We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Megan Baca a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

When I was younger, I had wanted to be a fashion designer, I was obsessed with swimwear and sketched swim suits and print patterns, but my parents made it clear to me that I needed to go to a traditional 4 year University, not a design school. So, know this was the expectation, in high school, I became very focused on taking AP classes, my grades and getting into college. I excelled in Biology and was focused on taking that further as a Biology major in college. When I decided to go to USCB and started taking classes and meeting people, I soon realized that I wanted something else. I met so many people in my lower division Spanish class that were excited about trips they were taking, or semesters abroad they had coming up. I felt that, compared to the experience I was having in 800 people theater, Chemistry class, these were my people. I was nervous to tell my parents that I wanted to change my major, they were both doctors. When I did, my dad only said, so long as I didn’t change my major to communications, it would be ok, if I took the new major that I chose seriously. He encouraged me to study abroad my junior year, I went to Granada, Spain my first semester, and Toulouse, France my second, I lived with host families both times, This took me out of my comfort zone, helped me see how large the world was, and all of the people and interesting things that lay beyond our immediate lives. After graduation, I worked for a Swedish Language School and stayed in Santa Barbara, as a host family coordinator, placing kids from all over the world with host families in the Santa Barbara area. This was a lot of fun, but I soon realized that I would not be able to support myself with this career path. My dad, once again, encouraged me to go back to Europe. He said that some of the most interesting people “bummed around the world” as young people. I moved to Paris for 6 months, enrolled in some art history and advanced language classed, and lived in a small apartment with 3 other American girls, in the 13 arrondissement in Paris, on the boarder of the 5th. After some time, I came to find that it was hard, as an American, to live in Paris, I realized that if I had been working or had some higher purpose there beyond classes, living with Americans, I would have had a better experience. Even though some of my the friends that I had met while working in Santa Barbara as a host family coordinator, were living in Paris, I, still, did not feel like I was making the most of my time. I headed back to Granada, Spain, where I knew I would enjoy the rest of the year, while i figured out what I wanted to do long term. I started to think about what was next. I applied to the peace corps, a masters program for language and linguistics and FIDM in Los Angeles. With my mind open, I followed my heart, and went back to school for design at FIDM, this time with my parents’ blessing. I credit my dad, for providing me with the opportunity to travel and live abroad and giving me the time to find my true passion.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

With over 20 years of experience in the fashion industry, I have worked for leading contemporary women’s clothing brands, designing and creatively directing. The last 10 years of which, before I launched ROYAL PALMS love & legacy, I was partnered into another brand, where I had the opportunity to lead the creative teams, preproduction for women’s, men’s and kids wear. We were fortunate enough to have success that allowed us to open retail stores, take our showrooms corporate and expand into big box retail partnerships. I worked with Disney and Warner Brothers on licensed product for all divisions, as well as with music industry licensors. This laid the groundwork for me to go through the motions of growth, almost like a rough draft, a trial run, so I would be ready to do it myself when the time was right. I was proud of what we had built and grown, but was ready to move on and create something on my own, with my husband, something fresh, a new vision. Inspired by vintage Palm Beach and Old Hollywood, we brought ROYAL PALMS love & legacy to life in November of 2023, after a year in the making, designing and producting the clothing but also building out the store space. We are a mid-luxury women’s Resort Wear line, with a Pink and Green motif Brick and Mortar, here in Los Angeles. We only use natural fibers, focused on Cashmere, Silk, Linen and Cotton. Designing and producing premium garments in rich colors, vibrant prints and flattering silhouettes with the softest imaginable hand-feel. We strive to evoke a feeling of whimsy and joy in everything we do. Our dream is to make forever, investment pieces that make you feel like you just checked into a Resort you never want to leave, on the greatest holiday of your life, our clothing is the souvenir, that let’s you take that vision home with you, to treasure and remind you that vacation is a state of mind.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Recently, we were invited to do a Pop Up Shop in West Palm Beach, housed within the shops and design space of a well known and extraordinarily talented interior designer and maverick. This opportunity was hugely exciting, overwhelmingly so. We felt honored to be chosen, they reached out to us, we did not approach them, which made it all the more validating, especially just one year after our launch to the public. This was going to be a huge stretch, as a new business, already two years into investing and spending and only one year into earning, we were still in the red. It takes courage and risk, but we knew we had to say yes to this invitation. Even though, the funds we would be using to make this event happen were much needed for day to day operations, future inventory and marketing, we had to prioritize this and allocate thos funds here, now. Not to mention the complicated logistic and planning required to put it into action, to say we were spread thin is an understatement. But the potential that this opportunity promised, of an introduction into a community of our target customers, with the ability to build valuable relationships with not only the customers but with the designer herself and her team, that could lead to other opportunites and open other doors.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

After more than 20 years in a mainly wholesale fashion world, pivoting to a direct to consumer online and brick and mortar business, has taught us the importance and power of relationship building and elite customer service. You know the feeling when you are at a restaurant or hotel, where the service is beyond top notch, where they make you feel important and valued. This is the core of our message, but it goes even beyond that, we love carving out more personal relationships with our customers, pushing past small talk, and getting to know them, their lives, their preferences, their wants and needs, this helps us plan for the future, the more we listen, to their thoughts and feedback, both positive and negative, we learn how to improve our offering for the future and beyond. In the past, in the youth of my career, I let me ego prevent me from really hearing feedback properly. Now, older, more experienced and on my own, I have nothing to prove and I am able to open my ears and hear my customers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.royalpalmsltd.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/royalpalms.loveandlegacy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/royalpalmsloveandlegacy
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megan-baca-739989b/

Image Credits

Store images and Portrait of Megan: Dawn DiCarlo Photography

Editorial Imagery of the Model on Location: Harper Smith Photography

Model: Anna Briggs

HMU: Carolina Yasukawa