(Ryan Pierce, Owner | Photo courtesy of Les Newman’s)
The first Les Newman’s opened their doors in Downtown Salem, Oregon, over 100 years ago in 1923, offering tough, reliable and durable workwear. Then, in 1999, after decades of serving the town of Salem, they expanded with a second location, selecting a rapidly growing mountain town with plenty of sunny summers and powder-packed winters: Bend. In 2005, the Salem location tragically burned down and in the aftermath of the fire, the owners decided not to pursue reopening that location, leaving Bend as the sole remaining Les Newman’s.
Les Newman’s is run by Ryan Pierce, the nephew of the previous owner, Greg Syverson. Pierce spent years away from the family business, managing a residential cleaning company in Portland for 14 years, and being the director of facilities and IT at a school/church for another three years. Pierce had run the Salem location until the fire, and said that, despite his time away after losing that location, “family is family, and we stayed close. The transition into running the Bend location was a smooth one.”…