Williams-Sonoma has come a long way from being a neighborhood shop dedicated to French cookware and cooking techniques. The company first opened its doors in the 1950s and moved to San Francisco’s Union Square in 1958. It’s moved far beyond that city’s hilly streets, and now has 347 Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn and Hold Everything stores in 39 states and Washington, DC.
Direct marketing is in the company’s genes. Founder Chuck Williams’ family ran a date and grapefruit ranch in Indio, CA near Palm Springs, selling its products at a roadside shop and by mail order. Though Williams-Sonoma didn’t put out a catalog until 1971, it now has six home-centered books. In 1999, the firm mailed 192 million catalogs and shipped 6.2 million packages to customers’ homes.
Williams-Sonoma is now one of the most widely recognized DM brand names in the country. Its six books are Williams-Sonoma (cooking and related pieces); Pottery Barn (casual home decorating); Pottery Barn Kids (which debuted in 1999); Pottery Barn Bed & Bath (which was launched this year); Hold Everything (shelving and storage solutions); and Chambers (luxury linens). In May 1999, the company sold Gardeners Eden, which it acquired in 1983, to Brookstone to focus on its own brands.
Williams-Sonoma especially excels at merchandising, according to Katie Muldoon, president of DM/catalog consulting firm Muldoon & Baer Inc. in Sugarloaf Key, FL.
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