Awe Inspired’s first retail store had to be tied into the company’s mission of spiritual wellness, and the resulting Awe Sanctuary in Los Angeles has met all its goals for a brick-and-mortar flagship, an Awe Inspired co-owner says.
Max Johnson and his co-founder and mom, Jill Johnson, opened Awe Sanctuary on Melrose Avenue in March. The shop was designed by the Johnson family, in soft colors and with event space, “to be a sanctuary for the spiritually curious,” Max Johnson tells JCK.
“We want visitors to experience a feeling of awe when they enter the space, smell the incense, write a manifestation to put in our altar, and learn about the goddesses throughout our [jewelry] collection,” he says.
Awe Inspired debuted in 2018 as a way for the Johnson family to find meaning in life, jewelry, and business. Jill Johnson, a three-time cancer survivor, and son Max sought to create jewelry that could be shared as both meaningful gifts and tokens of strength, he says.
The store represents that spiritual connection and highlights Awe Inspired jewelry in museum-quality displays, Max says. Add in the Goddess Altar, an elevated stone trough surrounded by flowers and candles in the middle of the store, and you have a retail shop like no other.
“The jewelry is displayed in glass cases with drawers so customers can see the beauty of the intricately displayed pieces but pull out the drawer and easily physically interact with the product,” Max says. “It was essential for us to have a museum-like feel for the display of our artifact-like jewelry, but also to remove any barriers to customers trying on and physically experiencing the product.”
The back half of the boutique contains the Awe Studio, a fully immersive space for classes such as energy balancing (reiki), meditation, and breathwork as well as events like sound bathing and tea ceremonies.
“We are building out programming in this space, starting with a 10-week residency with sound bath artist Allison Bagg and tea ceremony practitioner Tracy McCarty. By the end of the summer, we plan to roll out a full suite of studio programming that customers can access,” Max says.
The brand is known for its commitment to social justice, donating 20 to 100% of its sales of certain pieces of jewelry to its charity partners. To date, Awe Inspired has given more than $700,000 to organizations including Planned Parenthood, RAINN, and CancerCure, Max says.
For its grand opening, Awe Inspired created a limited-edition Sheerzan commemorative necklace and is donating 100% of its proceeds to the Iranian Diaspora Collective, which works to connect Iranian people with Western media.
Max Johnson says the necklace also is a tribute to Iran’s Woman, Life, Freedom movement, which began in September 2022 when 22-year-old Zhina Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish woman, was killed for showing her hair beneath her hijab.
The retail location, event space, and charity partnerships all come together to show what Awe Inspired stands for as a brand and a community member, Max says.
“We want to be the leader in all things spiritual luxury and spiritual wellness,” he says. “We view our products as ritual facilitators in the act of experiencing awe. As our retail presence grows, we look forward to becoming a hub for the spiritually curious to explore all aspects of new-age spiritual practice.”
Top: Awe Inspired’s new flagship sanctuary-themed store in Los Angeles sells the brand’s goddess and spiritual jewelry. (Photos courtesy of Awe Inspired)
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