Chefs Catalog carries all kinds of items for the home chef, from cookware, cleaning and storage items and kitchen utensils to specialty foods and small kitchen appliances. Chefs Catalog sells brands like Le Creuset, Wusthoff, Cuisinaire, Krups and more. There is also a wine club with no membership fee and a gift registry.http://www.chefscatalog.com/home.aspx

The Chefs Catalog website also has a recipe section, and carries a large selection of cookbooks and other food-related books. A look at the gift section of the website reveals that the items available are varied: there are suggestions for bakers, "gadget gurus," wine connoisseurs, sushi lovers, coffee lovers and more.http://www.chefscatalog.com/catalog/gift-ideas.aspx Chefs Catalog is a privately-owned company.http://www.chefscatalog.com/service/about-us.aspx

The Chef's Catalog also has an affiliate program.

Marshall Marcovitz, who had worked for a restaurant supply company for 20 years, started the Chefs Catalog in Deerfield, IL in 1979 with funding of $150,000.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,953243,00.html http://www.google.com/search?q=%22chef's+catalog%22+history&hl=en&rlz=1C1GGLS_enUS315US316&esrch=FT1&tbs=tl:1&tbo=u&ei=Oq9YS9WjAYyINtfFodIE&sa=X&oi=timeline_result&ct=title&resnum=11&ved=0CCsQ5wIwCg Within five years, his line of chef's equipment did $5 million in business as part of the boom of catalogs in the mid 1970s to early 1980s.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,953243,00.html

In the mid-1990s, Chef's Catalog received help from AOL to become one of the first retailers to set up an online store.http://www.allbusiness.com/retail-trade/food-stores/4217558-1.html Chefs also had brick-and-mortar stores in the Chicago area.http://www.yelp.com/biz/chefs-catalog-chicago In 1998, the Neiman-Marcus Group bought Chefs Catalog for $31 million, keeping the Chicago stores open.http://www.answers.com/topic/neiman-marcus

Then in 2004, a group of former executives from Walter Drake, another mail order catalog business in Colorado Springs that had just been sold to Blyth, bought Chefs Catalog from Neiman-Marcus.http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-2753627.html http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-2763147.html Chefs then moved to Colorado Springs, where they are today.http://www.chefscatalog.com/service/customer-service.aspx

Chefs Catalog ships to 34 countries, including the U.S. Shipping policies vary by country, as do payment options. In the U.S., shipping options include U.S. Postal Service, Fed Ex Smart Post, Fed Ex Ground, and other Fed Ex options. Shipping cost depends on method and price of the order, as well as country of destination.http://www.chefscatalog.com/service/customer-service.aspx

Chefs Catalog has a no-questions-asked return policy, with no time frame specified. Returns are handled by using the packing slip and pre-printed return slip to return the package via Fed Ex. A $10.50 charge will then appear on the customer's account.

Alternately, customers can use any other method of mailing at their own expense, with no return charge incurred. Customers using their own mailing method will need to show proof of purchase, such as credit card receipt copy, name and address, reason for return and desired outcome (exchange, refund or replacement).http://www.chefscatalog.com/service/customer-service.aspx