Spiegel refreshes its brand to reach a more style-conscious demographic

By Alicia Orr , Editor In Chief and Catalog Success

Payner started to impact the business in 1997 as vice president, merchandise. By the time she was promoted to president and CEO of Spiegel Catalog in December 2000, the company was doing a healthy $833 million in business, up 16 percent from the prior year, and had been through a recent turnaround.

Although sales were good, Payner knew Spiegel needed a stronger brand foundation to continue to be successful. While Spiegel had a wealth of customers on its file and substantial revenues, what it desperately needed was a brand makeover.