Mina Starsiak Hawk never had planned on becoming a TV personality, but in 2014 when the opportunity was presented for her and her mom, Karen, to have their own show on HGTV called “Good Bones,” the pair jumped at the chance. The mother-daughter duo were cofounders of Two Chicks and a Hammer, Inc., and they rehabbed homes in and around Indianapolis.
Although her mom retired five years ago, the Two Chicks brand is still going strong. There is Two Chicks Give Back, their nonprofit; Two Chicks Homes, a real estate brokerage (Starsiak Hawk is the broker who holds her own license); and Two Chicks District Co., the store that recently relocated to Noblesville.
The store first opened in Indianapolis in the summer of 2020. The reason Starsiak Hawk originally wanted to open the Two Chicks store was because whenever she watched shows on HGTV, she was always salivating over the merchandise and wanted to know how she could get her hands on a certain bed, throw or pillow.
“Either there was no way to actually find it, or if you did find it, it was five million dollars,” she says with a chuckle. “I wanted people to be able to watch [‘Good Bones’], and then either shop online or come to the store and find the same thing or something very similar at an affordable price.”
Although she loved the store, the location wasn’t quite the right fit.
“I was invested in where I was downtown, but the neighborhood wasn’t invested,” she says. Therefore, the plan was to close up shop in 2023, just after the Christmas season. They were selling off their shelving when one day the owner of Moonshot Games suggested to Starsiak Hawk that she consider relocating her store to Noblesville.
“After spending some time here, I thought, ‘This might actually work,’” Starsiak Hawk says. “My brain works at breakneck speed, so within a span of three weeks I was telling my team, ‘Nope – actually we’re going to reopen the store!’ Luckily my manager, Alexis, said, ‘You’re crazy, but I’m with you girl!’”
Starsiak Hawk is excited about this new location and getting a second chance to make Two Chicks District Co. a success.
“Everyone in Noblesville seems super invested,” she says. When they did their soft opening, Starsiak Hawk invited all the merchants in town, along with the mayor, to the event, and immediately she was awestruck by the welcoming response.
“Rosie’s Place asked if they could make cookies for the opening, and the brewery across the street wanted to do a discount,” she says. “Everyone was so kind.”
The original Two Chicks District Co. included a bistro that served beer, wine and food. The new store doesn’t sell food and drink, as Starsiak Hawk is going back to her roots. This means selling larger pieces like furniture, tables, sofas and accent chairs, in addition to smaller items like pillows and tabletop decor as well as jewelry and candles. She will also continue to sell Two Chicks and a Hammer branded merchandise like hoodies, keychains and mugs.
“We don’t have a huge footprint so we can’t display 500 sofas and bed frames like IKEA, but we have access to so many beautiful pieces,” Starsiak Hawk says, noting that they have a binder in the store that’s full of items. If a customer comes in looking for, say, dining chairs, they have two on the floor but 20 more options in the binder, along with matching bar stools.
“People can flip through the binder and say, ‘I like this,’ or they can bring in a picture of what they’re looking for,” Starsiak Hawk says. “We can find comparable or perhaps even the exact same thing. It’s fun helping people find the pieces they love.”
Starsiak Hawk and her designer, MJ, also offer in-home consultations for those who prefer that to an online consultation.
Starsiak Hawk, who grew up on the west side of Indianapolis, across from the Colts complex, is married to Steve, who runs a training platform called Hawk Fit (thehawkfit.com), a cutting-edge online program designed to elevate fitness and well-being. The couple have two children, Jack and Charlie.
“The kids are 3.5 and 5.5, so they’re at ages where they want to play with us all the time and want to be outside,” Starsiak Hawk says. “I love hanging out with them. Other than that, I really enjoy working.”
She and her husband just renovated the main floor of a lake house in Martinsville, which they filmed for a two-part special that will air on HGTV this spring or summer.
“My son, Jack, helped me demo a wall,” Starsiak Hawk says. “Doing those things helps me relax.”
Although “Good Bones” wrapped at the end of 2023, Starsiak Hawk recently filmed an episode of “House Hunters.” In celebration of the 25th year of “House Hunters” on HGTV, the network invited 12 individuals who’ve had shows on HGTV to take the place of real estate agents and film an episode in their respective city.
“I loved doing ‘Good Bones’ so I’m trying to figure out another format that will be more sustainable than doing 13 full-gut houses all on my dime every 12 months,” she says. “I did that for eight years and it was overwhelming, but I hope to be able to work with the network again because HGTV is the place to be. They are amazing.”
Two Chicks District Co. is located at 957 Logan Street in Noblesville. For more information, call 317-379-5383 or visit twochicksdistrictco.com.
Comments 1
Would you be willing to do renovation in another state close, if a person had business for you.? Like Illinois. A kitchen or bathroom. Not a full gut.