To be 'more nimble,' L.L. Bean cuts 200 jobs, will close Lewiston call center
File Photo / Courtesy L.L.Bean
L.L.Bean Inc., the Freeport-based outdoor gear and clothing retailer, will return to 24/7 operations at its flagship store starting Monday, May 3.
L.L. Bean Inc. will cut 200 jobs across the company, and in a separate economizing move plans to close its Lewiston call center next year.
The layoff, to be completed by the end of the month, will leave Bean with about 5,200 year-round employees, including 2,000 in Freeport and 1,500 in other parts of Maine, spokeswoman Amanda Hannah told Mainebiz Wednesday morning.
“As an organization in an ever-changing retail industry, we must continually adapt and invest so we can meet the needs of our evolving customers and position L.L. Bean for long-term growth. Part of that requires us to become a more nimble, streamlined organization, which is why we made [this] difficult decision,” she said by email.
Eliminated workers will receive severance packages and outplacement services, Hannah added.
In addition, Bean is preparing to consolidate call center operations by leaving a Lewiston space in 2021 after occupying it for 32 years.
About 130 customer service staff work in the historic Peck Building at 184 Main St. Bean purchased the building in 1988, but sold it in May 2019 and has remained as a tenant.
Employees have been offered similar jobs in Bean’s Portland call center or the option to work from home, according to Hannah.
“We have shared this news with our employees well in advance to help ensure they have time to decide which option best suits their needs,” she said.
Bean closed a call center in Bangor four years ago, as well as one in Waterville in 2010 and a center in Oxford in 2008.
More recently, the 108-year-old company has been expanding its footprint, with the addition of its first retail store in Canada last August and plans to open a store in Salem, N.H., this fall. Bean currently operates 45 stores in 19 states and 28 stores in Japan.
Hannah would not say if the layoff and consolidation are any indication of the company’s plans to award employee bonuses this year. In February 2019, Bean awarded a bonus of 5% of annual pay after reporting revenue of $1.6 billion, up 1% over 2017.
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