L.L. Bean has been in the business of providing New Englanders and those who love the outdoors lifestyle with basic that fit their lifestyle for decades. Most people would not put the company on the top of the high fashion list but that has not stopped L.L. Bean from becoming a household name. Monogrammed polo shirts, winter jackets, boat shoes, those fabulous tote bags I used to carry my books in during college and even swim trunks for summer outings are all things that come to mind when I think of L.L. Bean. When the preppy set thinks of wearing something fabulous for a night on the town or a weekend getaway, they go for Vineyard Vines, Lilly Pulitzer, Ralph Lauren, Brooks Brothers and the other mid to high end designs that suit their lifestyle.
Come March 2010, the chic-but-plain-simple L.L. Bean collection will get a makeover with the launch of the L.L. Bean Signature collection, which was unveiled last week in New York City. L.L. Bean tapped Rogues Gallery’s Alex Carleton to reinvent the brand and give it a bit of a face lift. Super cute and preppy clothes that include madras for both guys and girls, plain shirts, more silhouetted shapes for dresses that come in fabulous prints and let’s not forget the oversized bags I am hoping to snag for summer vacay. L.L. Bean VP Chris Vickers said the Signature collection will not be over priced. Expect shirts to cost $50 to $70 and sports jackets about $200. “This is for modern, everyday dressing. My goal is not to challenge you. My goal is to make your life better,” said Vickers.
I think L.L. Bean Signature collection is going to give J.Crew a run for its money, especially if it’s not going to be as over priced as some of the J.Crew dresses. Some of my faves in the photos released so far: the long blue nautical dress, the knee length denim dress, the Breton stripe tops, navy cardigan with gold buttons and all the bags in the collection. Photos are not up on the L.L. Bean signature site yet but I was able to snag a few from their flickr account and from The Fabulous Report, which attended the unveiling of the collection last week.
