When Heather Bennett joined Michaels in 2021 as executive vice president of marketing and e-commerce, she was tasked with leading the arts-and-crafts retailer’s omnichannel transformation, an initiative focused on strengthening its foundation, investing in growth opportunities, and delivering a best-in-class customer experience no matter how its customers shopped.

But it was not an easy task.

“As our CEO Ashley Buchanan has said, ‘When you walked into a Michaels store a few years ago, they were a bit underwhelming,’” said Bennett, who joined the company after serving as president of stroller manufacturer and designer Bugaboo. “Too many items were out of stock, there were slow-moving checkout lines, and our pricing and promotions were not clear. Furthermore, our e-commerce customer experience was not living up to our standard of excellence.”

Bennett and her team, however, turned these processes around and were able to improve the customer experience for Michaels customers in several ways: They improved assortment in new and existing categories, rolled out more than  300 state-of-the-art self-checkout machines in stores, and launched new platforms and services to support different ways for customers to shop and sell anytime, anywhere.

In her new role, Bennett was also tasked with growing Michaels’ e-commerce business and focused on a three-pronged approach.

“First, our tech team re-platformed our website to make it more efficient, intuitive, and user-friendly,” Bennett said. “Next, we launched our third-party marketplace on Michaels.com, the first of its kind dedicated to arts and crafts. Finally, we launched MakerPlace by Michaels, the first online marketplace focused on supporting handmade artists and makers by giving them lower fees and more ways to earn through selling handmade goods, classes, and how-to’s.”

These transformations were largely possible because Bennett leaned into leadership skills honed from her 20-year career in the retail and consumer goods industries at companies such as Hudson’s Bay and Toys “R” Us. According to Bennett, the skills include the following:  

  • Listen to your people and trust your experts. “Hearing diverse opinions from a wide group of people — whether that be your customers, colleagues, or leadership team — who are all deeply invested and united in accomplishing the same goal is incredibly valuable to the creative process,” she said.
  • Test and learn. “Don’t be afraid to make a hypothesis, test it in the market, and learn from the outcomes,” said Bennett. “This requires thoughtful risk assessment and clear communication and alignment with your team on what you believe the value of the learnings will be, whether you succeed or fail according to your goal at the outset.”
  • Carve a lane for innovation. “It’s important for innovation initiatives to stand on their own and avoid getting overshadowed by core priorities,” Bennett said. “To lean into bringing innovation to market, you need a core team dedicated to it that can leverage cross-functional partners. Commitment and support from leadership to innovation is hugely important in getting cross-functional partners to collaborate and share in the priority.”

How were these skills used specifically in Michaels’ transformation? Bennett said when the company began the process of building MakerPlace, Michaels recruited the right talent for its core team that could spearhead cross-team collaboration, including learning sessions and regular touchpoints. “We also engaged early and often with our target audiences, both buyers and sellers, to learn what they wanted most from the platform and used these findings to inform its development,” she said.

As for what’s next for Michaels, Bennett said the company is continuing to prioritize the in-store and online shopping experience for its customers who look to the retailer for inspiration, advice, and support during their creative journey.

“In the future, we’ll continue to enhance and expand our product assortment, leaning into relevant trends, and introducing new classes and experiences,” she said.

Bennett said she is thrilled to be a part of the transformation and looking forward to the company’s continued growth.

“Given the opportunity to join Michaels in 2021, I jumped on the chance to be part of a company with such a rich retail heritage and unique brand story,” she said. “Michaels is known and loved by all kinds of creatives, so it’s been a rewarding challenge to anticipate their evolving needs and find new ways to reach an even wider range of customers. Expanding our omnichannel experiences and revitalizing our brand have been central in accomplishing these goals.”