3 Companies Owned by Williams-Sonoma

Home furnishings, lighting, augmented reality

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Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSM) is a household name in America for high-end kitchenware and modern furnishings. It began as a small hardware store in Sonoma, California. The company had more than 600 stores globally and a market capitalization of $17.5 billion as of October 2024. Williams-Sonoma reported net earnings of $949.8 million on net revenue of $7.8 billion for its 2024 fiscal year (FY).

Founder Chuck Williams moved to Sonoma in 1947 where he began working as a contractor. He fell in with a group of friends who shared his love of cooking. A trip to Europe in 1953 was the catalyst that transformed his passion into a vocation. Williams was introduced to classic French cooking equipment, unlike anything he had seen back in America. He purchased a hardware store in downtown Sonoma a year later and transformed it into a shop specializing in French cookware.

Williams-Sonoma was born. The company began selling high-end items for homes. Williams-Sonoma continued to expand in size as it benefitted from the changes in dining and food culture during the '60s and '70s. The company caught the eye of entrepreneur Howard Lester who purchased it with a friend in 1976 and assumed the role of chief executive officer (CEO). Williams-Sonoma raised financing through an initial public offering (IPO) in 1982 to accelerate its expansion.

Williams-Sonoma sells furnishings and decorative accessories for every room in the home. It has also launched distinct brands including West Elm which offers modern furnishings and décor, Mark and Graham, an online platform for personalized gift buying, and GreenRow which specializes in the use of sustainable materials and manufacturing practices to create vintage-inspired heirloom products.

Williams-Sonoma has used acquisitions to complement its internal growth although they haven't all been successful. It ventured into retail gardening in 1982 when it purchased Gardener's Eden, a catalog company that sells plants, tools, and accessories. Williams-Sonoma sold that business in 1999.

Other acquisitions have proved far more successful in expanding Williams-Sonoma's reach and sales, however. Three notable acquisitions include Pottery Barn, Rejuvenation, and Outward. The company provides sales breakdowns for some but not all of these deals.

Pottery Barn was established in 1949 as a home furnishings retailer focused on offering products marked by exceptional comfort, quality, style, and value. Williams-Sonoma purchased the company from Gap Inc. (GPS) in 1986. Pottery Barn had about 21 stores at that time located mainly in Manhattan where they sold a limited range of products.

Williams-Sonoma has since transformed Pottery Barn into a premier home furnishings retailer selling items in stores and online. Pottery Barn's products include furniture, bedding, bathroom accessories, rugs, lighting, and curtains.

Williams-Sonoma built on the Pottery Barn brand, launching Pottery Barn Kids in 1999 and then Pottery Barn Teen in 2003. The former focuses on furnishings and décor for nurseries, bedrooms, and play spaces. The latter offers furniture, bedding, lighting, and more for teenage bedrooms, college dorm rooms, study spaces, and lounges.

The Pottery Barn and parent Williams-Sonoma brands have been built on a reputation for selling high-quality products but there have been some criticisms. Williams-Sonoma's image was tarnished when it was fined by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for false "Made in America" claims on certain products. They included Pottery Barn Teen- and Pottery Barn Kids-branded upholstered furniture and Goldtouch Bakeware and Rejuvenation-branded products.

Rejuvenation was founded in 1977 by Jim Kelly and Barbara Kerr, friends who borrowed $2,500 to open a hardware and house parts store. The company was posting about $25 million in annual revenue by 2004. It was acquired by Williams-Sonoma seven years later in 2011.

Rejuvenation's manufacturing and distribution facilities are located in Portland, Oregon It specializes in made-to-order lighting fixtures. The company also sells other hardware, furniture, and home décor. Rejuvenation's high-quality, specialized products complement Williams-Sonoma's brand and bolster its line of home furnishing products.

Williams-Sonoma breaks down the revenues of West Elm, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, and Pottery Barn Kids and Teen in its 10-K. All other revenues are reported under "other," including those generated by Rejuvenation and Outward.

Outward is an enterprise technology startup that was founded in 2012 in San Jose, California. The company offers 3-D imaging and augmented reality that's specifically geared toward digital applications for the home furnishings and decorative accessories industry. Applications using augmented reality add virtual images to the viewer's field of vision, unlike virtual reality which completely immerses the viewer in a virtual world that's cut off from the real physical world.

Williams-Sonoma acquired Outward in 2017 in an all-cash purchase. Outward's technology gives Williams-Sonoma customers highly interactive shopping experiences. It enables them to see a 3-D preview of what their home could look like with new furnishings.

Williams-Sonoma owns a variety of brands and companies. They include Pottery Barn which includes Pottery Barn Kids and Pottery Barn Teen as well as West Elm, Rejuvenation, Mark and Graham, GreenRow, and Outward. Some of these brands were acquired by Williams-Sonoma. Others were created in-house

Pottery Barn has grown to include specialty stores focusing on certain demographics. The company introduced Pottery Barn Kids in 1999 which focuses on children's home furnishing and accessories. It then launched a series of stores catering specifically to teenagers in 2003.

Yes, Mark and Graham is part of Williams-Sonoma. The brand was launched in 2012 to add personalized gifts and accessories to Williams-Sonoma’s suite of products.

Williams-Sonoma is a household name in America for high-end kitchenware and modern furnishings. It broadened its product range and the services it offers its customers over the years by introducing new brands and making several acquisitions. Pottery Barn is the most well-known of these and is the main revenue generator for Williams-Sonoma. It isn’t the only company Williams-Sonoma owns, however.

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