Here’s the reason it took so long to get your Bean Boots last year
(And why you’d better order now if you hope to have a pair in 2015.)
Ah, ’tis an abnormally brisk day for mid-October. The weather is here with an unkind reminder that winter will arrive sooner than you want it to. Your Bean Boots, on the other hand, probably will not.
After all, the rush is always on to get Bean Boots — aka L.L. Bean’s signature snow boots, aka New England’s most in-demand cold-weather staple. L.L. Bean struggled to keep up with pre-orders around the holidays last year, selling out in some sizes and even, in some cases, delivering after New Year’s. The company finally caught up on its backlog in July—only to be bombarded by all the teens looking for their back-to-school Bean Boots come September.
The thing is, these boots can’t be manufactured in overdrive like those Ugg boots you used to slip on (unless you’re Tom, in which case, you still slip them on).
The Boston Globe went behind the scenes to look into the making of this winter’s Bean Boots earlier this year, and now, a new feature in The Atlantic gives more details on the Boots’ labor economics.
Making the Boot takes “about 85 minutes’ worth of labor, not including the breaks in between stations,’’ according to The Atlantic. In Brunswick, Maine, the L.L. Bean factory operates at a 170,000 square-foot space, where the boots are “handmade by 200 people who split their time between shifts.’’
Handmade labor, local sourcing, and the fact that the Boots are made in Maine (as opposed to China, where the majority of shoes sold to Americans are made) factor into the Boots’ limited supply, reports The Atlantic.
“All the materials we use are primarily sourced in the United States, a lot of the leather comes from right here in Maine at a tannery, other parts of the Midwest, the shearling is from Texas, we produce our own boot bottoms,’’ says [L.L. Bean’s public relations rep Eric] Smith. “The steel comes from local artisans who work for us.’’
So there you have it. Maybe grab yours before you lose out to everyone else looking to scuff through winter in durable yet fashionable footwear.
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