Has anyone noticed the huge push to sell Lands End

This is just speculation on my part, but I truly believe the uniform was for Lacy to look like wow I did not screw up buying this company.I think the huge purchase of the shirts was to show profit in the sales of Lands End. I am in a very high end area and the stuff does not sell. Now they have coupons at each register really pushing Lands End

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 31

Land's End is the worst. I have looked at all the new Land's End clothing that we have in our store, and I don't see anything that I like at all. It is too boring. Too dull. Too conservative for me. It is not anything I would want to wear. The colors are all wrong and the styling is not exciting. This stuff is well made, but it is damn ugly! Kind of like building a car that performs like a Mercedes but looks like a Yugo. Just awful. It is just piling up in our store and no one is buying it. With so many other stores like Gap and H&M and dozens of others selling fashionable clothes at good prices, why would anyone buy this stuff at Sears?

Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2003 4:06 pm Post subject:

currently in my store there are LE merch that is and XTra 50%.
Now it is selling. HMMM wonder why. Thumbs Up

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 1381

When the talk FIRST started about the uniforms, yes, we had people come back from hoffman saying that employees would ONLY be allowed to wear Lands' End. And our sgm said it too, in a staff meeting.

I had already read about the lawsuits regarding Ralph Lauren stores, etc where employees were suing. It wasn't too long until the statement was made that the employees would NOT have to wear Lands' End.

I do agree with lowmorale that the purchase of the shirts for the employees isn't a gift to the employees in truth, but rather a way to show that purchases were made. How this all works on the books, I'm not sure.

Our own employees are joking now how the Lands' End would never go on sale (kids and womens are running an extra 50% off the clearance price) and we have boxes of coupons to take even more money off the price.

Thousands and thousands of items in our store were never even touched or tried on, until the drastic markdowns came. Of course, now, hopefully, since the public is making their first selections, they'll return to buy some of the fall clothing at full price. It really is beautifully made and the colors of the childrens clothes were especially pretty.

Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2003 7:38 pm Post subject:

Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2003 2:35 pm Post subject:

OH MY if Hoffman knew that he would have the black belts on him.

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 830

I bought a LE tee shirt yesterday. After the coupon and discount is was about 6 bucks. Very comfy. They will get rid of it if they mark it down that much.

CS Wink

Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2003 12:09 am Post subject:

I so agree. I bought was also for about $4.00. Now we are talking.!

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 1381

You guys are thrilled with the shirts you got for almost nothing. Instead, shouldn't we be schocked and dismayed that the Lands' End company purchase is producing these results in the stores?

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 1337 Location: The Collective

OK I admitt I know from nothing about rags. But it seems to me that all big stores discount this time of year.....Lands End has never had the kind of exposure since it has been in Sears stores. Ever think that mass production just might have caused the clearance it has??

Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2003 1:15 pm Post subject:

Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2003 2:21 pm Post subject:

I think that it has alternative motive because Lacy screwed up and people are not flocking into Sears for Lands End. The huge purchase of employee shirts is helping him. Next year they will change the color

Joined: 05 Jul 2003 Posts: 172 Location: Washington State

I had a customer yesterday who came in looking for Lands End merchandise. It is just now coming in. I have bought a few items from their catalog and it is a very good quality. But, few associates have ever heard of it. Most of the people who have heard of it or have purchased any of it our over 30 years old. I hope Sears has some type of advertising campaign in the works for softlines this fall. Softllines needs some support.

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 1337 Location: The Collective

I think buying lands end was a gutsy move. We all know we have not done a good job in softlines for many years now. It was perfectly logical to buy a well known and respected company like Lands End. When it gets fully rolled out and in the stores for a year, then one can judge the results of it. It will just take some time to get things worked out.

Joined: 14 Jul 2003 Posts: 5

Land's End will be bad for Sears. It is not what most Sears customers want. It has a very narrow appeal and is not considered fashionable and stylish by most people. It is too plain and ordinary.

Joined: 07 Jul 2003 Posts: 1037 Location: Formerly 3333

I read with interest the many opinions of what Sears is doing wrong or what will "be bad for Sears". I'm curious..... what SHOULD we do to fix softlines?

Prior to Sears buying Lands End, it was viewed as a well-run, profitable company. We buy it and suddenly it's got horrible merchandise that no one wants. How did that happen overnight?

I've sure read enough here of what we're doing wrong. I'm all ears folks. If not Lands End, what's YOUR solution to our softlines woes.

"Footie"

Joined: 07 Jul 2003 Posts: 765

Foots,

To me the Land's End was a positive for Sears Softlines. We have been trying for quite some time to have a "branded" line of clothing that was recognizable by the masses. The fact that they had an established internet presence was also a big plus as the company is making a big push for online sales. To me though it seems as if it is a niche line of clothes that needs to be supported by a brand that appeals to the younger generation. We have tried this in the past with Canyon River Blues with little or moderate success, but I think this is where our clothing lines are lacking.

3 C's

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 933 Location: roaming...

Lands End looks like a good acquisition to me. I think Sears is giving up too soon and too easily on it by clearing stock at ridiculous prices already. I feel they should have let the acquired brand settle in a bit longer before taking such drastic measures as buying up hordes of stock and passing it off as a newly instituted employee uniform, or clearing summer fashions for ridiculous prices in the first month of summer. What happened to "patience makes virtue ... and profit"?

Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2003 2:13 am Post subject:

I have been working in softlines now for 14yrs and I will be the first to say we have come a long way Baby! I thought the new Convington line, when it came out was great. Love the colors and styles and the price is great. Sears children clothing is made a heck of alot better now than when I started. I believe they hurt themselves when space was taken away from other branded clothing to make room for LE. The only way for LE to be good is to advertise it. There really are people out there that love it. However, over the years we have advertised to a certain range of people. That range of People can't or won't spend that much for Le. I know for me I usually only by something when it is on sale or clearance.

The way the economy is, and knowing what part of the population is buying at my store, LE is set up to fail.
LEt's face it who would think Sears would of had such a name brand. One would of thought that would be in Macy's/Rich's stores or some "fancy" department store known for high prices.

Otherwise I thought Sears was heading in the right direction for Softlines Thumbs Up

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 933 Location: roaming...

Joined: 07 Jul 2003 Posts: 1037 Location: Formerly 3333

I doubt you will see much national advertising on Lands End until it is in all 870 stores. That should be by November of this year.

The only thing worse than not advertising it at all would be running ads in markets that don't yet have it.

"Footie"

PS.... I believe we have run TV advertising in local markets that have it.

Joined: 04 Jul 2003 Posts: 1381

kanaka, the LE went to clearance already (first month of summer) because the fall is going to land any day now. The prices of the kids stuff is super for moms...lots of the LE is 66% off and then there is another additional 50% off of that! That means much of it costs just two or three dollars! Seems a pity to manufacture such really beautiful clothes and sell them at those prices. But like I've said before, maybe people will come back and buy the fall clothes at the regular prices.

Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2003 1:38 pm Post subject:

Footsoldier
Once again we need to know our customer. They are NOt Land's End. You are not going to get the customer in our stores to spend thirty dollars on a kids raincoat. The ridulous price they are selling in at now, our customer will then expect that all the time. Know the customer is what I say. Your age group that spends money on clothes is the teen through twenties, they shop Abercrombie, American Eagle, maybe we need to look into finding one of the buyers from their. They are always on the money to what the teens want. We have the most beautiul infant selection, but once again we are always too late. John Lennon collection has been huge for five years, we just now got it. I say cater to who the customer is NOT who we would like it to be. Conventry is nice, but Lands End at bottom budget price is hurting them too

Joined: 15 Jul 2003 Posts: 14

Ok...I said it on the Retailworker.com board. I will say it here.

Sears should never have bought Lands End.

Lands End is the Mercedes Benz SUV of clothing. Pure snob appeal in most cases. The reason that Lands End is sitting around in heaps is, those high end customers are NOT going to shop at Sears for clothing. They are not going to use Sears dirty dressing rooms, dirty rest rooms, paw through piles of junk and try to find someone to wait on them.

There is no snob appeal in buying at Sears.

Face it! Is a tee shirt superior merely because it has Eddie Bauer, Lands End or Abercrombie Fitch printed on it?? Hell no!!!! People who can--do! Simple marketing folks.

I point again to White Stag. At one time it was a prestigious label. Now it is just another piece of crap at Walmart. It won't be long before Lands End is in the same boat. If they wanted LE to be successful, they should have put it in its own stores.

Footie, does that clear it up for you?

Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2003 9:06 pm Post subject:

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