L.L. Bean has announced that it will close its Bangor call center next

May, as a direct result of a decline in call volumes associated with an

increase in online shopping.

“To try and make this as painless as possible for employees, we wanted

to notify them as far in advance as we could. In addition, we are

offering them the option of working at other L.L. Bean facilities along

with relocation support, work from their homes, or severance packages

will be given to those who decide not to continue working for the

company,” company spokesman Mac McKeever said Thursday is a press release. “This was a very difficult decision to make. The workforce in Bangor is top-notch. They are world-class, highly motivated and engaged employees and our strong wish is to retain as many of the employees from Bangor as we can.”