West Elm goes multi-media

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 9/4/2003 12:00:00 AM

Brooklyn, NY — West Elm, the Williams-Sonoma catalog launched in summer 2003 for younger apartment dwellers, will open its first store here this fall and launch into e-commerce.

The first test store will open in November near West Elm's offices here in the DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) neighborhood. At 5,000 square feet, the store "will reflect the aesthetic of the catalog," said Lisa Versacio, svp, and its design is currently in progress.

All catalog product will be available for purchase on West Elm's Web site beginning in October, the division's launch into e-commerce.

In addition, the division is developing a separate catalog planned for next year that will focus on some of the assortment's basic merchandise, she added. The main catalog will remain unchanged.