Following his strongest year in nearly a decade, LLBean announced its opening seven new retail stores in the United States and Canada in 2021. These include three stores in the United States and four in Canada.

LLBean said the announcement was an important step in the business omnichannel growth plan, showing the continuation investment in its direct-to-consumer sales model. In 2020, LLBean made significant strides in channel diversity through its very first wholesale partnerships in the United States, large-scale design collaborations, investments in e-commerce and a growing presence in Canada. .

Expansion in the United States

The 108-year-old outdoor merchandise retailer will open three new stores in the United States by the end of 2021, with openings starting as early as next month. The first new store is slated to open in Salem, NH on May 14 as part of an expansive lifestyle hub – Tuscan Village – that includes expansive trails, green spaces and a pond, visible from LLBean’s back porch. This will be LLBean’s sixth store in New Hampshire. In addition, new stores are set to open this fall in Millbury, Massachusetts, in The Shops at Blackstone Valley – the largest open-air mall in central Massachusetts – and in Amherst, NY, in The Boulevard – an open-air center that houses 50 shops and restaurants. These openings mark LLBean’s eighth store in Massachusetts and seventh in New York State.

“While 2020 has posed many challenges for our business, including the temporary closure of all retail stores, we are committed to increasing our physical presence to serve more communities,” said Stephen Smith, President and CEO. the management of LLBean. “We know that a record number of people have returned to the outdoors amid the pandemic, some for the first time, and we are seeing these new habits remain firmly in place going forward.

Expansion in Canada

LLBean has enjoyed continued success in Canada since entering the market in 2018 with the launch of its Canadian e-commerce site, which was followed shortly by the opening of its first Canadian retail store in Oakville, Ontario, in 2019. In 2020, alongside Jaytex Group, the heritage outdoor brand opened three additional stores in Barrie, Ottawa and Toronto, Ontario, and will continue this momentum with four new store openings in three provinces by end of 2021.

The new physical locations are slated to open this fall in Victoria and Burnaby, B.C., Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and Calgary, Alberta, and meet LLBean’s growing customer base – which has grown 100% in 2020 – and continued customer interest in a greater physical retail presence across Canada.

“Despite the hurdles the pandemic presented, in 2020 we successfully opened three new LLBean outlets in Ontario and saw strong overall performance in the Canadian market,” said Howie Kastner, President of Jaytex Group. “This continued success is a testament to the inherent love of the outdoors and thirst for new adventures that Canadian customers share with the brand. We look forward to continuing to explore opportunities across Canada and supporting this growing customer base.

Flagship store reverts to 24/7 model

In addition to new store openings, LLBean’s flagship product Store and Hunt & Fish Store in Freeport, Maine, will return to a 24-schedule May 3. These stores have temporarily closed due to the pandemic and reopened with limited hours in May 2020. The other two stores on the LLBean campus – Home and Bike, Boat & Ski – will expand hours starting May 3, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Shawn Gorman, executive chairman of LLBean, said of the store’s announcements: “My grand-Grandpa opened our flagship store over 100 years ago, and in 1951 he implemented our 24-hour operating model to accommodate the sportsmen and women who passed through Freeport in the middle of the night to ensure an early start of the next. Morning. The return to 24-hour service, extended hours of operation and the opening of new stores all mark milestones for our organization and communities as we move into a post-pandemic era and see continued interest. for the outdoors.