W-S Opens First Home Store

Howard Lester, chairman of Williams-Sonoma, notes that the 18,500-sfHome Store occupies a site in the middle of the Los Angeles area design district. West Hollywood is home to the Pacific Design Center, one of the West Coast largest concentrations of design showrooms, as well as a host of related shops and studios nearby.

The Home Store will sell merchandise described as "inspired by European designs with a California style." Like the catalog, it will offer custom-upholstered furniture, but the store will provide a broader selection than the catalog, including more handcrafted wood furniture, lighting, tableware, imported bedding and decorative accessories.

Williams-Sonoma's strategy aims to establish a standard level of service that buyers of fine custom furnishings "have not consistently enjoyed," the company says. It says it will deliver the custom upholstery within 45 days from time of order, compared with delivery dates that are much less reliable and vary considerably throughout the custom upholstery industry.

The new Home Store will feature a design consultation space for customers to meet with Williams-Sonoma Home design consultants without having to pay a design fee, the company says. The store was designed by Howard Backen, an architect known for residential designs in California's Napa Valley.

Williams-Sonoma Home joins a list of brands including Williams-Sonoma,Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, PBteen, Hold Everything, West Elm andWilliams-Sonoma Home. The company operates 559 stores, eight mail order catalogs and six e-commerce websites.

The three new Home Stores that Williams-Sonoma plans to open this quarter, including the West Hollywood store, are part of previously announced expansion plans for the San Francisco-based chain. Those plans also call for the opening during 2005 of 12 new Williams-Sonoma locations, 10 new Pottery Barn sites–along with some closings of those two brands--and seven new West Elm stores against no scheduled closings of the West Elm brand.