Catalogers of the Year

Lois Boyle, president, J. Schmid & Associates, a catalog consulting firm; and

Andrea Syverson, president, IER Partners, a catalog consulting firm.

—Donna Loyle, editor in chief

Lifetime Achievement Award
By Donna Loyle

It took Williams-Sonoma 40 years to become a $1 billion a year company, and only three years to get to $2 billion. And this year, it’s on track to reach $3.5 billion in sales.

One of the main architects of that successful growth strategy is Patrick Connolly, chief marketing officer, who has been with the San Francisco-based multichannel company since 1979. A recognized expert in brand-building and direct marketing, Connolly has helped the company’s direct division expand to eight catalog titles — Williams-Sonoma, Williams-Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pbteen, Pottery Barn Bed & Bath, Hold Everything and West Elm — and five e-commerce sites. This year, the company’s direct business is expected to achieve almost $1.5 billion in revenues.

Such growth is impressive but was not at all easy to achieve, Connolly concedes. A sound multichannel strategy, strong branding initiatives and brave leadership have helped Williams-Sonoma succeed.

Catalog as Growth Vehicle

Connolly, who holds an MBA from Stanford University, started in direct marketing in the 1970s, working with his brother-in-law who sold tennis shoes through the mail. Connolly then branched out on his own and started the SportsWares catalog. (His financial backer for that venture was tennis legend Billie Jean King.) Then in May 1979, he met Howard Lester after Lester had purchased controlling interest in the $4 million a year Williams-Sonoma.

The Williams-Sonoma catalog turned out to be a major growth vehicle for the retail company, but that fact was not a proven business model back in the late 1970s, says Connolly. He recalls very few companies successfully selling high-end merchandise via direct mail. “Companies such as the Horchow Collection and Neiman-Marcus went on to prove that luxury items could sell via direct mail,” he notes. “They served as a proof of concept for the rest of the catalog industry.”