Heartland America grows by keeping catalog-era customers

Heartland America says it has outlasted former catalog rivals by keeping phone and mail ordering alive while building a website and marketplace business. The Chaska, Minnesota, retailer says that long-term customer focus and AI-assisted operations have helped it grow as Sears, Spiegel and others disappeared.

Why it matters: - Heartland America is a case study in how a legacy catalog brand can survive the shift to e-commerce without abandoning the customers who built the business. - The company says its mix of phone, mail, website and marketplace ordering has helped it keep loyal shoppers while also reaching newer digital customers. - The approach matters because many once-dominant catalog brands did not survive the move online.

What happened: - Heartland America, founded in 1985 in Chaska, Minnesota, has evolved from a mail-order catalog into an omnichannel retailer. - CEO Kendra Reichenau says the company still takes phone and mail orders. - The retailer now sells through its website and on online marketplaces including Amazon and Walmart. - Newsweek has named Heartland America one of America’s Best Online Shops for seven straight years.

The details: - Sears, Spiegel, Service Merchandise and Fingerhut have shut down. - The Sharper Image filed for bankruptcy in 2008 and relaunched in 2010. - Reichenau says many retailers dropped mail and phone orders when they shifted fully to e-commerce, assuming catalog customers would follow. - Heartland America kept those legacy ordering channels while modernizing its operations behind the scenes. - AI-powered search tools are helping reward brands with long operating histories, the company says. - The marketing team says AI has allowed it to produce two to three times more content with the same staff. - All departments have reduced their reliance on outside vendors by building internal solutions with AI support. - Many longtime customers still prefer ordering by phone or mail because they worry about credit card fraud online. - Customers can call seven days a week or mail in an order form with a personal check. - Heartland America added its website and marketplace listings over time and built a separate base of digital customers. - The company vets every product before listing it. - Heartland America sells closeout and end-of-season merchandise that has already earned at least a four-star customer rating. - The average product score on Bazaarvoice is about 4.6. - The vetting process and live phone support help keep returns low. - About 90% of orders ship the next day. - The remaining orders ship the following day. - The return rate has stayed between 2.6% and 2.8% since 1985. - Reichenau says the company uses technology to improve operations without creating barriers between customers and the brand. - The company has kept prices relatively steady despite higher shipping costs and inflation. - Heartland America’s call center handles about 30,000 calls a month. - Roughly 2,000 customers rate their calls afterward. - Those ratings produce a 4.6-out-of-5 satisfaction score. - Calls average about eight minutes, compared with an industry standard of about four minutes. - The company’s Trustpilot score is 4.8. - A customer review cited easy shopping, helpful service and a real person answering the phone. - Reichenau says the company’s awards reflect customer appreciation for that service model. - Heartland America sells tools, home goods, apparel and electronics. - The company says it is recognized for customer service excellence. - It has also been recognized by USA Today for customer service.

Between the lines: - Heartland America’s story suggests there is still value in preserving older purchasing habits, especially for shoppers who distrust online checkout. - The company’s results point to a broader strategy: use technology to improve efficiency, but keep the human service layer intact. - Its steady pricing and slower, more personal calls suggest it is competing on trust and convenience rather than speed alone.

What’s next: - Heartland America appears likely to keep expanding through digital channels while retaining phone and mail orders for loyal customers. - The company’s use of AI and internal tools suggests more operational efficiency ahead without a full break from its catalog roots. - The retailer’s long-term challenge will be balancing growth, customer service and cost pressure as shipping and inflation stay elevated.

The bottom line: - Heartland America is growing by doing something many catalog-era rivals did not: keeping the old channels open while building the new ones.