Royal Highness demonstrates how a passion for the cannabis industry and the power and persistence of women entrepreneurs can bring a successful dispensary to market. Keyva King diligently worked for three years, determined to be one of the six dispensary licenses approved for the Palm Desert market. While she called upon Megan Stone for her dispensary design expertise, Megan’s business savvy and knowledge of the licensing process led to a deeper collaboration and evolved into a partnership. As co-founder of Royal Highness, Megan has a new perspective on the cannabis retail business—through the eyes of a first-time dispensary owner.
While real estate can pose many challenges for dispensary design, the second floor location of Royal Highness offers a unique benefit—two walls of floor to ceiling glass windows. This architectural feature informed the layout, experience, flow and operations of the dispensary. The goal was to take advantage of the transparency and the amazing views facing south towards the prestigious El Paseo Shopping District and the Santa Rosa Mountains. The result is a spectacular backdrop for the customer experience as well as an opportunity to provide employees with a work environment inspired by natural beauty.
In addition to the stunning views, the suite also offered two points of egress. This allowed the space plan to support a nice circular traffic flow with customers entering and exiting through separate doors. The small lobby provides a mix of seating and areas for comfortable standing, all with full visual access to the retail experience that lies ahead. This space is punctuated with an enlarged silicone edge graphic featuring a detail shot of a beautiful purple cannabis flower—a big brand moment upon entering.
Spaceplanning
Design Conceptualization
Interior Design Documentation
Signature Brand Elements Design & Fabrication
Custom Milwork Design & Fabrication
FF&E Specification
Procurement
Visual Merchandising
Brand Identity Design
The shopping experience was then designed to address the needs of both novice and experienced cannabis shoppers. A long cash wrap and display counter anchoring the perimeter of the space houses top tier exotic flower strains, edibles, concentrates and an efficient checkout area. A custom-designed, pass-through wall helps expedite service by streamlining the back-of-house order fulfillment process. Adjustable display space and consultation tables abutting the windows support comfortable budtender interactions. Merchandising displays were custom designed to be simple and straightforward. The modular components support flexibility with metal pins and acrylic shelves maintaining a clean, modern aesthetic.
The materials palette was selected to reinforce the Royal Highness brand, creating a high end and elegant environment that feels inviting and inclusive. Modern black walls with a creamy tone of white provide a foundation for a refined gender-neutral palette. Keyva came into cannabis after having a sister pass from Lupus, and the symbolic color of Lupus is purple. To pay homage to that backstory, a deep shade of purple (almost black) was applied to the highest ceiling in the space for a subtle detail. Brass metal accents were introduced sparingly in light fixtures, hardware and an embedded brass liner that is featured in the showroom walls. A blonde hardwood floor in a custom angled herringbone pattern with mitered edges offers a warm and approachable material application in a sophisticated installation.
