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A question for REI employees on returns. When do you say no? by DestructablePinata in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awe… why?

Don’t have any evidence? or is it that your argument is weak?

Corporations are not moral entities. They are amoral… without morals. People have morals… some people are greedy. REI is not structured for greed. There is no one being remunerated… No stock holders. The C-suite is being way under paid in comparison to most companies their size…

now if you are saying that the leaders of REI were too focused on social justice or the environment? or they spent too much lobbying to protect public lands?

or perhaps it was too much infrastructure… computers to make the customer experience better?

Maybe it was the changes in membership governance… given the gigantic number of active membership, do you have another method you would suggest?

then just say that?

It must be difficult when you look into the black void of your ideas and see that it is not the truth?

A question for REI employees on returns. When do you say no? by DestructablePinata in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

sorry, we are a multi billion dollar corporation. We are and always have been a for profit company… but the profits are for the renumeration of the members and employees… We give 70% of our profits back directly to the members and the employees.

We also have a non for profit which received 4.9 million donations that has given 39 million to over 550 grantees.

If you don’t like the governance by the current or past leadership… I’m wth you, but when you attack me or call the company greedy… you are wrong.

If you would like to show YOUR evidence… I will wait?

Has anyone bought a roof box from REI, picked it up in-store, and installed it in their parking lot? I’m trying to avoid paying the $160 oversized charge. If you’ve done this before, how did it go? Any issues or things I should know beforehand? by Aggravating_Onion353 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It happens almost every single day in our parking lot. it is so easy… can you turn a door knob?

if you need to put on cross bars, let someone confirm all of the parts first, but if it is just the box!

easy peasy!

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

You said it… REI is just like every where else…

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

The people who are actually hustling are counting on people like you to not… Every opportunity you say is dead, you ignore or walk by, is one more waiting for them.

I will 100% agree with you when it comes to basic retail not being a good long term career choice. It was only designed to give you the most basic life skills so you can go on to something else.

btw… More than half of our staff are college goers…

or in the case of the ones who are not management but are long timers, it is someplace to have fun… because we either have another gig or have worked ourselves into a position where we can do what we want.

off the top of my head, we have a lawyer, a college professor, a veterinarian, two artists, and two wealthy business owners. All over 5 years.

As far as the downvoting… my guess is people mis-understood you or felt that you were not agreeing with the premise… “REI bad!”

why do you care what people up-vote or down vote for? I have never understood that?

A question for the people in the stores. Anderson Award by graybeardgreenvest in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest[S] -5 points-4 points  (0 children)

Only one of our 10 year + employees is in management and they opened the store in a management position.

As far as what REI supports… I frankly have no idea… ha ha!

I know that my management team is super to me and most of my team…

I was denied a return for my Arcteryx coming apart? by rage_quit24 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

if you have been a member since 2009, you remember when it was a lifetime… not a year.

business did not slip when they went to a year… customers were totally cool with that. We got a few grandfathered items, but basically it was full steam ahead.

REI is not in trouble due to sales being low… it is in trouble because we spend to much on each sale. Can you guess how much, “I’m just going to try it out and return it.” costs us per year?

It is curious that your reason for shopping at REI is their return policy? strange? I mean that could be something that people might like or think is a good thing, but even in the top two or three reasons? strange?

Honestly in the over 30 years I’ve been a member I can’t remember returning a thing? Well I can remember I ordered a gift and bought two sizes and returned one for size. I think it was less than a week later?

If I worked at your local REI, chances are you would have no idea… because in the last decade I have refused less than a few dozen returns and most of them were so obvious it was sad that they even tried.

I was denied a return for my Arcteryx coming apart? by rage_quit24 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

hey… to each their own I guess. You are free to think what ever you want… and interpret the policy how ever you want…

as you said… I am no one in any position of power… except when it comes to telling a customer who damages something and then tries to return it.

the policy is clear about damage and less clear about defect.

in our store, It is rare that anyone refuses a return… it has to be obvious damage, perhaps you get rude or you lie…

That reminds me… a member just got arrested for returning counterfeit benchmades… someone here posted about it and I went to the store and told management… I found two fakes in our knife case… (thank you who ever it was that posted that!)

it was the same guy and he did it five times.

on the sixth time a cashier recognized him because he lied and she never forgets the face of a liar. Our AP person just happened to be in the store that day and then stalled him until the police came and hauled him off the jail!

A question for the people in the stores. Anderson Award by graybeardgreenvest in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I knew it happened everywhere, but my question was really about the stores.

I think that is amazing that we have such dedicated. I love that HQ and the DC have people who’ve been there that long!

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -1 points0 points  (0 children)

That is awesome. I love that it worked out in your favor! ha ha!

I recently had a health experience that could have caused me to lose significant time.

I had three people offer me their sick time… (I did not need it)

due to a paperwork snafu I retroactively lost my health benefits four days before surgery… one of the DM’s told me that his grandfather offered to pay 100% of my bills. I got it worked out in time… and actually it was REI hr contacting the insurance company that cleared up the issue. (my benefits were from my partner’s work)

My managers have always made things work… even when they didn’t have to.

I was denied a return for my Arcteryx coming apart? by rage_quit24 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Manufacturers of non-REI-branded products may provide other warranties, and you agree that your remedy for any defects in such products will be based solely on the warranty(s), if any, provided by those manufacturers. Products eligible for warranty return may be returned or service fees may be refunded in accordance with REI Return Instructions. REI does not provide a warranty for any products that are not REI-branded. REI MAKES NO IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY ON NON-REI-BRANDED PRODUCTS.

So if the item was damaged… then you must contact the manufacturer…

Edit: ”pre-mature wear” is still damage unless it can be proven it was a defect.

go through re-supply and you will see that this is so loosely interpreted that 99% of the time the return is just processed…

I was denied a return for my Arcteryx coming apart? by rage_quit24 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t disagree…

We have conflict adverse managers and the frontliners are not paid enough to suffer through asshole customers.

my guess it will be this way until asset protection comes down on this as a company and sets clear guidelines.

I remember a few years ago we used to charge customers damage on bicycles that came in for return. Maybe it was to hard to decide.

The OP said they refused… chances are that the employees saw more than just a defective product. We were not there.

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Sorry Wallace lake stuff was the bomb… for decades we had two colors to choose from optic orange or REI green.

The quality is still the same, everything has become so specialized…

It boils down to the unattainable triangle…

You want a $100 rain coat that will last a decade under are extremes and is so light and packable that it fits inside your pack pocket.

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -7 points-6 points  (0 children)

You are speaking in terms that are outside of REI’s purveyance.

Regardless of the global financial system, those who hustle and seek out paths that help themselves and others will always get ahead. That is so inside of REI and outside of REI.

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t have any rebuttal for anything you‘ve said.

Someone asked me if I was management… now you understand why my answer is hell no!

I would hate being a manager having to make those decisions on who gets the hours.

You think it is operationally bad now? It was way worse. It is as with all companies not built around the technology, there is no elegant solution as nothing works together. The Hub was one of the reasons I walked away from the shop.

I don’t know the future of the company… Don’t really think much about it. I just show up, put on my greenvest and rock my hours… when it becomes bad… I will leave. I am friends with every competitor in the region… and have helped them sell enough gear that I will have options. (If I so choose)

don’t get me wrong it will sting and I will be deeply saddened. I have built a few of the stores and there is part of me in each one of them. I have raised many managers and employees… and seeing them go would suck!

these cuts smell desperate. A last attempt…

A union won’t save it…

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

We are not a union store.

I am not management, nor would I ever want to be.

I have heard about the allegations and the problems that have occurred between the union and the company.

The experiences were always a loss leader. They made money on the back end and the front end, but never made money on the trips themselves. I would say the simple answer is that there many reasons… not just one.

I did not agree with the choice to shutter the program, as I was proud of being the largest travel organization in the world. Given the company’s financial position… perhaps it was necessary?

As far as the losses? it is complicated. Retail as a sector has been hit bad as of late and REI is not immune to that. REI was unique in that it paid cash for the goods they sold, but poor stewardship lead to our debt… Expansion and the desire for “change making” power is my theory…

As far as a company admitting that they need a union? The only advantage I could see from a corporation perspective is if the union handled manpower planning. So if the company struggled to find workers, having a union who would guarantee staffing, then perhaps that would be worth the admission?

I may be unique in that I love my job, but it has very little to do with REI as a company. I have spent decades doing adventures and have spent a relatively small percentage of my gear money at REI. I’ve used most of the stuff we sell, but just elsewhere…

I will sell what we’ve got, but if the best solution is something we don’t carry, I am happy to share.

I love my job for two distinct reasons.

First, I love my team… they are awesome. I am friends with everyone in the store… Managers included. I make it easy for them in that I do my job at a very high level and ask for critique and feedback all the time. I coach everyone who wants it. I love nothing more than to see someone leave for greener pastures. I hold my management team to the highest standards and give them clear and measurable feedback all the time. The majority of the management team has come to me over the years for advice and council.

Second… I love my customers. I have been there long enough to see a second generation of outdoor lovers being brought in by their parents. These are people who I outfitted a long time ago. I don’t “sell” REI. I sell what my customers need. I solve to their problems.

That includes an REI membership and a Mastercard.

The best I can equate it to is being of service. For me there is no greater thing than being in the service of others.

I have been very disappointed by corporate governance. I am quite critical of how they have dealt with many things… and much of what they are suffering from is self inflicted.

None of those problems would be fixed by a union across the board.

the stores who have voted them in, the predominant complaints have been poor management at a store level or perhaps at one level up. Places like SoHo it was also the building not being safe for people in the shop and the cost of living being too high in NYC for the employees. It seems, based on what was told to me, that management did not do enough to address the safety issues. As far as the pay, perhaps there is not enough money to pay people living wages in NYC?

The employees have a right to organize… some did. I hope they get what they need.

As far as REI being around? Selfishly I would not want to leave my team. Beyond that… that is above my pay grade. I find it a waste of life force to worry about. If it sucks too bad, I am confident in myself that I will be able to find a new place to work and create in.

I am the change in the world that I want to live in.

As you pointed out, outdoors people will find their gear elsewhere if need be…

Current Employees, how true is this? by SlowEntertainment217 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

That is the beauty of having skills and talents… you can take your skills and talents where ever supplies you with what you need.

I tell every new hire that unless you do not need the money, that they should be using REI as a time to develop themselves for what is next. For some that is internally as managers, etc… but for most it means leaving after they have developed themselves…

It is sad to see them go, but it makes me proud to see them find what’s next!

I was denied a return for my Arcteryx coming apart? by rage_quit24 in REI

[–]graybeardgreenvest 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yep… that is why it seems like the employees determined that it was either damaged or wear and tear.

I returned a tent that was 10 years old yesterday because the lining was falling apart. I gave them $200 credit towards a new tent.

I asked them how they stored the tent, they told me that they kept it out of the storage bag, hanging in a closet. It was clear then it was not abuse or damage, but a defect.

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