The grand dame of catalog marketing, Lillian Vernon, addressed a rapt audience of DMers last month in her first speaking engagement since retiring as her company’s chief executive nearly two years ago. She spoke at a luncheon sponsored by the Direct Marketing Club of New York.
Never mind that Vernon repeated oft-told anecdotes and covered material already revealed in her book: In her cream-colored Chanel suit and perfectly coiffed hairdo, she exuded a star quality. And she kept them laughing with her New York-style wit.
Her timing couldn’t have been better. A few days before, Direct Holdings Worldwide LLC (which was formed when Ripplewood Holdings LLC and ZelnickMedia Corp. acquired Lillian Vernon Corp. last July) announced that it bought Time Life Inc., the music and video direct marketing arm of Time Inc.
Interviewed on stage by business-to-business consultant Ruth Stevens, Vernon was asked what she thought of the development.
Network
