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Dressed for Success: L.L. Bean Takes On Retail

Dressed for Success: L.L. Bean Takes On Retail

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Bean had designed the Maine Hunting Boot to solve his own problem of wet feet, but once it was created, he knew it was going to be a hit. He was so sure of its innovative design that he even paid the hefty sum to have it patented. Once the local shoemaker had made a few more pairs, Bean began to promote his product.

Using a strategy of direct-mail marketing, Bean wrote a letter that began: “Outside of your gun, nothing is so important to your outfit as your foot-wear. You cannot expect success hunting deer or moose if your feet are not properly dressed.” He claimed his boots were “light as a moccasin, with the protection of a heavy hunting boot,” and set the selling price at $3.50 per pair. Bean then took that letter and made copies to send to all of the outdoorsmen from outside Maine who had recently bought Maine hunting licenses.

The letter was a success. 100 pairs of Bean’s shoes were ordered, and he had them immediately shipped off. But that is when bad news struck: 90 of the boots that had been bought were soon returned because the tops and bottoms had separated. Bean refunded all of his customers’ money and borrowed another $400 to come up with a new design for his boot. He knew there was still hope for the product.

Indeed there was. The boot’s new design proved successful, and the model took off. With the U.S. Post Office’s new parcel post service, business exploded. In fact, Bean located his first factory directly over his brother, Guy’s post office and established a system of chutes so that his packages could be sent off without any delay.

Bean’s steady success was such that in 1920 he was able to open his first showroom store next to his factory. From there, the company continued to grow. Within two years, it was bringing in more than $135,000 in annual sales. Profits were boosted even further when L.L. Bean boots were used on a highly publicized arctic expedition.

Soon, the company introduced its first full-sized mail order catalogue, which included a wide range of outdoor products apart from shoes. From clothes to fishing and camping gear, L.L. Bean was becoming the go-to retailer for all outdoor needs. Even during the Great Depression, when many other businesses were collapsing, L.L. Bean sales reached the million-dollar mark for the first time in the company’s history.

By the end of World War II, L.L. Bean had become a living legend whose stores were now outfitting even the likes of Franklin Roosevelt and John Wayne. Bean was approaching his 80s, but still going strong at the head of the company. He remained at the helm until his death in 1967, when ownership was transferred to his grandson.

As much as L.L. Bean has grown in the years since its founder’s death, his impact on its success remains impressive. In 1924, the company had $135,000 in annual sales. By the time Bean died, sales had soared past $4 million annually. Today, with over $1.5 billion in annual sales, L.L. Bean remains one of the most successful family-run businesses in the U.S.

Dressed for Success LL Bean Takes On Retail

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Dianne Crampton

Dianne Crampton is North America's leading authority on team culture. She is an author and professional speaker and president of the leading team culture consultancy, TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Crampton has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down or to subscribe to TIGES Free monthly e-newsleeter go here.

Dianne's contribution to the 2010 Pfeiffer Consulting Journal (an imprint of John Wiley and Sons Publishers) entitled TIGERS Hearted Teams is available in November 2009. Her new book TIGERS Among Us: Winning Business Team Cultures And Why They Thrive, Three Creeks Publishing will release in March 2010. To receive publishing discounts, subscribe to the free TigerTracks Newsletter here.

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Michiel Jonker
As a Certified Information Systems Auditor, Michiel assists businesses in a professional capacity by evaluating the threats to their businesses. He acquired the necessary knowledge, skills, and techniques to minimize a business owner’s risk of business failure and to maximize his chances of high growth and success. He strongly believes that you CAN maximize your chances of business success, by implementing the business solution he has advocated for more than 12 years in your business plan and planning. Michiel has decided to share his experience with business owners by putting almost everything he knows in a business plan and survival guide (compiled in an e-book format) and written as a high growth SMB coaching course for SMB business owners, directors and managers - titled as the “Survival Kit for Small and Medium Businesses - Profit from your Business Risks!” According to Michiel, his goal was to add new techniques to a business owner’s business planning survival kit and instruct him or her in using these in the future - without any help from a consultant! For more information about the benefits of implementing profit protection planning in your business, please visit: http://www.business-around-the-globe.com - Visit Michiel Jonker's Website

Leanne Hoagland-Smith
Are your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website

Linda Richardson
Linda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website

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