Without trying to be heavy about it, nothing quite so well describes the degree to which Lands' End relies on our suppliers as these lines from John Donne, a poet of the late 16th Century:

"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main."
What is true of people is even more true of a company — at least our company. We are by no means self-sufficient; we are, to the contrary, highly dependent on a wide range of partnerships we have been at pains to build with some very fine people and companies around the world. Without their acceptance of our commitment to quality, and their creative contribution to achieving it, we could not offer our customers the values we do, nor could we unequivocably say of them — every last item we offer — GUARANTEED. PERIOD.®

More often than not, our buyers start the process.
Lands' End relies on a select group of buyers and in-house designers to whom we give a tremendous amount of latitude in exercising their talents. We encourage them to prowl the world to seek out the best sources of products, and in the course of their travels they come to know the mills and plants that excel in the particular development and manufacture of certain specific products, or the fabrics from which such products might be made.

Once such a supplier is discovered, one of our Quality Assurance people pays a visit to that plant and requests an opportunity to be taken through the whole process of manufacture. An information-gathering visit, as it were, and one in which we value an exchange of views, with the goal of achieving concurrence on some demanding standards we can both feel happy about.

Once an alliance is formed, we rely on it heavily.
While we are known in the marketplace as "tough customers," the suppliers with whom we work are often-times equally tough. We customarily say to them, "What can we add to this product to make it better?" This is a far more welcome question to good suppliers than the one they more frequently hear: "What can we eliminate from this product to make it cheaper?" It invites them to do their best and they appreciate the chance to do so.

Amazing what such alliances can do.
Our buyers spend less time looking over their desks at charts on the wall than they do looking over the shoulders of people in the plants that join us in the constant improvement of our products. Time and again, suppliers rise to the occasion. Here is just one instance:

One of our dress shirt suppliers set us straight when we asked for 14 to 16 stitches per inch on the outside seams of shirts. They told us we would be better off specifying 18 stitches per inch. We quickly concurred. This same supplier confesses to thinking of Lands' End as companions in manufacture. In turn, we think well enough of them to share 12- to 18-month forecasts with them, which permits them to cut material ahead in what are called "anticipation cuts." This is a hedge against demand we could not otherwise satisfy.

We must not neglect mention of those who contribute in other ways.
While most of our suppliers are those who manufacture the quality products we supply to our customers, there are others who make their contributions to Lands' End in more subtle ways.

How about R.R. Donnelley, the printing giant? They've moved heaven and earth to make sure our catalogs always come out on time, with all the merchandise in accurate, living color.

Hard to consider an effervescent personality like Archie Lieberman a "supplier" — sounds too cold! Yet he's certainly "supplied" us with some dramatic photographs over the years. As have Dick Boyer, Stuart Block, and others. And friends like Ted Carr and Mark McMahon have done the same with their lively artwork.

Or how about Milt Martinson, the architect who's helped keep a roof over our heads? Or... well, you get the idea. Not all our suppliers are merchandise suppliers. Some supply services too, services we couldn't do without.

We hereby give them all a grateful embrace!

In conclusion, a testimonial from our founder.
In our July 1988 catalog, Gary Comer had this to say about our Lands' End suppliers and our regard for them:

"We have learned to cherish those suppliers who share our obsession with quality, wherever they call home. Most of them, more than 250, are located in the United States. Some are located in the British Isles, others on the Pacific Rim."

Frankly, we think the world of them, one and all!

Lands' End Standards of Business Conduct