San Francisco-based Williams-Sonoma Inc., a retailer of kitchen tools and housewares, has announced the creation of a new in-house corporate gifting team that could pose increased competition for promotional product suppliers and distributors.

Gift crates with personalized food gifts and housewares, now available through Williams-Sonoma’s Business to Business’ Corporate Gifting and Custom Merchandise Services.

The Williams-Sonoma Business to Business division’s Corporate Gifting and Custom Merchandise Services now has in-house experts to offer gift sets and personalized products from each of Williams-Sonoma’s brands: Williams-Sonoma, Williams-Sonoma Home, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, West Elm, Rejuvenation and Mark & Graham.

The company says clients that enroll in the Business to Business program will be able to take advantage of the corporate gifting service to help them put together personalized product sets and see them through the fulfillment and delivery process.

“Our in-house design teams allow us to drive innovation in both the products and the services we provide our customers,” said Laura Alber, president and CEO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. “Our team is able to adapt to the evolving needs of our customers and accommodate special requests, making our company a premiere destination for gifting and custom merchandise.”

A gift bundle of personalized hospitality/spa items from Williams-Sonoma Business to Business.

Williams-Sonoma says customers will have a single point of contact as part of the B2B program, which can accommodate orders of any size. Products include food gifts, kitchenware, home goods, bags, luggage and leather gifts.

“Having a dedicated team to help our customers create memorable gifts and custom merchandise is an exciting expansion of the services we provide to our existing customer base and also opens up an opportunity to engage with new business customers,” said Josie Driscoll, senior vice president of business to business at Williams-Sonoma, Inc. “We look forward to collaborating with event planners on custom party favors and human resource teams on designing awards and incentive programs, [as well as] creating custom merchandise for both large corporations and small businesses.”

Promo firms say that the move by the California retailer may have an impact on the industry. “This will add pressure to distributors and suppliers who want to attract higher-end corporate gifting clients,” says Lisa Goldberg-Belle, owner and president of It’s a Wrap Gifts and Promotions (asi/229662) in Springfield, IL. “Williams-Sonoma already has the people, products, retail stores and website presence with which to design and distribute, plus great name recognition. It’s hard to compete with that total package.”

However, Goldberg-Belle says that Williams-Sonoma will serve clients at a high pricing tier, which means there’s continual opportunity for the promo industry to service accounts at all budget levels. “Not every small business or mid-size company will be able to afford the Williams-Sonoma price point,” she says, “so we’ll still be able to meet the needs of corporate clients.”

Williams-Sonoma’s announcement shows they see value in the $7 billion corporate gifting market and want to invest in it further, says Tom Riordan, president of Maple Ridge Farms (asi/68680). “Competing with them comes down to the added value that our distributor partnerships bring,” he adds. “We have food gift program experts who make the entire process easy, including providing quality gifts, exquisite packaging and a branded experience. Add in the personalized service, and we have the recipe for success in competing with the giant retail companies.”

Mike Fossano, vice president of account services at Premier Communications Group (asi/298496) and a contributor to the 2022 Counselor Gift Guide, says Williams-Sonoma’s service may drive more conversations about possibilities with branded merchandise, which will benefit the promo industry.

“I do think a rising tide lifts all boats, and this will get people talking about the power of corporate gifting,” says Fossano. “They can’t take all the business, because they’re serving people at a higher price point. They’ll do a good job, but companies like ours have been doing this for a long time. We know the entire process, what doors to open, what to anticipate. People may get ideas from what Williams-Sonoma offers and then come to us for similar but more affordable items.”

The announcement from Williams-Sonoma comes just in time for the beginning of Q4, which looks to be an active one for the promotional products industry. While Williams-Sonoma’s move could make them a direct competitor of suppliers and distributors in the corporate gifting space, B2B clients looking to shop gift sets from the California retailer must first apply for a WSI B2B membership.

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