Faced with the aftermath of a deep recession and an area of town that city leaders really wanted to see developed, Augusta offered tax breaks 25 years ago to the developer behind the Marketplace at Augusta off turnpike Exit 112. Later, in a retail development known as Augusta Crossing three miles south at Exit 109 […]
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Maine retailers report strong holiday shopping season so far
PORTLAND — Maine retailers say this year’s Black Friday weekend had strong sales that are continuing in December. Kelly Edwards, executive director of the Freeport Merchants Association, tells The Portland Press Herald sales activity over Black Friday weekend met or exceeded last year’s activity. Edwards says December is turning out to be equally strong. Curtis […]
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Online sales surge on Thanksgiving day
View Survey U.S. e-commerce sales surged on Thanksgiving, raising questions about how many shoppers will show up for brick-and-mortar promotions on Black Friday, the traditional kickoff to the holiday season. By 5 p.m. in New York on Thursday, $1.1 billion was spent online, according to Adobe Systems Inc. The full day was expected to total […]
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Retailers expect surge in smartphone shopping
For the first time, there’s expected to be more people visiting retailers’ web sites through their smartphones than on desktop computers or tablets during the first weekend of the holiday shopping season that begins on Thanksgiving Day. Mobile traffic during the five-day start to what is typically the busiest shopping period of the year is […]
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L.L. Bean to open New York outlet near Adirondack Mountains
QUEENSBURY, N.Y. — L.L. Bean plans to open its first outlet store in New York state at a popular shopping complex near the Adirondack Mountains. The Freeport, Maine-based outdoors outfitter expects to open the store in August at the Adirondack Outlet Mall on Route 9 in Queensbury, just south of the tourist village of Lake […]
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State plastic bag ban fails in Maine House
AUGUSTA— The Maine House has rejected a bill that would prohibit retailers from using disposable plastic bags. The Democratic-controlled House voted 84-62 against the bill on Tuesday. Under the measure, retailers would no longer be able to use single-use plastic bags, starting September 2020. Plastic bags would still be allowed for some items, like prescription […]
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L.L. Bean to focus on smaller stores in expansion
FREEPORT, Maine (AP) — L.L. Bean is preparing for the largest number of store openings in the company’s history, but they won’t be megastores along the lines of Bass Pro Shops or Cabela’s. The Maine-based outdoors outfitter will be aiming for smaller stores, along the lines of 15,000 square feet apiece, instead of larger stores […]
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L.L. Bean announces retail expansion plans
FREEPORT — L.L. Bean, known for selling its trademark boots via catalog for more than a century, plans to make a bigger push into brick-and-mortar retail by more than tripling the number of locations over the next five years, officials said Wednesday. The Maine-based company, which is coming off five years of increasing revenue, will […]
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L.L. Bean hiring 100 workers to make more boots
A backlog of 60,000 boot orders could grow to 100,000 by month’s end, and the company is in the process of hiring 100 workers and purchasing additional equipment to catch up with demand. “We just can’t make enough of them,” said Tom Armstrong, L.L. Bean’s chief merchandising officer. The rubber-bottomed, leather-topped “duck boot” has seen […]
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Maine retailers face a variety of forces against sales growth
Learn About Tableau PORTLAND — As more Mainers shop online, the impact on the state’s retail sector is hard to track. But not if you’re Katie Clark. Like a 21st-century Santa making her list and checking it twice, Clark keeps an elaborate spreadsheet to track her online gift-giving. “People have seen the spreadsheet, and it’s […]