R.E.I.

R.E.I. (Recreational Equipment Inc.) is a sporting goods and outdoor gear consumer cooperative. Founded in Seattle, Washington in 1938, it is the largest consumer cooperative in the United States, with over 2.5 million members and about 70 stores in 25 states (it opens 6 to 8 new stores each year). Its 7,000 employees are offered large discounts on products it sells (prodeals), and it pays a dividend of 10% on purchases to its members (virtually every year, although this is not guaranteed), in cash or store credit. There is a one-time, non-refundable fee of $15 to join.

R.E.I.'s headquarters are in Kent, Washington. Its flagship store is in the Cascade neighborhood of Seattle.

R.E.I. designs and sells its own private-brand gear, either under the REI name or under another label, such as Novara bikes, although the majority of what it sells is brand-name mechandise 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-cost (or lower quality) retailer. Local stores often host (typically free) events, including clinics on outdoor topics.

Major competitors in the United States (all for-profit) include Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Eastern Mountain Sports, Gander Mountain, L.L. Bean, Sport Chalet, and Sportman's Warehouseand, as well as national sporting goods retailers such as Sports Authority, Big 5, and Dick's Sporting Goods and a host of local independent retailers.

External links

• R.E.I.