Williams-Sonoma's stock has soared in a sluggish housing market. Here's how it won over Wall Street

Williams-Sonoma is one of the top-performing retail stocks of the year, despite weakness in the housing market that has dampened sales of home goods. The company's share price had climbed about 23% year to date as of Friday, outperforming the S&P 1500 Home Furnishings index as well as competitors such as Wayfair , Arhaus , Ethan Allen and RH , formerly known as Restoration Hardware. "We've been working on the product, we've been working on the service and the quality, but also the storytelling," said Williams-Sonoma CEO Laura Alber in a late August interview on CNBC's "Mad Money. " "And that is also what's attracting ... many new customers to our brands, and then bringing people back to our brands.