 | |
 Williams Sonoma at The Summit (Alabama) | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail, e-commerce |
| Founded | September 15, 1956 |
| Founders | Charles E. Williams |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products |
|
| Parent | Williams-Sonoma, Inc. |
| Website | www |
Williams Sonoma is an American retailer of cookware, appliances, and home furnishings. It is owned by Williams-Sonoma, Inc. and was founded by Charles E. (Chuck) Williams in 1956.
In 1947, Chuck Williams settled in Sonoma, California, and opened his first shop as a hardware store. In 1953, Williams took his first trip to France, where he quickly fell in love with French kitchenware such as copper cookware, and is quoted as saying, "I knew this was something that wasn't found in America, but thought people would want." [1] Shortly after returning home, he formulated a plan to import French cooking and serving equipment into America and eventually converted his store into a cookware shop in 1956. [2] Thus, Williams Sonoma was founded, selling professional and restaurant-quality kitchenware for home use, leading to founder Chuck Williams being recognized as one of the titans of the American food revolution. [3]
After customer requests, [4] Williams relocated the store to San Francisco in 1958. The store quickly became a destination with culinary figures such as Julia Child and James Beard becoming customers of the flagship location. [2] In 1972, along with—and at the suggestion of—regular customer Jackie Mallorca, Williams began publishing a mail order catalog to expand his business beyond the San Francisco Bay Area. [4] At the suggestion of customer and friend Edward Marcus, of Dallas-based Neiman Marcus, Williams decided to expand the company and formed the corporation, Williams-Sonoma, Inc. in 1972. [5]
The second Williams Sonoma store opened on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills in 1973. [6] The same year, Williams Sonoma introduced the Cuisinart food processor to the American market through its stores and catalog. [7] Williams decided to sell his share of the company in 1978 to W. Howard Lester, an Oklahoma entrepreneur, [8] and businessman James McMahan. Williams maintained an ownership interest and guided the selection of merchandise and the production of the catalog. Lester took an active role as president and chief executive, while McMahan was the company director. [9] At the time, Williams Sonoma had revenues of $4 million. [10]
The company partnered with Time-Life Books in 1992 to release its first series of Williams Sonoma Kitchen Library cookbooks. [11] In 1999, Williams Sonoma launched an e-commerce website and bridal registry. [12]
In 2004, Williams Sonoma entered into an agreement with the CBS News weekday program The Early Show to broadcast a segment, "The 5-Minute Cooking School", which presented cooking techniques, styles, and recipes. The special weekly series was televised from Williams Sonoma's East Coast flagship store at The Shops at Columbus Circle in New York City's Time Warner Center. [13] This was followed by the debut of upscale Williams Sonoma Home in 2005.
Williams Sonoma opened a store at the site of its original location in Sonoma, California, in 2014. Williams Sonoma founder Chuck Williams celebrated his 99th birthday on the store's opening on October 2, 2014. [14]
Williams Sonoma's stores and gift registries have been referenced on television shows including Sex and the City (Season 1, Episode 3: "Bay of Married Pigs"), American Dad! (Season 2, Episode 16: "When a Stan Loves a Woman"), Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist (Season 6, Episode 7: "Used Car"), Frasier , Mike Tyson Mysteries, Friends (Season 5, Episode 4: "The One Where Phoebe Hates PBS"), The Office (American TV series) (Season 8, Episode 9: "Mrs. California"), The Simpsons (Season 31, Episode 8: "Thanksgiving of Horror"), and Family Guy (Season 19, Episode 13: "PeTerminator").
Williams Sonoma products have been featured numerous times on The Oprah Winfrey Show 's Oprah's Favorite Things specials including Williams Sonoma Home bedding (2004), Williams Sonoma's croissants (2002, 2005, and 2010), [15] Williams Sonoma's melamine mixing bowls, measuring cups, and measuring spoons (2007), Perfect Ending Cupcakes and Breville's Ikon Panini Press (sold by Williams Sonoma) (2007), [16] and Williams Sonoma's Waring Popcorn Maker (2014). [17]
In the film The Muse , all the kitchen supplies used to manufacture the wives' cookies were purchased at Williams Sonoma. In the musical Dear Edwina , one song references "Williams" and "Sonoma" as being people that sing along with the Fairy Forkmother to teach a chef how to set a table.
Martha Helen Stewart is an American retail businesswoman, writer, and television personality. As the founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, focusing on home and hospitality, she gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, merchandising and e-commerce. She has written numerous bestselling books, was the publisher of Martha Stewart Living magazine and hosted two syndicated television programs: Martha Stewart Living, which ran from 1993 to 2004, and The Martha Stewart Show, which ran from 2005 to 2012.
Cookware and bakeware is food preparation equipment, such as cooking pots, pans, baking sheets etc. used in kitchens. Cookware is used on a stove or range cooktop, while bakeware is used in an oven. Some utensils are considered both cookware and bakeware.
Pyrex is a brand introduced by Corning Inc. in 1915 for a line of clear, low-thermal-expansion borosilicate glass used for laboratory glassware and kitchenware. It was later expanded in the 1930s to include kitchenware products made of soda–lime glass and other materials.
Ina Rosenberg Garten is an American television cook and author. She is host of the Food Network program Barefoot Contessa, and was a former staff member of the Office of Management and Budget. Among her dishes are Perfect Roast Chicken, Weeknight Bolognese, French Apple Tart, and a simplified version of beef bourguignon. Her culinary career began with her gourmet food store, Barefoot Contessa; Garten then expanded her activities to many best-selling cookbooks, magazine columns, and a popular Food Network television show.
Kitchenware are the tools, utensils, appliances, dishes, and cookware used in food preparation, or the serving of food. Kitchenware can also be used in order to hold or store food before or after preparation.
Pottery Barn is an American upscale home furnishing store chain and e-commerce company, with retail stores in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Australia. Pottery Barn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is an American publicly traded consumer retail company that sells kitchenware and home furnishings. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California, United States. The company has 625 brick and mortar stores and distributes to more than 60 countries, with brands including Williams Sonoma, Williams Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, PBteen, West Elm, Mark and Graham, and Rejuvenation. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. also operates through eight corresponding websites and a gift registry.
Charles Edward Williams was the American founder of Williams Sonoma and author and editor of more than 100 books on the subject of cooking. Williams is credited for playing a major role in introducing French cookware into American kitchens through his retail and mail-order business. He became a centenarian in October 2015 and died two months later on December 5, 2015, in San Francisco, California.
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Heavy-duty cookware made of cast iron is valued for its heat retention, durability, ability to maintain high temperatures for longer time duration, and non-stick cooking when properly seasoned. Seasoning is also used to protect bare cast iron from rust. Types of cast-iron cookware include frying pans, dutch ovens, griddles, waffle irons, flattop grills, panini presses, crepe makers, deep fryers, tetsubin, woks, potjies, and karahi.
Sur La Table, Inc. is a privately held retail company based in Seattle, Washington, that sells kitchenware including cookware, cutlery, cooks' tools, small electrics, tabletop and linens, bakeware, glassware and bar, housewares, food, and outdoor products. As of October 2018, Sur La Table sold products in 184 stores in 32 states across the United States, as well as through their website and catalogs. Cooking classes are available in over 80 stores. Sur La Table has a blog, A Sharp Knife & Salt, that focuses on food, chefs, restaurants and products. Many of the company's stores offer culinary classes with plans to include a kitchen in every new store. The company's corporate headquarters is located in Seattle's Georgetown neighborhood.
Epicurious is an American digital brand that focuses on food and cooking-related topics. Created by Condé Nast in 1995, it is headquartered at the One World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York City, where it is part of the publisher's Food Innovation Group that also includes Bon Appétit, with significant overlap in staff between the two companies.
"Oprah's Favorite Things" was an annual segment that appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show from the 1990s to 2008 and 2010, as well as on Rachael Ray in 2017. In the segment, which airs during Thanksgiving week and was inspired by the holiday song "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music, Oprah Winfrey shared products with her audience that she felt were noteworthy or that would make a great gift. In addition, the audience members that were present during the taping of the episode receive items from that year's list for free.
W. Howard Lester was an American businessman who took over Williams-Sonoma, Inc. in 1976 and acquired Pottery Barn in 1986, building a major catalog retailer that had more than 600 stores and annual sales of $3.4 billion by the time of his death.
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