L.L.Bean Store Opens in Naperville This October on Route 59

L.L.Bean is ready to boot up this October at 336 S. Route 59 in Naperville's Westridge Court, a company spokesperson confirmed.

The outdoor clothing and lifestyle brand will take over a spot formerly occupied by Bed Bath & Beyond, located between the Wayfair Outlet store and Five Below. That storefront has been vacant since 2023, when Bed Bath & Beyond declared bankruptcy.

We've had some temporary tenants in there so we've had short-term retailers but this is the first long-term lease that we've signed for that location, said Rich Dippolito, vice president of redevelopment for Brixmor Property Group, which owns Westridge Court and neighboring Block 59.

Conversations between L.L.Bean and Brixmor started last year, Dippolito said. As a company, he said he believed L.L.Bean differentiated itself with a strong in-store shopping experience, a feature he wanted to bring to the Brixmor developments in the area.

L.L.Bean was attracted to the city's Block 59 dining and entertainment complex, Dippolito said. L.L.Bean spokesperson Jason Sulham said that Naperville was chosen for a location because it has a strong customer base in the region.

With Westridge Court being more retail focused and Block 59 being more oriented to dining and entertainment, the two shopping centers are creating a strong synergy along Route 59, Dippolito said.

L.L.Bean was the perfect addition to that mix, Dippolito said.

We consider L.L.Bean to be a best-in-class anchor. They provide a great customer experience, they said. They really provide a great product. They specialize in outdoor lifestyle clothing and products so that that experiential component to what they do blends in well with the experiences we are creating with Block 59.

L.L.Bean's new 16,000-square-foot store will feature all of the items the company is known for, including the brand's iconic Bean Boot and canvas tote bag known as the Boat and Tote, Sulham said.

The Naperville location is part of a wider expansion for the more-than-a-century-old retailer, which plans to open eight stores this year. It will be the company's fourth in Illinois.

Founded in Maine, L.L.Bean's origins date back to 1911 when Leon Leonwood Bean invented his hunting shoe, also known as the duck boot, by combining leather uppers with rubber bottoms, according to its website.

The company launched in 1912 as a mail-order business, followed five years later by a storefront in Freeport, Maine, where it is now the flagship store, and over the years expanded its catalog to include jackets, flannels, duffle bags and other items.

L.L.Bean began rolling out retail stores in 2000 just as other catalog merchants, including Coldwater Creek and J. Jill, began to dabble in operating brick-and-mortar stores, according to a Chicago Tribune article. But after opening three locations in three years, it reevaluated its decision, citing unique challenges with running retail shops.

In 2005, it restarted its retail rollout and made its Midwest debut in 2008 with its South Barrington location. In-person retail shopping has since been a huge success for the brand, officials said.

In addition to L.L.Bean, Dippolito noted that two buildings that will house a total of five new restaurants are in works for Block 59. He declined to name the restaurants moving in, but said that construction on the buildings will begin either later this year or in spring 2027.

The restaurants will open either in the later half of 2027 or in the beginning of 2028.

L.L.Bean opens this October in Naperville

• Location: 336 S. Route 59 in Westridge Court
• Size: 16,000 square feet
• Timeline: Opens this October
• Former tenant: Bed Bath & Beyond (vacant since 2023)
• Developer: Brixmor Property Group
• Part of expansion: Eight stores nationwide this year, fourth in Illinois