Chuck Williams
Encyclopedia
Charles E. Williams (born October 2, 1915) is the founder of the Williams-Sonoma
company and author and editor of dozens of books on the subject of cooking.
, Williams learned to cook from his maternal grandmother, who had owned a restaurant in Lima, Ohio
. When the Great Depression
hit, his father's auto repair business failed, and the family moved to southern California. His father fared no better there and soon abandoned his wife, son and daughter.
Eventually, Williams found work on a date farm near Palm Springs
. The couple who owned it took him in and sent him to high school in the mornings while he spent the afternoons working. His sister died in 1933 from a brain injury, after being hit in the head with a baseball. His mother returned to Florida, and Williams finished school and moved to Los Angeles.
During World War II, he spent four years overseas as an airplane mechanic for Lockheed International, working on aircraft in India and East Africa.
After the war, Williams returned to Los Angeles and one weekend, joined friends for golf in Sonoma. He fell in love with the town and moved there in 1947, starting a successful business as a building contractor.
in 1956. Over the next two years he gradually converted its stock from hardware to French
cookware, filling a niche in the market as European cookware was difficult to buy in America at the time. The concept was successful and he moved his operations to San Francisco in 1958. More than a decade later, in 1971, Williams-Sonoma introduced its first cookware catalog. Soon after, the business began expanding to more locations and now includes over 200 stores nationwide. In addition, in recent years, Williams-Sonoma has begun expanding into Canada
, with four stores as of 2005.
He has also initiated scholarships for promising students in the field of culinary arts through several organizations including the Culinary Institute of America
.
In addition to his involvement with The Culinary Institute of America, Williams has served on the Board of the American Institute of Food & Wine and has contributed to events offered by the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP). He was named as the "Who’s Who of Food & Beverage" in 1994 by the James Beard Foundation, and was given the Foundation’s highest recognition in 1995 — "The Lifetime Achievement Award."
Williams-Sonoma
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is a high-end American consumer retail company that sells kitchenwares, furniture and linens, as well as other housewares and home furnishings, along with a variety of specialty foods, soaps and lotions...
company and author and editor of dozens of books on the subject of cooking.
Early life
Born in 1915 in northern FloridaFlorida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Williams learned to cook from his maternal grandmother, who had owned a restaurant in Lima, Ohio
Lima, Ohio
Lima is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northwestern Ohio along Interstate 75 approximately north of Dayton and south-southwest of Toledo....
. When the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
hit, his father's auto repair business failed, and the family moved to southern California. His father fared no better there and soon abandoned his wife, son and daughter.
Eventually, Williams found work on a date farm near Palm Springs
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
. The couple who owned it took him in and sent him to high school in the mornings while he spent the afternoons working. His sister died in 1933 from a brain injury, after being hit in the head with a baseball. His mother returned to Florida, and Williams finished school and moved to Los Angeles.
During World War II, he spent four years overseas as an airplane mechanic for Lockheed International, working on aircraft in India and East Africa.
After the war, Williams returned to Los Angeles and one weekend, joined friends for golf in Sonoma. He fell in love with the town and moved there in 1947, starting a successful business as a building contractor.
Williams-Sonoma
Williams bought a hardware store in Sonoma, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 1956. Over the next two years he gradually converted its stock from hardware to French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
cookware, filling a niche in the market as European cookware was difficult to buy in America at the time. The concept was successful and he moved his operations to San Francisco in 1958. More than a decade later, in 1971, Williams-Sonoma introduced its first cookware catalog. Soon after, the business began expanding to more locations and now includes over 200 stores nationwide. In addition, in recent years, Williams-Sonoma has begun expanding into Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, with four stores as of 2005.
Contributions to cooking
Williams operates a test kitchen at Williams-Sonoma corporate headquarters in San Francisco, where recipes are tested for the company's catalogs and cookbooks. He is an editor or contributor to nearly every cookbook that Williams-Sonoma releases, including the large multi-volume Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library set, co-published by Time-Life Books. The series includes over 40 volumes and has sold nearly 10 million copies. Williams was the sole author of another Time-Life/Williams Sonoma series, Simple Cooking, which comprised Simple American Cooking, Simple French Cooking, and Simple Italian Cooking as well as a "best of" collection with selections from all three. All told, Williams has been involved with the production of more than 100 cookbooks.He has also initiated scholarships for promising students in the field of culinary arts through several organizations including the Culinary Institute of America
Culinary Institute of America
The Culinary Institute of America is a non-profit culinary college located in Hyde Park USA, founded in 1946. The CIA also has branch campuses in St. Helena, California, and San Antonio, Texas, as well as a campus in Singapore. It is a not-for-profit academic institution of higher learning...
.
In addition to his involvement with The Culinary Institute of America, Williams has served on the Board of the American Institute of Food & Wine and has contributed to events offered by the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP). He was named as the "Who’s Who of Food & Beverage" in 1994 by the James Beard Foundation, and was given the Foundation’s highest recognition in 1995 — "The Lifetime Achievement Award."
Trivia
- As a tradition, chef's aprons and similar items photographed for the Williams-Sonoma catalog bear the monogram "CEW," Williams' initials.
- The mascot of the Williams-Sonoma-owned Pottery Barn Kids brand is Clancy, a teddy bear. Williams keeps a 4 feet (1.2 m) version of Clancy in his office.