It`s a shopping solution for women short on time, a single source for casual and workout wear, fitness and pampering products, cosmetics, jewelry, even home accessories.
The source is Roberta Fortune`s Almanac.
”I had always looked for a catalog to fit my busy lifestyle,” says Fortune, the catalog`s creator, from her company`s office in a renovated San Francisco Bay warehouse. ”But back in 1980 there wasn`t anything I liked. So I came up with this idea for a catalog that meets the demands of a typical career woman like me-someone who doesn`t have the time or patience for shopping malls, who demands more value and quality for her money, who takes good care of herself and expects a lot out of life. That`s exactly the kind of customer the almanac has attracted.”
Born in Homestead, Pa., and raised in Hobart, Ind., Fortune, who is in her 40s, garnered her merchandising and marketing savvy with the Midwest-based F.& R. Lazarus department store chain, then went west to work for Macy`s California, Levi Strauss & Co. and The Sharper Image catalog.
In 1986 she took her savings and courted private investors and small venture capital firms to back her in launching the ”almanac,” so named for its season-by-season approach; a new catalog is published four times annually. In its six years, the catalog has evolved along with its Baby Boomer clientele. For example, at first, it offered mostly fashion accessories targeted to single, career-minded women. Now, because her customers are having families, products for new and expectant mothers, as well as children, have cropped up in the catalog.
One of the almanac`s newest offerings is ”Goes AnyWear,” a line of cotton casual clothes that exude simplicity, style and comfort. Designed for the catalog, the line consists of seven mixable pieces: a sweater, shell-and- skirt ensemble ($149), sweater and pants set ($99), ribbed sweater ($62)
and a pocket T-shirt and shorts set ($95).
”People have gotten more casual with clothing,” observes Fortune, ”but they still want versatile styles. You can roll these pieces up in a suitcase and you`re ready to go and you can wear them 12 months a year.”
In the works: a new line of all-botanical skin-care products called Fortune Naturals. ”Created with no animal testing,” she notes. This will supplement the BeneFit line of natural skin-care cosmetics the catalog already carries.
Fortune relishes wearing many hats at the business, which she says grosses about $15 million annually. The hands-on manager`s duties include shopping international merchandise shows, overseeing photo shoots, taking phone orders and packing merchandise to mail.
Still she credits her staff of 52 for critical contributions.
”It couldn`t be successful without everyone involved. All of their experiences as catalog customers have dictated how we run this company, so they are invaluable.”
Fortune won`t disclose future plans for the almanac, but predicts it will continue to be shaped by trends and consumer demands. It already has spun off another catalog, HealthSource, which specializes in health, fitness and personal-care products and resources with a holistic approach.
Fortune says that staying in touch with her customers is how she keeps her catalog fresh. She spends time chatting with customers and often pulls together focus groups to analyze trends. It`s also why a picture of her appears in each issue along with a brief personal note.
”Customers should know there is a real person they can count on who is offering them these products,” she says. ”And I want them to trust that I would use every product as well.”
WHERE TO BUY
Cotton three-piece sweater, skirt, shell set, $149; roll-neck sweater and pants, $99; robe, $159.95; slippers, $19.95; turban towel, $19.95; bath sheet, $49.95; bath mitts, $15; sun pin, $99.95; necklace, $65.95; sun/moon earrings, $45.95; Prenatal Cradle, $34.95. All available from Roberta Fortune`s Almanac. For a free copy, call 800-331-2300.
