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Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

nytimes.com

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Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#51

Post by SnacksOnAPlane »

REI is my favorite toy store. I know their prices are higher than, say, Wal-Mart, but I actually feel good supporting them. Plus, you can find insanely good sales if you're a member and you go to their garage sales.

One year I got an entire ski setup (boots, skis, bindings, and installation) for under $300. Ended up reselling them for like $500 3 years later when I moved away from Boston.

Got great boots at a garage sale for like $30, too. You just have to be prepared to get there early and scavenge.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#52

Post by Bartweiss »

macNchz wrote: post #9

I have a lot of appreciation for the fact that, despite how large the company has become, it's very clear that outdoorsiness is still a big part of the REI's DNA, especially with so many companies these days owned by private equity firms that seem to be most interested in milking their brands for all they're worth.

EMS used to be a go-to of mine. High prices, but good student discounts and sales. I stuck with them because they were incredibly good to their customers - they actually cared about getting people outside and had permanent return/replace on their gear.

But... then an equity firm bought them out. The discounts shrunk, the warranty vanished, and even for material defects within a year there's enormous flak when you try to get support.

REI has been my go-to ever since. They're the only big outdoor supplier left that seems to actually give a damn about what they're selling.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#53

Post by Bartweiss »

mbesto wrote: post #10
macNchz wrote: post #9

I have a lot of appreciation for the fact that, despite how large the company has become, it's very clear that outdoorsiness is still a big part of the REI's DNA, especially with so many companies these days owned by private equity firms that seem to be most interested in milking their brands for all they're worth.

It's worth noting that REI is a co-op, which means it's owners are actually it's customers.

I'd never actually dealt with a co-op before REI. The profits shared aren't huge, but combined with the membership discount it's often cheaper than shopping online resellers. I'm impressed.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#54

Post by Bartweiss »

avar wrote: post #37
dirtae wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where do you recommend shopping for outdoors gear that offers a significantly better value than REI? The gear at REI is not cheap, for sure, but it's also high quality. You can get cheaper gear at big box stores and discounters, but it will also fall apart more quickly, often negating the lower price. When shopping for gear, I look around and check Backcountry.com, Moosejaw, and other retailers, and on average, REI's…

A lot of mountaineering gear costs a lot , but lasts for a really long time. It's like buying a car in some ways. So your go-to solution should be to buy used. There's no shortage of people who bought an $800 backpack along with $2000 of other gear, who thought they'd be using them regularly, who later find out that they made a significant investment in a hobby they don't care much about. Unless you're swimming in mo…

> A lot of mountaineering gear costs a lot, but lasts for a really long time.

Precisely. REI has some stuff which is wildly overpriced - I wouldn't buy hiking shorts there. But if I'm buying climbing gear, no one will sell it cheap anywhere. REI dividends and a good warranty make the competitive, because I'm expecting to keep the gear for a decade or more.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#55

Post by Bartweiss »

dirtae wrote: post #36
hueving wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except for the insane prices for everything, sure. It's great for people with money to burn, but it's definitely not a good place to shop if you're into outdoor activities and not rich.

Where do you recommend shopping for outdoors gear that offers a significantly better value than REI? The gear at REI is not cheap, for sure, but it's also high quality. You can get cheaper gear at big box stores and discounters, but it will also fall apart more quickly, often negating the lower price. When shopping for gear, I look around and check Backcountry.com, Moosejaw, and other retailers, and on average, REI's…

I think it depends on what you're getting. REI is very pricy for common or short-lifespan gear like hiking shorts - you can do much better with Backcountry or Sierra Trading Post. But for quality, long-lived gear (rope, tents, etc) you're not going to find it cheap anywhere at all.

I usually end up comparing REI with Moosejaw + Activejunky, and it's a tossup which one will be cheaper.

(If you haven't tried Activejunky, do. It's usually another 5-15% off while shopping through other sites.)

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#56

Post by ghaff »

Bartweiss wrote: post #52
macNchz wrote: post #9

I have a lot of appreciation for the fact that, despite how large the company has become, it's very clear that outdoorsiness is still a big part of the REI's DNA, especially with so many companies these days owned by private equity firms that seem to be most interested in milking their brands for all they're worth.

EMS used to be a go-to of mine. High prices, but good student discounts and sales. I stuck with them because they were incredibly good to their customers - they actually cared about getting people outside and had permanent return/replace on their gear. But... then an equity firm bought them out. The discounts shrunk, the warranty vanished, and even for material defects within a year there's enormous flak when you try…

Although REI also eliminated their lifetime guarantee.

It's apparently really hard for this type of store to scale and stay at least somewhat aligned with their initial vision. They almost all become clothing and gear stores oriented to well-off urbanites who want to project an outdoorsy vibe. I agree that, among relatively large chains, REI has stayed closer to its roots than most.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#57

Post by knz »

coldpie wrote: post #44
rusanu wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I love how they close the stores on Black Friday[1] and invite members to spend the day outdoors. https://www.rei.com/black-friday

In a similar vein, the state parks of Minnesota usually charge a fee for parking and sometimes for entrance, but those fees are waived on Black Friday. I call it State Park Friday and my wife and I go for a short hike every year :)

State Park passes are cheap enough in MN. If you enjoy them consider an annual pass to support the DNR and enjoy the parks year round!

I wish they would just wrap a state park pass up with the conservation plates...

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#58

Post by knz »

oh_sigh wrote: post #17
macNchz wrote: post #9

I have a lot of appreciation for the fact that, despite how large the company has become, it's very clear that outdoorsiness is still a big part of the REI's DNA, especially with so many companies these days owned by private equity firms that seem to be most interested in milking their brands for all they're worth.

Yeah...REI is definitely doing it right. The amount of love and loyalty the company gets from it's customers is awe inspiring.

They had some drama a few years ago with how staff were treated.

http://gizmodo.com/rei-ceo-goes-on-reddit-employees-reveal-h... (first Google link)

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#59

Post by up_and_up »

avar wrote: post #37
dirtae wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where do you recommend shopping for outdoors gear that offers a significantly better value than REI? The gear at REI is not cheap, for sure, but it's also high quality. You can get cheaper gear at big box stores and discounters, but it will also fall apart more quickly, often negating the lower price. When shopping for gear, I look around and check Backcountry.com, Moosejaw, and other retailers, and on average, REI's…

A lot of mountaineering gear costs a lot , but lasts for a really long time. It's like buying a car in some ways. So your go-to solution should be to buy used. There's no shortage of people who bought an $800 backpack along with $2000 of other gear, who thought they'd be using them regularly, who later find out that they made a significant investment in a hobby they don't care much about. Unless you're swimming in mo…

> So your go-to solution should be to buy used.

Unless you are talking about mountaineering gear like anything climbing related: ropes, cams etc.

How in the heck can you trust that used gear will work 100%? I would rather spend more $$ to reduce risk.

Re: Mary Anderson, a Founder of the Outdoor Cooperative REI, Dies at 107

#60

Post by semi-extrinsic »

bmj wrote: post #47
scottcha wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Looks like a daisy chain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75XNCMKW7XE

Technical climbers will often refer to this as an electrician's coil[0] because a daisy chain[1] is a specific type of runner. [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaEv9wm6gy0 [1] https://www.rei.com/product/113898/black-diamond-12mm-dynex-...

The electrician's coil is very nice, especially the quick unraveling. I always re-tie survival bracelets into these kinds of braids - I dunno who has five minutes to untie their regular-braid survival bracelets in case of emergency.
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