麻豆影院

Williams-Sonoma鈥檚 Image Maker

For a high-end consumer goods company 鈥� as for chefs and epicures 鈥� presentation matters. At , Heidi Dewell (Jour鈥�91), makes things look good.

鈥淐oming to this brand appealed to me, since I grew up with a mom who was a fantastic cook and complemented food with wine,鈥� says Dewell, the company鈥檚 vice president for creative. 鈥淲ith my love of food, cooking and entertaining, I鈥檓 now combining my personal and professional interests.鈥�

From her Williams-Sonoma office near San Francisco鈥檚 Ghirardelli Square, Dewell directs and oversees creative for the company鈥檚 catalog, as well as photo production. She also oversees the team that designs and produces packaging for domestic and international clients. Some best sellers include holiday peppermint bark, margarita mix, specialty salts, herbs, spices and barbecue and pizza sauces.

鈥淚鈥檓 thrilled to be part of it,鈥� she exclaims. 鈥淚 love the breadth of skills and experience my career has brought me. Every day is different; it鈥檚 impossible to be bored.鈥�

Dewell鈥檚 journey to her 16-year career at Williams-Sonoma included learning opportunities en route. Interning before her senior year at CU-麻豆影院 with Chiat Day San Francisco, the original ad campaign creator for Steve Jobs and Apple, was an eye opener.

鈥淚t was a great experience to see what a career in that field could be like,鈥� she says.

During her first post-graduation job, at San Francisco鈥檚 McCann-Erickson ad agency, she quickly learned that sitting on the client鈥檚 side of the table held more appeal for her than working as a strategic planning department assistant. She soon started creating and developing catalogs for The Nature Company and the duty-free luxury travel retail store DFS, before joining Williams-Sonoma.

From 2001-2005, Dewell expanded Williams-Sonoma鈥檚 market reach beyond cooking and food-related items by creating two new brands: West Elm, which offers home furnishings and d茅cor, and Pottery Barn Teen. After working with design agencies to develop their logos and overall branding guidelines, she became the hands-on art director for photography of the initial catalogs.

In launching Pottery Barn Teen, which features furnishings for pre-teens through college kids moving into dorm rooms, Dewell built on Williams-Sonoma鈥檚 successful Pottery Barn Kids brand.

鈥淚 love the creative side and adding in the more analytical side that comes with the pressures of a retail business,鈥� she says.
Dewell鈥檚 daily responsibilities include managing and directing teams of designers, writers, art directors and production managers to ensure the public sees a consistent brand throughout the company鈥檚 communications.

鈥淚 feel so fortunate,鈥� she says. 鈥淚 never thought about a glass ceiling. I just wanted to work hard and see where that would take my career.

Photography courtesy Heidi Dewell