REI coming to Tucson

[Sredfield]

August 26, 2008

CONTACT: REI Public Affairs (253) 395-5958

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

REI to Open a Store in Tucson, Ariz. at the Tucson Mall

Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI), a national retail cooperative providing quality outdoor gear and clothing, today announced plans to open a new store in Tucson, Ariz. at the Tucson Mall in the spring of 2009.

The 28,000 square-foot, two-story location will offer the top brands of outdoor gear and apparel for camping, climbing, cycling, fitness, hiking, paddling and travel, including the co-op's award-winning REI and Novara products. Additional store features include a gear rental department that will help encourage members and customers to explore new outdoor activities, a bike shop where technicians will provide quick assemblies or repairs, and a community space that REI and non-profit partners can utilize for classes, presentations and events.

"From rock climbing to cycling to camping, Tucson is home to some of the best places to recreate in the great outdoors," said Doug Schmidt, REI retail director for the Southwest district. "With more than 5,800 active REI members residing in the area, we're excited to prepare them and other outdoor enthusiasts with the knowledge and right gear for their next adventure."

REI is dedicated to inspiring, educating and outfitting its members and customers for a lifetime of outdoor adventure and stewardship. As part of that commitment, the co-op partners with non-profit conservation and outdoor organizations in its communities through education, volunteerism, gear donations and financial contributions. In 2007, the company provided nearly $60,000 through grant support to nine nonprofit partners in Arizona, including Volunteers for Outdoor Arizona, which works to connect volunteers to stewardship opportunities across the state.

The Tucson REI will be the third location in Arizona, joining stores in Tempe, Ariz. and Paradise Valley, Ariz., which have served members and customers since 1986 and 1996 respectively. Through the company's work in these communities, the co-op helped organize nine conservation and restoration projects with more than 510 volunteers, who provided nearly 3,100 hours of service in the past year.

Hiring clinics will occur approximately two months prior to the store's opening, where the co-op will recruit approximately 60 employees who share a passion for the outdoors and quality customer service.

While anyone may shop at REI, members pay a one-time $20 fee and receive a share in the company's profits through an annual member refund based on their purchases. Based on the co-op's 2007 sales, $62.8 million was distributed to its active members through the annual patronage dividend earlier this year.

About REI

REI is a national outdoor retail co-op dedicated to inspiring, educating and outfitting its members and the community for a lifetime of outdoor adventure and stewardship. Founded in 1938 by a group of Pacific Northwest mountaineers seeking quality equipment, REI is committed to promoting environmental stewardship and increasing access to outdoor recreation through volunteerism, gear donations and financial contributions.

Carla Olson
Outreach Specialist | REI Paradise Valley
12634 N. Paradise Village Pkwy W.
Phoenix, AZ 85032
(602) 996 - 5400 x204

[hikeaz]

It's amazing to me that they've not opened one down there years ago. Kinda like there not being a Trader Joe's in Flag. Puzzling.

[te_wa]

It's amazing to me that they've not opened one down there years ago. Kinda like there not being a Trader Joe's in Flag. Puzzling.

you got that right.
personally i am wishing for a Prolite Gear or a Backcountry store to come to town. any town.
a trader joe's in FH would be nice...

[azbackpackr]

The scuttlebutt I've heard says that Dave Baker will close Summit Hut if REI comes to town, because he's about ready to retire, anyway.

So I guess I won't be able to find any shoes that fit me in Tucson any more. I already know I won't find them at REI!! I will have to go to that place in the Valley everyone has told me about, is it Arizona Hiking Shack? Where the salesmen are trained shoe fitters? Where is that place, anyway?

[mttgilbert]

It's amazing to me that they've not opened one down there years ago. Kinda like there not being a Trader Joe's in Flag. Puzzling.

REI uses it's membership base to determine where to open stores. It hasn't been until recently that there have been enough members in Tucson to open a store there. Being a member is more or less a vote cast; be it for a store in your area, or the kind of items the store sells.

Hopefully an REI in Tucson won't prompt the shut-down of SH though, competition breeds better services/products. And it sucks to see local merchants leave the scene.

[JimmyLyding]

Arizona Hiking Shack is on Cave Creek Road south of Thunderbird/Cactus (Cactus turns into T-Bird @ Cave Creek Rd.) on the east side of the street.

[dysfunction]

yea, I hope SH stays open. It's bad enough we've lost Bob's Bargain Barn in deference to Popular, which shut down in the end anyway

[azbackpackr]

I loved Bob's Bargain Barn when I lived down in Tucson. It shut down due to Popular, which went under after all.

[writelots]

I loved Bobs' Bargin Barn, and Popular. I remember when Popular was Popular Surplus in Phoenix back before they changed their model in the 90's to compete with Sports Authority and the like. I was a Happy Camper for a lot of years.

SH is a wonderful local resource, but they're going to have trouble competing price-wise. I only have so much extra money that I can use to support local business...

[dysfunction]

what do you mean? Their prices are almost identical to REI's.

[Jeffshadows]

Summit Hut isn't going anywhere. The only thing REI will bring is wider selection, IMHO. I might go once when it opens if I can stomach a trip to Tucson Mall. REI will appeal to that ever-growing throng of displaced Oregonians, Nevadans, and Cali-fugees that are taking up temporary residence en route to a place that actually has jobs for them because it's what they know and where they have been going for years. I seriously doubt we will see folks depart shopping at SH en mass and start shopping at REI...

[azbackpackr]

I shop mostly online, and I generally avoid REI, even though I've been a member since 1970. It has gotten too big.

[fricknaley]

when is the tucson REI slated to open?

i agree, MacE, the added selection will be nice. i also agree, tucson mall is painful.

[dysfunction]

If anyone has heard anything other than "spring" I'd like to know too. Maybe I'll ask when I'm up in Tempe next weekend, if I hear anything then I'll post up, but I agree, I hate even driving over by the mall these days.

[Jeffshadows]

It's funny...when you pull off of first into that shopping center, you can immediately tell who is there for the WalMart and who is there for the SH by their driving...

[dysfunction]

I've only been to that SH once, but even I noticed that

[azbackpackr]

Sigh...I used to actually WORK at that mall, when I first moved to Tucson in '86. The Walmart hadn't been built yet. I would go there for my job but I shopped at Target!

After they built the Walmart on Wetmore, and the other complexes on the east side of 1st Ave. it was always so noisy in our neighborhood, and also we no longer had dark skies at night. We lived over there on Limberlost in that big mobile home park for 10 years, Vista Del Norte, the one by Rio Vista School. Back then it really felt as though we were on the edge of town, because we had the Rillito on one side, the Campbell Farms on the other, and everything else was just a lot of very big vacant lots. The kids rode their bikes everywhere, there were lots of jumps and trails. People still kept horses and chickens all over that area.

The Summit Hut didn't move in there until the year after I moved up to the White Mtns. I usually do stop in there whenever I'm back in my old neighborhood (about once a year or so.) Is there still a bicycle shop next to it? I always went to the main Summit Hut back then, because there WAS only one!

I was also a Happy Camper, of course!

[Azbackcountry]

I will shop at REI when and if they open here in Tucson. For the most part, I do 90% of my hiking/camping/fishing gear shopping online simply because there are killer deals to be had if you know where and how to look for the items you want. Heck I just scored an ACR terrafix 406 I/O PLB, montbell ultralight down jacket, NRS endurance jacket and pants for packrafting, neoprene socks, paddle leash, and stohlquist getaway pfd all for barely under 5 bills. If I had bought all those items at SH or REI or some other place in person, I would have easily spent over 1k....

I have been to SH twice now that I can recall, and both were rather unpleasant experiences that has left me with a severe hatred for that place. Both times I was there it seemed as if the staff went out of their way to avoid me and help other customers who even came in after I had. No one greeted me, and when I tracked down a staff member to ask a question I got a short one line answer and she turned and walked off. Rude staff with rude attitudes....thats all I found at SH. Now I am not sure if their sales ppl work on commission or not, but I don't look like your average hiker/backpacker/camper so that may be why. From now on if I do go there...it will only be to try on shoes to see what size fits me so I can order them online.

[Jeffshadows]

You mean you didn't look like an unemployed hippie? No wonder they gave you no respect!! Seriously though, I've had the same problem over the years. They get new staff who look down their nose at you for having taken a shower that morning and I just smile and think: "I've been coming here longer than this person has been old enough to work." ;)

[writelots]

SH employees are definitely a crap shoot. But, I've had better luck with them than with the folks at REI up in Phoenix. Overall, most of my shopping is done online, too. I think the stores are great for last-minute-gotta-haves, but when you do all the research, they just never have the selection or the price or both. I like REI becuase I can take ANYTHING back to them, even if my clumbsy, awkward arse broke it. That's a nice bonus. They never even say "how the HECK did you manage to do that?".