Not only do list properties from Williams-Sonoma Inc. own the top four spots for percentage growth in the home category for second-quarter 2005, but the San Francisco-based company also claims the top three spots for volume growth and the No. 1 place based on overall list size, according to ParadyszMatera's latest list universe ranking.
List brokerage ParadyszMatera maintains a database of 12-month list universe counts on 76,000 properties through its research division. The company ranks the top catalogs by percentage and volume increases quarterly in the home, apparel and gifts/collectibles categories. It generates top-five rankings in other categories such as general merchandise. ParadyszMatera, New York, produces its MarketTrends consumer catalog reports quarterly through its proprietary MarketRelevance direct mail promotion-tracking tool.
The West Elm catalog, which launched in April 2002, came in at No. 1 with a 113.2 percent increase from 69,466 last-12-month names in Q2 of 2004 to 148,074 in Q2 2005. The West Elm file is 70 percent female with an age range of 25-39, average income exceeding $70,000 and an average unit of sale of $200. No. 2 is Williams-Sonoma with a 109 percent jump from Q2 2004's 519,231 last-12-month names to nearly 1.09 million this year. The Williams-Sonoma list is 74 percent female with an average age of 50, average income exceeding $90,000 and an average unit of sale of $75.
Next up is Pottery Barn Teen's 96.9 percent growth in Q2 2005 from 149,411 last-12-month names the previous year to 294,173. This is also a newer title, launching in March 2003. The Pottery Barn Teen file is 84 percent female with an average age range of 35-54, average income of more than $110,000 and an average unit of sale of $220.
The original Pottery Barn catalog rests in the fourth spot, growing 96.6 percent from 815,771 last-12-month names in Q2 2004 to 1,603,653 in this year's quarter. The Pottery Barn list is 79 percent female with an average age of 40, average income of more than $90,000 and an average unit of sale of $230.
In terms of volume growth for the second quarter, Pottery Barn, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn Teen are the top three climbers, increasing by 787,882, 566,047 and 144,762, respectively, to reach the levels listed above. Pottery Barn takes the top position in overall home category catalog file size at 1.6 million last-12-month names.
ClientLogic Specialists Marketing Services, Weehawken, NJ, manages the Williams-Sonoma list properties.
Though a company-wide consolidation of Internet buyers with catalog buyers is the reason for some of the increases, the newer titles have grown in their own right.
“West Elm and PB Teen are still very new and are in growth modes, so their increases are coming from both catalog and Internet,” said Julie Paul, senior client management director at ClientLogic. Paul handles list brokerage and management for all Williams-Sonoma titles. “The growth of WS and PB is [from] the addition of the Internet buyers to the files.”
Boden and Mini Boden USA tops the apparel category with a 203.7 percent increase from 39,523 names in Q2 2004 to 120,043 in Q2 2005. The file went on the list market in August 2003. Though Boden has been a popular clothing catalog in the United Kingdom since 1991, it launched in the United States in 2003 and is managed by Mokrynskidirect, Hackensack, NJ. Buyers on the Boden and Mini Boden USA file are 95 percent female with an average age range of 35-44 and average order of $140.
The apparel category's volume growth leader is L.L. Bean, which grew by 494,098 names to 4.3 million last-12-month buyers for Q2 2005 from 3.81 million in Q2 2004.
In the gifts and collectibles category, Music Stand catalog retains its No. 1 ranking with a Q2 increase of 357.4 percent to 99,983 last-12-month names versus 21,860 in Q2 2004. The file is managed by Direct Media Inc., Greenwich, CT. The Music Stand file is 80 percent female with an age range of 35-60, an income range of $35,000-$50,000 and an average unit of sale of $55.
Collections Etc. ranked first for volume growth in gifts and collectibles with nearly 2.02 million last-12-month names, up 296,866 names from 1.72 million in Q2 2004.
Kristen Bremner covers list news, insert media, privacy and fundraising for DM News and DMNews.com. To keep up with the latest developments in these areas, subscribe to our daily and weekly e-mail newsletters by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters
