following,” she says. “That’s how I got the name, ‘the cashmere lady.’” Hodgins steadily expanded her line to include pullovers, cardigans, scarves and accessories.
In 2018, she opened a store in Rockville Centre, not far from her home. She closed the shop during the pandemic. In November 2022, she opened her store in Malverne on a commercial strip buzzing, she says, “with really good energy.”
In addition to customers shopping for themselves and gifts, brides seeking shawls for members of their wedding parties are a vibrant source of business. Wraps range from $140 to $295, while sweaters are priced between $130 and $195.
Hodgins’ daughter, Kiera MacAneney, 25, who works in marketing and lives in Manhattan, has helped expand the base of younger customers through Instagram and other social media platforms.
“I’m often saying to my mother, ‘I’m seeing everyone my age wearing these styles,'” says MacAneney, whose input informs Hodgins’ design process.
“I love cashmere. It makes it easy to work with my mom,” adds MacAneney. “Seeing her bring a passion project to life encourages me to work hard in my full-time job.”
Two decades into being an entrepreneur, Hodgins wears her “cashmere lady” label with pride.
“I’m experimenting with lighter weights and finer qualities of yarn,” she says. “The colors are endless and they all look so rich.”
Grainne Cashmere Shop, 304 Hempstead Ave., Malverne, 516-568-7405, grainnecashmere.com.