West Elm

West Elm is a contemporary home furnishings retailer owned by Williams-Sonoma, Inc. The brand sells furniture, décor, textiles and accessories designed for residential and small commercial spaces. Its product range includes living room, dining, bedroom and home office pieces, along with lighting, rugs, outdoor furniture and an expanding kids and baby collection. The company blends its own designs with collaborations from other makers, positioning itself around clean aesthetics and relatively accessible price points for design-conscious shoppers.

Founded in 2002, West Elm emerged as a new concept within Williams-Sonoma to reach younger, urban customers and round out the parent company's portfolio alongside Pottery Barn. It launched as a catalog and online business before opening its first physical stores in dense urban trade areas with compact footprints. Over the following decade, the brand expanded across major U.S. metropolitan areas and into select international markets. A notable milestone came in 2013 when West Elm opened its first hotel partnership, signaling early experimentation with experiential retail and brand extensions beyond traditional storefronts.

As of October 2024, West Elm operated approximately 100 stores across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Middle East and other franchised territories. The brand uses a mix of inline mall locations, lifestyle center stores and street-level retail, with occasional larger urban flagships and outlet locations. Most units maintain relatively compact footprints suited to high-traffic areas.

Williams-Sonoma's leadership has positioned West Elm as a key growth driver for the parent company. Recent strategic emphasis centers on omnichannel capabilities, with a large and growing e-commerce business supporting selective physical expansion. The company pursues disciplined store growth focused on high-income urban and suburban markets, particularly in major U.S. metros where home furnishings spending is strong. West Elm is also deepening its presence in Canada and exploring opportunities in franchised international markets, while expanding product categories into kids, baby and home office segments.

For landlords and developers, West Elm represents a nationally recognized tenant backed by Williams-Sonoma's financial strength and omnichannel infrastructure. The brand typically attracts design-focused shoppers and can serve as an anchor or complementary tenant in premium home, lifestyle and specialty retail mixes across both urban and suburban projects.