Wolverine to close Maine shoe factory

PORTLAND – Production of Sebago shoes is coming to an end in Maine and the famous brand will join the likes of G.H. Bass, Dexter and Cole Haan in making shoes at factories outside the United States.

Sebago, which made shoes at a Westbrook plant, was purchased last year by Wolverine World Wide, the Michigan company whose major brands include Hush Puppy and Merrell, officials said Tuesday.

Sebago employed about 360 workers in Westbrook and Bridgton two years ago but the number had dwindled to 75 in Westbrook when the announcement was made. The Bridgton plant was closed last year.

“There’s a lot of sadness about it. There’s no joy in Mudville, I’ll tell you that,” said Dan Wellehan, Sebago’s former owner.

Wolverine World Wide, which completed its purchase of Sebago last November, announced Monday it was closing Sebago’s plant in April. Officials were on hand to talk to workers Tuesday.

Wellehan, whose father founded Sebago Inc. in Westbrook after World War II, said he had tried to keep the company afloat even as others closed. .

Wellehan, who turned 70 in December, said he ultimately decided to sell the operation while it was healthy to eliminate the possibility that it would be liquidated if he died.

He said he had hoped Wolverine would give the Maine workers a chance to prove themselves. But he said the company must have concluded the Maine operation would never meet its profit margin requirements.

“Frankly, we could live with margins that would satisfy us but would not be adequate for a publicly traded company,” he said Tuesday evening.

The Maine shoe industry, which accounted for 27,000 jobs at its peak in 1968, is only a shadow of what it once was.

New Balance operates two factories and Allen Edmonds maintains a presence through Lewiston’s Maine Shoe. There are a few specialty companies, but the rest of the major manufacturers have left.

The Sebago name won’t fade away. Like Hathaway shirts and Dexter, G.H. Bass and Cole-Haan shoes, Sebago’s name will continue on products made at factories in countries where the labor is cheaper.

When Wolverine World Wide completed the purchase in November, the company said it would update Sebago’s products this fall, and that it planned a major brand relaunch in spring of next year.

Sebago’s shoes will be produced in the Dominican Republic, where some of their shoes have been produced in the past.