Kathy Gohari has been named president of the Rodeo Drive Committee in Beverly Hills, effective July 1.
“It has been an evolution,” Gohari said of the committee, which was founded in 1977 by retailer and entrepreneur Fred Hayman. It’s Gohari’s third term. “Almost 50 years ago, when it was first established, the dream of the founders was really to have this cohesive, supportive, thriving street of luxury retail and real estate. We are here in 2025 delivering just that.”
A nonprofit, the committee offers a space for retailers, hotels and property owners on Rodeo Drive to connect and exchange ideas while working together to attract visitors and enhance the vitality of the street.
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Gohari began her career on Rodeo Drive working for Emanuel Ungaro while studying fashion at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles. Today, she’s director at Audemars Piguet.
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Gohari’s current focus is welcoming a newer generation to the luxury shopping destination, she said.
“It is a very fine balance between maintaining its existing visitors and clients and fans and at the same time attracting a younger, newer generation who has discovered luxury, and they are some of the strongest spenders in the sector,” said Gohari. “Not just to spend, but to have them want to come onto Rodeo Drive and film content. Today’s celebrities, many of them are this generation of influencers.”
With the World Cup, Super Bowl, and Olympics all headed to L.A., there’s a renewed sense of excitement in the city, and a full calendar of events and activations on the horizon on Rodeo Drive. Festivities kick off on Sunday with a Father’s Day car show, featuring hypercars, supercars and vintage classics.
“We are not a need business,” Gohari said. “We are a want business. Nobody needs anything we offer on Rodeo Drive. It is a desire. It’s an emotional connection. And as long as we’re able to offer that, there is no one who can compete with us.”
Gohari’s executive committee is composed of Houman Mahboubi, Risa Misawa, Kiersten Dunn, Chelle Kearney, Kay Monica Rose and Mark Tronstein.