L.L.Bean comes to Canada

Clothing and outdoor retailer L.L.Bean is the latest international company looking to enter Canada’s retail market.

Through a partnership with Jaytex Group – which also distributes the Ben Sherman and U.S. Polo brands in Canada – L.L.Bean products will be available in retailers such as Hudson’s Bay, MEC, Sporting Life and Sport Chek. The brand has also launched a dedicated Canadian ecommerce site, and plans to open its first retail location in Toronto at some point next year. The company aims to have 20 retail locations in Canada within the next decade.

Founded in Maine in 1912, L.L.Bean is best known for its line of boots, but also for its selection of outerwear, flannel shirts and sweaters for men and women. It also sells outdoor equipment for camping, hiking, hunting, paddling and winter sports. In 2010, it launched a sub-brand called L.L.Bean Signature, meant to be a more contemporary and modern interpretation of its signature clothing styles.

L.L.Bean operates more than 50 stores across the U.S. and 28 in Japan.

Sales at L.L.Bean have been flat for the last three years. Steve Smith, CEO of the company, told The Associated Press that cross-border Canadian shoppers represent roughly 2% of its sales, and plans are to use existing brand awareness to double that percentage within three to four years.