Waiting For That Rocket

As can be seen through previous posts (here and here) there are a lot of big things in the mix for L.L. Bean as a company. However, the changes aren’t just affecting the company, they’re also affecting my store. There has recently been a change in leadership within the Flagship and, although I will miss the presence of our previous leader, I can’t help but be absolutely THRILLED with our new one. In fact, I would go so far as to say that the more I learn about the changes coming down the road, the more I have a deep and abiding respect for him. A quick tally of the pluses: 

• He wears the same uniform as the rest of the leaders in the store. I know that’s sort of vague, but previous leaders have worn “civilian clothes” (albeit business casual clothes) even after the dress code was changed last summer. 
• He spends time on the floor. In the few times that I have worked overlapping shifts with him, he has been on the floor for a good deal of the time. 
• He sent a letter regarding upcoming changes to the way scheduling is done to all employees – via snail mail; no email, not interoffice, I received it at home. That shows an understanding that even if we’re not working all the time, these changes do affect us.
• On a related note, he’s having three open door meetings to sit down with whomever wants to know more – and he scheduled them outside of normal business hours (a concession to the fact that most people have more than one job and can’t make an 8am meeting!)
• He’s initiated all-store shift meetings for every person coming on throughout the day (so now, instead of meeting with just my department, I’m going to meet with a Leader and folks from other departments before heading to the floor). 
• He also has charged department leaders to spend more time on the floor. Everyone has a couple hours dedicated to being on the floor and then can do their other tasks in addition to before/after that. 
• And, perhaps most importantly (at least from a very selfish, personal perspective): He introduced himself to me. I’m not certain that the previous leader would know who I am should I run into her on the street. However, my first shift working with him, he came up and shook hands and introduced himself. 

He strikes me as a type who’s going to practice what he preaches. And what he’s preached so far are changes that have breathed a new energy into our store. There are so many things that can be perceived as negative right now, with the world and with the company, that it’s nice to be excited about going to work every Saturday night. I love feeling inspired, and with the creativity and enthusiasm that is spreading from the top down, how can I not be inspired?

I’m sometimes amazed at how averse intelligent people – even those who have worked in the corporate world – are to change. One of my jobs is for a company that has been around for almost 100 years (97 to be exact). The company has survived the Depression, World War II, the Cold War, the stagflation of the 70s, the S&L Bailout of the 80s, the bubble burst of the 90s, and the post-9/11 recession. The company has not been able to do this by keeping things the same. However, although the business model that we follow today is not the same as yesteryear, the demographic that we sell to has largely been the same for the past 25-years. The problem with that, though, is that our main demographic is now reaching into their fifth, sixth, and seventh decades. Their wallets are getting lighter, and they are going to start passing on soon. In order for this great company that I work for to continue, and continue to be successful, they/we need to bring fresh blood to our consumer base. That means we need to overhaul, redesign, and/or add new fashions and styles to our line-up. A company that makes my peers think of their grandmother’s elasticized jeans is not going to pull in a generation that wants to be fashion forward. A woman I work with (and now we get to the crux of this venting session), a woman that spent time on Wall Street, claims that by redesigning and adding new product to our line we are abandoning or losing our Brand. That logic is faulty for me. Why does change automatically mean “disaster”? I think the addition of a younger, dare I say it, hipper line is just the breath of fresh air this company needs. I look at the new line and I see things that my die-hard J. Crew, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Banana Republic friends are going to want to wear. We will always be a casual outdoors company. We will always have a guarantee that puts the rest of the retail world to shame. What’s wrong with being fashionable at the same time?