REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.) is an American consumer cooperative that sells outdoor gear and sporting goods via the Web, catalogs, and more than 80 stores in 25 states. It opens 6 to 8 new stores each year. 2005 sales exceeded $1 billion.

REI was founded in Seattle in 1938 by Lloyd and Mary Anderson. The Andersons imported an Academ Pickel ice axe from Austria for themselves, and decided to set up a cooperative to help outdoor enthusiasts acquire good quality climbing gear at reasonable prices. REI is now the largest consumer cooperative in the United States, with over 2.5 million active members (those making a purchase in the past 12 months), and a total of about 8 million members since its inception.

REI normally pays a annual dividend (rebate) to its members of 10% of what they purchased in the prior year, although this is not guaranteed. The rebate can be taken in cash or as credit to be used for purchases. There is a one-time, non-refundable fee of $15 to join.

REI is headquartered in Kent, Washington. Its flagship store is in the Cascade neighborhood of Seattle at the southern end of Eastlake Avenue East. It has a distribution center in Sumner, Washington and is planning to open a second distribution center in Bedford, Pennsylvania sometime in 2007.

REI employs over 7,000 people, most of them in the stores, many of whom are part-time. REI has been ranked in the top 100 Companies to Work for in the United States by Fortune Magazine for several years running. Employees receive discounts of up to 50% on merchandise and free use of rental gear.

REI designs and sells its own private-brand gear, either under the REI name or under another label, such as Novara bicycles, although the majority of what it sells is brand-name merchandise from other companies. It competes as a full-service retailer, with a fully-integrated website (including order-on-the-web, pick up at a store, no shipping fee), rather than as a low-price retailer. Local stores often host (typically free) events, including clinics on outdoor topics and bicycle repair. The company also has a division, REI Adventures, that offers guided tours (hiking, cycling, etc.). Coming soon to many areas, REI will be doing local trips originating from the stores in order to give people an ideas of the adventures in their own neighborhoods.

Major competitors in the United States include the for-profit national and regional stores Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Eastern Mountain Sports, Gander Mountain, L. L. Bean, Sport Chalet, and Sportman's Warehouse, as well as national sporting goods retailers such as The Sports Authority, Big 5 Sporting Goods, and Dick's Sporting Goods, web pureplays such as Altrec.com and Backcountry.com, and a host of local independent retailers.

Mountain Equipment Co-op is a comparable cooperative in Canada.

External links

• REI official site

Cooperatives | Sporting goods retailers of the United States | Companies based in Washington