Good morning, Broadsheet readers! X CEO Linda Yaccarino defends Elon Musk’s expletive-filled advertiser comments, Bari Weiss’s news site is having a breakout moment, and Williams Sonoma CEO Laura Alber is the longest-serving female CEO in the Fortune 500. Have a restful weekend!
– Staying power. Laura Alber is in the midst of her 28th holiday season at Williams Sonoma, the parent of West Elm, Pottery Barn, and its namesake brand, known for high-quality (and high price point) furniture and home goods. She started at the company as a senior buyer for Pottery Barn in 1995 and says that since then she hasn’t interviewed for a single job outside the business. Her 13 years as CEO of the $8.7 billion-in-revenue retailer makes her the longest-serving female chief executive in the Fortune 500.
Staying put has allowed Alber to wade through plenty of challenges, as I explore in a new story in the December/January issue of Fortune. There was the pandemic, which arrived a decade into her tenure. Now there’s the housing slowdown. With homeowners locked in by low interest rates, fewer home sales—and fewer moves—eliminates a big occasion for furniture shopping.
Then there’s been the retail apocalypse, hitting industry peers like bankrupt Bed Bath & Beyond and DIY retailers Lowe’s and Home Depot. Through it all, Williams Sonoma’s surging stock has managed to outperform the market. Alber says she stays focused on the present, and what she can control, rather than trying to predict the future. “You can’t wait for a macro trend to improve your business,” she says. “You have to make it happen and look for other opportunities to grow.”
Alber knows a bit about that. Before becoming CEO, she was best known for coming up with the idea for Pottery Barn Kids. Now as CEO, she’s exploring new revenue streams like Williams Sonoma’s B2B business, which outfits hotels and stadiums; its global expansion; and further integration of AI to help customers design their homes. (Alber also sits on the board of Salesforce.)
While Alber is a respected CEO, what makes her stand out most is her passion for the brands she leads. “It’s my heart,” is how she describes Williams Sonoma. She advises other rising execs to stick it out through challenges like a bad boss, if they’re at the right company. “Oftentimes, you see people pop out the minute something goes wrong,” she says. “Especially if you’re in a company where the product is fantastic and the opportunity is there, it might be worth staying through some of those tribulations.”
Read my full story here.
Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
@_emmahinchliffe
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ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- X-plaining. Shortly after X owner Elon Musk told brands that pulls ads from the platform to “go f*** yourself,” X CEO Linda Yaccarino defended Musk’s comments as an “explicit point of view about our position.” “We’re a platform that allows people to make their own decisions,” she said before thanking advertisers who believe in X's "meaningful work." CNBC
- Scoring a billion. Women’s elite sports will become a billion-dollar industry for the first time in 2024, according to Deloitte, triple the combined revenue earned in 2021. Growing commercial sponsorships and broadcast partnerships are the largest moneymakers, with soccer and basketball specifically predicted to account for nearly three-fourths of women's sports revenue. Reuters
- Cheney unchained. Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) is set to scorch the earth with some of her male ex-colleagues in a new memoir, out next week, that includes details about her role on the Jan. 6 Committee and criticism of former President Donald Trump. One of the revelations divulged in Oath and Honor is Cheney's unlikely partnership with then Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. New York Times
- Wealth and wellness. Eli Lilly CFO Anat Ashkenazi is balancing revenue and accessibility when it comes to the pharmaceutical company’s recently-released weight loss drug Zepbound. Despite spending billions developing the drug, the CFO told Fortune that Zepbound launched at a cheaper price than similar drugs and with payment plans for patients whose insurance won't cover it. Fortune
- Bari's bumpy rise. The Israel-Hamas war has become a breakout moment for the Free Press, a news site launched by former New York Times opinion editor Bari Weiss. Page views and subscriptions have surged as celebrities have shared its coverage of the conflict, which is intended to correct the media's unfair characterization of Israel, Weiss says. Still, Weiss receives criticism for what some call “one-sided” takes on the ongoing conflict and 'anti-woke' columns like one titled “End DEI.” Wall Street Journal
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Birdy Grey appointed Tanya Hersh as chief marketing officer. Freshworks added Mika Yamamoto as chief customer and marketing officer. Aible added former Pixar CFO Ann Mather to its board of directors.
ON MY RADAR
In praise of girls’ night Wall Street Journal
The FT’s 25 most influential women of 2023 Financial Times
Gabriella Karefa-Johnson on building a better fashion industry Business of Fashion
PARTING WORDS
"It felt like acceptance of what it is to be a woman, what it is to be free, what it is to be confident, and just a little bit f*cked up."
—Emma Stone on her role as Bella Baxter in the upcoming movie Poor Things
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