From Matriarch To Market, Power In My Own Pocket with Mariah Coen
Alcove is a small but mighty neighborhood shop tucked into Phoenix’s Garfield district, where Mariah Coen curates an easy, lived in mix of color, conversation, and everyday comforts for neighbors and friends. Rooted in a matriarchal line of makers, the space quietly carries her grandmother’s artwork and objects alongside thoughtfully chosen goods, so everyone who steps inside feels grounded, welcomed, and capable of their own evolution.
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Mariah’s presence inside Alcove feels less like a traditional shop owner and more like a host welcoming you into a shared living room. Shelves are layered with small details that invite you to slow down, a bottle you have never tried, a print that reminds you of home, a piece of art that makes you pause and look twice. The space is intimate and intentionally designed to feel like a real neighborhood spot, not a concept plucked from somewhere else. There is an ease to it all, a sense that this shop is here to grow with Garfield, not to change it.
Her story begins in a family where women led the way. Raised in a matriarch, Mariah watched the women around her build lives out of limited resources, never confusing a lack of things with a lack of power. She saw what it meant to be supported by strong, capable figures who encouraged her to use her voice, trust her instincts, and pay attention to what she cared about. From an early age, she understood that even the smallest choices, where you spend your money, what you consume, who you show up for, are political. Those early lessons now live inside Alcove, in the products she brings in, the events she hosts, and the people she intentionally centers.
When she talks about what she does creatively and intellectually, Mariah keeps it simple, she does. She takes action, leans into what interests her, and allows herself to try without demanding perfection first. Creatively, she expresses through color and arrangement, how bottles sit next to books, how art plays with light, how a corner can feel both open and tucked away. Intellectually, she challenges herself to move beyond small talk, especially with people she has just met. She is drawn to conversations that ask something of us, how we create space for one another, how we navigate hard moments, how we move through the world with more grace. A big part of her practice is giving herself permission to mess up and keep going, knowing that the doing is where growth happens.
Travel has shaped Mariah’s eye for neighborhood spaces in a way that is subtle but unmistakable. Time spent in places like Hong Kong, Vietnam, Europe, and beeboppin’ through Yucatán gave her a chance to see how other cities hold their own small, inner neighborhood shops. She noticed the ones that truly reflect the people who live nearby, shops where the energy inside matches the rhythm of the streets outside. Those places felt honest and specific, as if they could not exist anywhere else. Coming back to Phoenix, she carried that memory with her. Alcove, in many ways, is her response to these experiences.
Her creative relationship is tightly woven with her family, especially her grandmother, who has been an artist her entire life. Oil paintings her grandmother made later in life hang on the walls and tuck into shelves alongside other objects from her home. Her grandmother taught her to value her own creations and encouraged her to keep making. That value was passed down not as a heavy expectation, but as a generous invitation. Even now, when she creates something, her instinct is often to give it away, to let it move into the world rather than hold it close.
When it comes to inner challenges, Mariah names impostor syndrome more than questions of worth. Growing up in a small family with deeply supportive, kind actors in her life gave her a grounded sense of who she is. At some point, she made a decision to claim her power and put it back in her own pocket. If her life is not unfolding how she wants it to, she takes that as a cue to look at what she is doing, or not doing, for herself. This perspective lets her move through setbacks as simply information.
From that same place of self responsibility, her vision for community is rooted in skill, desire, and presence. She believes community shows up in different forms, but at its best, it looks like people using their unique skills in ways that feel aligned, not out of obligation, but because they genuinely want to contribute. She points to Garfield as a neighborhood worth studying. People here involve themselves, they show up to meetings, volunteer, start small initiatives, and support one another’s projects. Because of that involvement, things actually happen. Being present, participating when you can, and staying connected are what make a place feel alive. As she grows into her own role, she sees herself as a connector, someone who can represent the neighborhood while linking people, ideas, and resources.
Success, for Mariah, is not a single destination, it shifts as she does. She defines it as a journey where she feels inspired, creative, and willing to help, without burning out on the project, or on life itself. She sees life as the creative medium, the big, ever changing piece she is in constant collaboration with. Alcove is one expression of that, a project that holds her values, her experiments, and her desire to keep showing up. As long as she is engaged with that process, paying attention, and making room for new seasons, she feels successful.
Despite everything on her plate, creating still excites her. The sources of inspiration are always changing, and that inspiration is the core of what keeps her curiosity alive. For Mariah, it all circles back to turning the lights on for people, in every sense of the phrase. There are the literal lights she switches on in the shop, but also the kind that spark through an honest conversation, a thoughtful recommendation, or simply the feeling of being seen when you walk through the door.
Mariah approaches learning with the same openness she brings to everything. She is curious, observant, and never finished. For her, the world is one ongoing class. She studies people, places, and ideas in motion, practicing the art of staying curious rather than certain. That humility shapes how she moves through life.
Recently, her grandmother’s artwork has felt newly alive. Once stored away, it now fills her home and shop with warmth and truth. The shift reminded her not to let creative work sit unseen. These days, she shares more often, trusting the process instead of waiting for perfection. We only have right now, she says. Do not sleep on yourself.
Her career path has been anything but linear. Without a traditional degree, she pieced together experience through hands on work, art classes, and intuition. From a thrifty consignment shop to high end retail and even a stint as a bouncer, each chapter taught her how people and spaces shape one another. At startups, she learned to voice ideas, push for change, and listen when life asked her to slow down. When pregnancy led her to pause and reflect, Alcove began to take shape, a space that merges her love of design, conversation, and community.
Today, Alcove reflects every piece of her journey. It is a neighborhood shop open to everyone, a space where local art, intentional design, and genuine human connection come together. Mariah does more than curate products. She creates a space where experiences inspire belonging, creativity, and quiet confidence. Walk in, and the atmosphere speaks for itself.
To support Mariah and the world she’s building through Alcove, follow @alcove.phx, visit the shop, and share the space with someone who could use a little color and connection.
