L.L. Bean

This rating actually applies to their return policy, as I have always been extremely satisfied with the actual quality of the product. In fact, on my last trip to Freeport a couple years ago, I purchased over $600 worth of clothing and other merchandise, and we're still enjoying every bit of it today. However..... A relative who lives 1,800 miles away loves to send gifts to my 6 year old, and at the beginning of each school year for the past two years she has ordered items from LL Bean. This year, one of the items was an adorable rain jacket, but it happened to be a size too small. "No problem", she said, "I used my LL Bean Visa so I get free shipping on returns. Just use the return label and exchange it for the size you want." Sounds easy, right? Uh no. First of all, I was unable to do the 'Quick Exchange' over the phone because I do not have an LL Bean Visa and I do not have my sister-in-law's credit card information (which, they said, I should ASK HER FOR). For the Quick Ex... Read more

It costs you money to return anything to LLBean - so, if you happen to not like that item you purchased, you have to pay the cost to return it, even if you're doing an exchange. This is clearly not the same with other online retailers, such as Nordstorm, Old Navy, Gap, etc. Sure, they ship free, but how are you suppose to know how something fits? I would never buy again - it's just not worth the cost to return an item if it doesn't fit.

This is only my second time "catalog" ordering through LL Bean and it has proved to be as bad as the first time. I live in CT and most of their items are shipped from Central Maine. Using UPS ground service this is a one day ship time, ship on Monday and receive it Tuesday, but this is not the case with how LL Bean ships! LL Bean uses a UPS service called "Basic 2." With this service the package is shipped to your local post office and then delivered by them to you. In my case I live in a town that has 3 Post Offices, 2 of the Post offices in town are PO Box only Post offices. UPS delivered the package to the "main" post office, now its no where to be found. Bottom line: LLBean charges for a service that is not true to save a dollar. At the prices that they charge the total package should be better than this. I WILL NEVER ORDER OR MAKE A PURCHASE FROM THEM AGAIN!!!

I just ordered down woman's jacket for $89 and am really happy with it. It arrived in 2 days right in time before freezing 0 F temperature and 14 inch snow. I followed sizing chart instructions on the website and according to them I ordered M instead of usual L. Turned out to be a great fit. Nice color and really warm too! Promotional $10 gift card arrived in 5 days after order, so I think I might buy something again.

LL Bean pulled a real boner – I bought a down vest and it was to large – I always ware a medium and this medium was huge – so I returned it for a small – which still has not arrived – at any rate – I felt I should not have to pay for the shipping – it took six (6) calls before I could talk to a supervisor who assured me that I would not have to pay for the shipping – to list all the excuses given to me by customers service people on the phone would deflect from what I really want to say about LL Bean….. When they got the vest back they charged me again for another vest, a small [which has not arrived yet] and said they credited my back for the original vest. So what they did is charge me twice for the same vest! When I called to complain to the “supervisor” Rob Robinson – he was rude and simply told me that “credits take longer to post then debits.” Did you get that? I was charged twice for the same vest! They had the returned vest in their hands – got another vest to ship to m... Read more

Jeez.. I really had high hopes here. No deal. “Mens medium” means triple double Xtra large, in some kind of fabric they invented to capture static in preparation for a future world war in which the poorly dressed will battle with electric charges from shitty LL Bean clothes. Yeah, it sucks that bad. je ne sais quoi No!!

I love LL Bean for the 'other things' they sell like boat totes, outdoor gear, and bikes. However, the womens clothes are well...scary. I was really excited with the spring and early summer catalogs because they showed much promise, (even though the quite possibly robbed some marketing points from other stores, but so be it). It was nice to see some update styles and normal womens color options. (Seriously, muted teal is nasty, what's wrong with blue or green options). However, the most recent catalog of late summer 2010, went back to the mom-jean look and weird colors. (No offense to those who like them, but google "Saturday Night Live mom jeans" and you might re-think that whole look). LL Bean is awesome for the 'other things', but I'll still buy my clothes elsewhere, but I keep pulling for you, LL Bean!

I have loved L.L.Bean for years, but my most recent experience with customer service was not at all good. I have my child registered with the Upromise program which puts money into a college fund when you shop at registered stores. I shop at L.L.Bean anyway so the fact that they are in the Upromise program is just a plus. Yesterday I ordered 2 monogrammed rolling pullmans from L.L.Bean. I tried to order through the Upromise website to earn college credit, but L.L.Bean was having a problem with their website not giving but one monogram 3 initial choice. Suitcases are a commitment for years to come and the one monogram listed was not even close to the choice that I wanted. The L.L.Bean rep. said that they know about the website problem as he had reported it last week on Friday, and he was surprised that it had not been fixed yet. I looked again today and it still has not been fixed. Anyway, as we need the pullmans by the end of next week, he told me that I need to order now. Apparently ... Read more

I purchased a bed from LL Bean. The bed is very nice. However, I was not proprerly advised that I would need to carry the bed from the street, up my driveway and up the steps to my porch. Fortunately my sister-in-law was visiting and was able to help me carry the boxes with the parts to the bed up to the house. After all, I had invited she and my nieces over for home school PE - lol. My back still aches. I called LL Bean - they said that is how they deliver. It is not their responsibility to get the purchased items from the road to the house. My advice: Don't purchase anything heavier than a parka and a pair of winter boots from LL Bean.

L.L. Bean is a store for people who like to LOOK like they are outdoorsy and adventurous, but they never go anywhere but the Mall or a pre-determined paved bike path of a city park. I was shocked to discover that they do not carry climbing shoes or climbing gear. They carry bicycles, and racks for your car. I think the display of Kayaks leaning up against the exterior wall is a bit misleading as far as the type of adventure they are prepared to sell you. I think it's a store for the middle class/middle aged person who is kind of out of shape. Someone who may own a cabin in the woods, but doesn't do much beside make coffee and drink it out on their deck while overlooking the lake. They may even own a barbecue, but they use propane, rather than wood or charcoal, because they're afraid of the carcinogens. This is who shops at L.L. Bean. If you're serious about fitness in an outdoor setting. If you really like getting your hands dirty while exploring new trails and climbing rocks or ice... Read more

OK, but not someplace I will spend anymore money. Customer service and shipping, specifically length of time it takes to get merchandise has gone from incredibly fantastic to the worst in the past five years.

Sometime in the last 10 years Bean decided to shift their focus from improving quality and features to taking as much cost as possible out of their products to increase profits. Some great products like their untreated cotton khakis are gone. They've eliminated nice features like genuine leather trim on outerwear. They love to treat everything with nano-stuff to make it wrinkle free (which really runs contrary to their image) as an excuse to jack up prices. If they go back to the values that earned them their now undeserved reputation I'll go back but for now LL is dead to me.

Another good quality but boring-in-my-book choice.

cute kids cloths

awesome, it lasts forever

I have a big old down vest from LL Bean that I like, but other than that, I don't think I would wear this company's clothes.

I would have to say that I am saddened to see L.L. Bean succomb to the poor customer service attitude that so many companies espouse these days. Right now, I am awaiting an order which was promised to me last week. When I called to check on the status, I find out that the item has not arrived in their warehouses, and the new arrival date is "any day now." When I tell the customer service rep that I would like the buyer to call the vendor, find out an exact date, and then get back to me within 24 hours, this rep reveals that this is not possible because everything has to go through some sort of electronic chain of command. No one at L L Bean can apparently pick up the phone and talk to an L L Bean buyer directly with the request, to get the ball rolling. Shame, shame. I guess I am old school, and believe customers come first, and they should be given timely, accurate information so they can make a decision. "Any day now" and "should ship soon" are not good enough, especially for ... Read more

I have order from L L Bean for years and never been disappointed. They have traditional styles and excellent workmanship. Customer service is definitly better than average. Return policy is easy and fast!

If you go to school full time and carry a heavy load, you have got to get l.l bean backpacks! In middleschool, they managed to carry my entire locker and it didn't even break! Now, I'm a full-time college student and those calculus, chemistry, and physics books get pretty darn heavy. All the other backpacks like jansport can endure what I have to carry, but l.l bean does the job perfectly. Plus, the shoulder straps are comfy.

This store is for people who want you to know they live in the suburbs. Can you say soccer mom? Must admit the quality is good.

Good quality, but nothing really stylish.

Great, high quality merchandise, good service and truly helpful sales people.

You are the LOWEST. Because of your shoddy merchandise, I have just lost a pair of eyeglasses and a bunch of notes on various aspects of a new job. This is because your SIDE POCKETS of a particular backpack also have the possibility of someone putting items in an area which is OPEN (i.e., NOT a pocket for items). This is easy to miss if one is in a hurry or distracted. Items put in what someone thinks are backpack pocket can be easily missed and are in reality holes for items to fall out onto sidewalks and therefore lost. When I arrived home today I discovered all my notes are missing plus my very expensive computer glasses -- because LL Bean's backpack side pockets also have open areas for items to fall through, a simple miscalculation can result in valuable items being lost.

Comfortable clothing.

Excellent quality and craftmanship. May seem pricey at first glance, but you actually get what you pay for here.

LL Bean a great store for equipment and outdoor gear but I don't really think of them when I think about heading out for some new digs. Not that their stuff is bad, some of it is quite nice they just haven't really grabbed my attention yet in that arena. First and foremost probably because for so many years their styles never changed they were selling the same clothes for like 30 years just different shades of plaid. It looks like they've finally gotten the message and their racks look more like an EMS or REI now but they just aren't quite there yet in terms of image for that market. Great gear though.

LL Bean is a great store for athletic gear and outdoor equipment. A fashionable clothing company? Not so much. They have a great 100% guarantee policy, which in the long run must cost them a lot of money. They will take back EVERYTHING no matter how long you have it. Fantastic customer service and I'm sure their bottom line is great, but they must lose out in the long run.

Good service, quality products. Friendly service reps. They stand behind their products, no questions asked. Fast service, quick turn around from the time ordered until received.

Amazing service, decent online sales, good value. Not the most stylish clothing, but that's part of it's appeal -- clearly a place run for and by conservative, sensible yankees.

My all-time favorite for classic style, durable fabrics, and reasonable prices. Good service too.

Excellent balance of home-grown fare and outsourced items. Customer service reps are clearly the best in the business.