The CEO of Pottery Barn will retire in April, the retailer announced. 

Marta Benson spent 13 years at Pottery Barn, part of parent company Williams-Sonoma. She served as president of the brand for seven years before becoming CEO in January 2023. 

Before joining Pottery Barn, Benson spent her career as CEO of Gump’s, a department store in San Francisco, and creating a $220 million DTC business at Restoration Hardware, according to her corporate profile.

“On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Williams-Sonoma, Inc. team, I want to thank Marta for her significant accomplishments and commitment to driving growth during her 13-year tenure,” Williams-Sonoma president and CEO Laura Alber said in a statement. “Marta’s contributions to our company have led to the launch of Mark & Graham, the acquisition of Rejuvenation and the transformation of Pottery Barn. We are grateful for her leadership and the legacy she leaves behind having been a champion for advancing our company’s commitment to sustainability.”

Williams-Sonoma is No. 22 in the Top 1000, Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of North America’s leading retailers by online sales.

Who will lead Pottery Barn?

Two current presidents at the Pottery Barn brand will take over for the exiting CEO, Williams-Sonoma said. 

Monica Bhargava, president of Pottery Barn, has been with the retailer for 22 years. As president, she oversees product development, inventory management, market, and other operations for the brand. She previously worked as chief design officer for Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma Home. 

Jennifer Kellor, president of Pottery Barn Kids and Pottery Barn Teen, will also take over some of Benson’s responsibilities. She previously served as executive vice president for Pottery Barn Kids and senior vice president, general merchandising manager for Pottery Barn Teen. Together, Kellor and Bhargava have a combined tenure of 50 years with the retailer. 

How is Pottery Barn’s performance?

Pottery Barn reported $778 million in revenue in its fiscal third quarter ended Oct. 29, 2023. It’s the largest brand in Williams-Sonoma’s portfolio, recording $300 million more in revenue than the next top-performing brand, West Elm. However, revenue fell 16.6% year over year after nearly 20% growth in 2022. Revenue was up 3% over 2021, and 43% over 2019.

Pottery Barn Kids and Teen is the third-largest brand in the company. It recorded $277 million in revenue in the third quarter, declining 6.9% year over year. Revenue for the youth-focused brand declined 11.7% on a two-year basis, but it has grown 29% over 2019.

Do you rank in our database?

Submit your data and we’ll see where you fit in our next ranking update.

Sign up

Stay on top of the latest developments in the ecommerce industry. Sign up for a complimentary subscription to Digital Commerce 360 Retail News. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Be the first to know when Digital Commerce 360 publishes news content.