Tracee Ellis Ross Brings Play Into Office Design. It Works

"When she set out to design the new West Hollywood headquarters for her natural haircare brand PATTERN Beauty, which also houses her production company Joy Mill Entertainment, she imagined something closer to a creative ecosystem. Ross worked with the interiors team at Design Within Reach to shape the space, layering modernist classics with warmer, more expressive pieces from brands like Herman Miller, HAY, Flos, Ellison Studios, and Louis Poulsen."

"The result feels less like a conventional office and more like a set of interconnected rooms that invite different kinds of work. There is a reception area, open kitchen and dining space, lounges, meeting rooms, a Zen room for quiet moments, and even a photo studio and materials library. Throughout, the palette pulls from PATTERN Beauty's visual world, mixing rich woods, velvets, and earthy tones of brown, pink, and umber."

"It is a workplace designed with the instincts of someone who has spent decades on film sets, where mood, light, and texture shape how people feel. The details reveal Ross's particular way of thinking about design, with TOGO Fireside chairs in deep tobacco leather, Eames Molded Plywood Lounge Chairs, and Saarinen Carrara white marble top tables, complemented by plants and large crystals that bring spirituality and calm."

Modern offices face an identity crisis as companies determine what spaces encourage employees to return after remote work. Tracee Ellis Ross approached this challenge by designing her West Hollywood headquarters for PATTERN Beauty and Joy Mill Entertainment as a creative ecosystem rather than a conventional office. Working with Design Within Reach, she layered modernist classics with warmer pieces from brands like Herman Miller, HAY, and Flos. The space features interconnected rooms including reception areas, kitchens, lounges, meeting rooms, a Zen room, photo studio, and materials library. The design palette draws from PATTERN Beauty's visual identity, incorporating rich woods, velvets, and earthy tones. Ross's approach reflects her film set experience, where mood, light, and texture shape how people feel and work.

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