Hammacher Schlemmer Catalog Lays Off Staff

From the Chicago Tribune: Last month (August 2025), the Chicago company laid off 21 employees — most of its staff — in a brief video conference call, according to four former employees who lost their jobs. “They told us that Hammacher was going to cease operations, and that all of our positions were effectively gone,” said Carol-Joy Kilpatrick, 50, of Tinley Park, senior art director at Hammacher Schlemmer for 19 years. “I’m devastated.”

It is unclear what the company’s plans are for the venerable brand, the oldest catalog retailer in the U.S. Hammacher Schlemmer, which was acquired last year by S5 Equity, a California-based investment firm, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Deposited in nearly 50 million mailboxes each year, the most recent catalog was canceled before going to the printer this month, Kilpatrick said, a first in her two-decade tenure with the company … (click to read more)