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putinsbloodboy t1_jab19l6 wrote

Old LL Bean stuff is legit

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Unfair-Thought5814 t1_jabbmno wrote

New bean stuff won't last long enough to use up that label.

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unsteadied t1_jabo4xb wrote

Yep, that’s the real reason they ditched the lifetime guarantee. Just so happens they did it right when they started using cheaper materials and outsourcing manufacturing to China, totally a coincidence.

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ninjasays t1_jac3xq1 wrote

My parents gave me an LL Bean snowboard jacket for Christmas 20+ years ago. Not a thing wrong with it.

3 years ago, my parents gave me an LL Bean fleece pullover. The stitching on the cuff let go within the first month.

As a Mainer, Beans used to be a source of pride. Now they're just another corporate money machine.

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CapitanChicken t1_jacggkk wrote

It's why I'm so thrilled when I see older Bean stuff at Goodwill. I'm still kicking myself for leaving an old pair of their boots behind.

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Unfair-Thought5814 t1_jacekev wrote

Yeah I have a Bean henley that my mom gave me for Christmas in the mid-90s, and it's still looks really good. I stopped at the fancy HQ store in Freeport last summer and found nothing that seemed worth buying. Sad.

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Ultrabigasstaco t1_jacjdaa wrote

You should check out Origin. Made in Maine with as much sourcing from the US as they can. They probably don’t have as good a selection but the stuff is quality.

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CrouchingGinger t1_jacr7cj wrote

Yeah, it’s sad. My grandfather was a ME dairy farmer and wore Bean’s exclusively. I feel like old Leon is rolling in his grave. That being said you can get stuff super cheap at the Goodwill warehouse if you don‘t mind digging. I got backpacks and polar fleece for next to nothing there.

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Double-0-N00b t1_jae6r0f wrote

I work for LL Bean and I will not die on a bill defending it, but it’s not outsourced to china and there’s still a lot made here in America.

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frothy_pissington t1_jacn0v6 wrote

And they did a lot of PR at the time about how they were being FORCED to drop the return policy because of customers abusing it.

Then one of the Bean family went all in for Trump.

We raised our kids in Lands End and Bean, but haven’t bought either brand in over a decade.

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solvitNOW t1_jacpmdt wrote

Lands End is even worse than Bean as far as how crappy it’s gotten…Bean is still decent quality but not as good as it once was. But Lands End stuff is unwearable now.

We still have a couple of their kids storm jackets that have passed through 3-4 kids and look brand new from around 2012 but everything from there feels super cheap and fits weird now, when fabric and fit used to be their specialty.

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orthopod t1_jabgw9p wrote

They still make a bunch of good stuff. The made in America bean boots are legit

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DooWopExpress t1_jacojuh wrote

I did some maintenance in the boot factory and was flabbergasted that they just... Made them for real, by hand. It was very cool.

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FuckingKilljoy t1_jabpv0b wrote

Dummy expensive though

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copperwatt t1_jac8zf9 wrote

How long do you think it takes to make boots by hand, and how much do you think people should be compensated for their labor?

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FuckingKilljoy t1_jacbh6h wrote

Look, I own some real high quality hand made stuff and I like supporting more ethical businesses

But that doesn't mean it isn't super expensive

I can't believe that "LL Bean shoes are really expensive" is a hot take, like it's literally just a fact

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copperwatt t1_jacdnas wrote

Sorry, I just misunderstood you. I wasn't familiar with the phrase "dummy expensive", so I took it as a variation on "stupid expensive", which usually implies the speaker thinks the thing is expensive for no good reason.

Also, they.... aren't particularly expensive? $149 about normal for good winter boots.

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Ultrabigasstaco t1_jacitiv wrote

$149 is not expensive at all for good boots. Especially made in USA ones.

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copperwatt t1_jacsuim wrote

Our sense of appropriate price for clothing and footwear has been massively and perversely warped by our collective tacit acceptance of child and slave labor.

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Rpgwaiter t1_jac22uk wrote

Username checks out

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FuckingKilljoy t1_jacbv5q wrote

Gotta say I'm amazed that saying "those shoes are expensive" is a killjoy take. Are you telling me that they aren't expensive? I didn't say "you're an idiot if you buy them" or anything, just that they're not affordable for a lot of people

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BanditXJ t1_jaccili wrote

Mafks gonna be furious when they hear about Red Wings

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TheDeityRyan t1_jabfja3 wrote

I used one of their backpacks for over a decade and the inside lining is finally tearing away

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_banana_phone t1_jacslr7 wrote

Yeah these were the “it” backpack at my school in the late 90s/early 2000s. Especially when they dropped new colors besides the original navy/hunter/burgundy/black. I had a neon orange one.

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PagingDoctorLove t1_jaepds8 wrote

I have a sweatshirt from them that I bought secondhand 15 years ago. It's still in fantastic shape.

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This-Construction-65 t1_jabs66l wrote

LLBean H6 Subarus hold up too

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nater255 t1_jad765y wrote

> LLBean H6 Subaru

Subaru's in general, but there's something about that damn model that just can't die.

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kb_klash t1_jacg7g8 wrote

I've had a heavy duty winter jacket from LL Bean that my mom bought me nearly 20 years ago and it still feels brand new.

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page85 t1_jac4xx3 wrote

My mom got me one of the back packs with my last name on it my freshman year of high school. I carry it to work everyday 23 years later.

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