L.L. Bean Is Reportedly Reevaluating Its Liberal Return Policy & We’re Bummed

In a world of indecisions, late night shopping binges, and bad gifting, we love a good return policy. And while some stores are finally loosening up on their stringent rules (thank you, Forever 21!), others are cutting back on their famously generous—maybe too generous—return protocols. L.L. Bean, taking a page out of Nordstrom’s book, may soon be their free shipping and "return anything you want, when you want to" policies. The change comes after the Maine-based retailer took a hard look at their business model following flat sales in 2015, according to the Chicago Tribune. As part of its “100% satisfaction guarantee,” the retailer allowed customers to get a refund on items that would have been a total no-go at other stores, like 4-year-old shoes — and without a receipt. So it’s easy to see how the trust-based program could be, well, taken advantage of. They also plan to part with about 500 workers through early retirement incentives. L.L. Bean has already spent quite some time in the spotlight this year—and it’s been kind of an emotional rollercoaster. First, the retailer’s heiress was found to have donated excessive amounts of cash money to the Trump campaign, which lead to shoppers boycotting the brand. Just this week, though, L.L. Bean’s CEO sent a heartfelt memo reassuring workers impacted by Trump’s immigration ban that the company is “committed to help our affected employees in any way possible.” Let's hope the good news continues to flow.