LL Bean Duck Boots Fly Off Shelves: What To Expect For Holiday

FREEPORT, ME — Sales of L.L. Bean's iconic leather-and-rubber "duck boot" have climbed for several years in a row, and the company now expects to sell about 750,000 this year — 100,000 more than 2016. But holiday shoppers need not fret — the retailer says there will be plenty available for the year's biggest shopping season.

The company has rid itself of most of the backlog for boots and doesn't expect inventory issues during the holiday shopping season, said company spokeswoman Carolyn Beem.

"We are working fast and furious to keep up," Beem said. "We have been expanding year over year over year."

Customers have grown accustomed to having to wait for their boots around the holidays in recent years. There remain some backlogs for "small batch boots," which have different styles and colors, Beem said.

But production of the traditional boot has been aided by the addition of a new building that doubles production space in Lewiston, where components of the boots are made.

The "duck boot" has been around for more than 100 years and is immortalized by a giant boot outside L.L. Bean's home store in Freeport. L.L. Bean has said it wants to top a million sold next year.

Photo credit: Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press