BY JAMES A. COOKE, EDITOR AT LARGE
LOGISTICS NETWORK DESIGN
strategicinsight
L.L.Bean’s smarter
stocking strategy
The iconic retailer has revamped its inventory practices to support a multichannel
selling strategy. The result: less overstock of seasonal inventory, more of the
products its customers buy all year long, and a reduction in warehousing costs.
PHOTOS COURTES Y OF L.L. BEAN INC.
This story first appeared in the
Quarter 4/2011 edition of
CSCMP’s Supply Chain
Quarterly, a journal of thought
leadership for the supply chain
management profession and a sister publication to AGiLE Business
Media’s DC VELOCITY. Readers
can obtain a subscription by joining the Council of Supply Chain
Management Professionals (whose
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Subscriptions are also available to
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www.SupplyChainQuarterly.com.
AS IT CELEBRATES ITS 100TH ANNIVERSARY THIS YEAR, L.L.BEAN INC. IS
not the same type of retailer it was a century ago. The company started out as a manufacturer and seller of hunting boots, became a catalog merchant, branched into retail
store sales, and now is involved in online retailing. Its evolution has prompted
L.L.Bean, based in Freeport, Maine, to modify its supply chain to reflect the many ways
it does business today.
About five years ago, it became apparent that L.L.Bean’s existing fulfillment strategy was causing inventory levels to rise. That led the company to take a hard look at its
inventory and distribution practices.
The iconic retailer has since revamped its inventory policies with multichannel sales
in mind. A better understanding of product lifecycles together with improved forecasting helped it reduce overstocks of seasonal inventory, improve availability of products customers buy all year long, and reduce warehousing costs.
IT ALL STARTED WITH A BOOT
The story goes that Leon Leonwood Bean came back from a hunting trip unhappy
because of his cold, damp feet. Bean hit upon the idea of stitching leather uppers to workmen’s rubber boots to create more comfortable, water-resistant footwear for tramping
through the Maine woods. In 1912, he founded the company bearing his name to sell his
unique “Maine Hunting Shoe,” working out of the basement of his brother’s apparel shop.
