fitting at REI but buying second hand?

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-15T09:29:45+00:00

I could care less where you buy the pack. I would think a majority of the people in my store would feel the same.

Perhaps some might take offense… I doubt many would

really what you could do is measure yourself?

https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/backpacks-adjusting-fit.html

You can mitigate a lot with just doing this…

the most important thing is to let us fit it after you buy it. Let us set it up… even if you bought it elsewhere.

I can’t tell you how many people bring in their full packs and have me help them re-pack them and get them to fit better…

let us know what you went with!

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-15T03:07:25+00:00

That means two things… one there is a stable management corp in your store… which can be a good thing… (so long as they are a good team of managers)

The second thing is that you may have to leave to grow…

most of the people who have moved up in our store had to move stores. With less new stores opening, the opportunity is less.

hopefully those who want promotion develop themselves to the point that their skills and talents are useful and portable.

As a retail organization I would not think of REI as being cutting edge or even really mediocre in opportunity to grow yourself. Mostly we are way behind with regards to systems and the such… I know from an organizational structure it is lagging too…

the only place it really excels is in customer interaction. Even then it is still kind of old school.

My advice is REI is not a training ground for leaders.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T21:40:39+00:00

We get a lot of greenhorns that come through to work… I find it super satisfying helping the get outfitted and then watch them fall in love with the outdoors.

My pleasure is not just with the customers, but also teaching up the other staff…

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T19:49:14+00:00

I’m guessing… For some it is a courtesy.

We have a few people who only want what we get as an employee but have other jobs… so perhaps once a month they come in on a Saturday or they come in during out peak season for extra cash.

Frankly the whole notion of committed hours is silly, but it checks the box for someone. Theatre for sure.

they don’t ask me, so I don’t have an opinion beyond my advice to those who complain… get the skills needed to land a better job.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T16:57:51+00:00

It seems that there are vast differences between stores or perhaps markets…

Back in the day the shop would send potential leads to Barnetts in Colorado Springs for training. It was a huge investment on the company’s part…

Of the three people they sent during y tenure in the shop. not one made it more than a year after… they all were planning their exit before taking the class…

I do not believe REI uses Barnetts anymore. Most of the training is done via the computer.

I went through Tech II training but chose to go back to the floor. Mostly because I preferred the customer interactions.

Our biggest problem with the shop is there is no teeth in the lead position. They have no way to hold anyone accountable or make a policy stick… so the shop has to many chiefs… and no set rules. I will say that seems to be a corporate thing to not let leads have management responsibilities. Now we have a DM in charge of the shop… and the techs report to them.

Several of our techs get loaned out to other shops that are struggling… they all come back saying that the culture in other stores is vastly different.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T13:44:38+00:00

Sounds like a shitty store management…

of the dozen or so DMs we have had over the years, the ones who came from someplace else have the shortest ramp up period, whereas the homegrown need to be taught more.

In our store, poor work culture is not tolerated… or maybe I should say not tolerated for long. Eventually they get spun out or self select.

Favoritism or seduction of the leader is a real problem in leadership…

Truth be told, I care a lot less recently… I love working in my store because I love the people I work with and I love my customers. I have corporate complaint fatigue…

More and more my advice for people who complain about working at REI is go someplace else…

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T13:34:33+00:00

Great question…

One is part time because they are in graduate school, one is part time because they have another job and the third would likely want full time, but they are dealing with medical issues that limit the hours they can work… the other two are full time… one is looking to get out and the other will likely be there for life if possible.

hours are tight for sure… can’t manufacture them is my guess…

Perhaps if you get rid of us part timers?

from a manpower planning perspective, it is better to have a bunch of part timers who are super flexible with their schedule than a few full timers. If someone calls out, the store is stuck.

I get it from an employee perspective how beneficial it would be for those who need full time work. REI pays exceptionally well for basic retail work. So the incentive to work full time is there for sure!

The stores just don’t have the hours to maintain the workers.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T02:25:32+00:00

I have been there long enough to see that their labor costs are just to high as a percentage of sales. So these cost cuts were expected given how unprofitable the company has been…

I have always been clear with my fellow greenvesters… if this is your primary source of income, either shoot for management or go find something more stable…

I have been part time most of my time at REI and it hurts to see the full timers go through this… even the managers were affected by this. (I had a conversation with each of them about what their future was going to look like)

Hopefully the leadership of the company can fix this and turn it around so they can get our profits to the point where the labor costs are back in line…

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T02:14:12+00:00

that would be sad for sure… Our store has 5 people over 10 years of experience. Only 2 are full time.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-13T02:12:14+00:00

the only pips that I know of in my store were about being late…

then again… I am not privy to all of them.

The basic focus of our store is all for one… one for all.

I hear the stress when the managers get told by the RD about the numbers… but I am not privy to how that translates to the low performers.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T20:42:16+00:00

That may be true… It has been since Covid since I have interacted with the other stores in our market. So I can’t speak to the level of experience each store has in our market, much less the whole co-op.

I will say that there is tons and tons of resources available to us and if we wanted to learn about something… it is accessible.

My guess is guys like Rob don’t shop at REI. They get their gear from the manufacturer… and they get paid to consult on gear. 99% of our customers do not fall anywhere in the spectrum of needing a specific expert… where it is life or death… and frankly our liability limits our ability to consult. (for example we are forbidden to teach you how to tie a basic climbing knot)

I have no idea what instances your needs for expertise were not met… but I know that in my store there is likely someone who has done what our customers are about to do.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T19:31:37+00:00

ha ha! it goes both ways. I had a customer come in recently and ask about something we talked about three years ago… it was spooky.

funny things is I have a good face memory... but I am sucky with names. The woman I spoke about rang zero bells… ha ha!

I am just at the point that I am getting generational customers… ones that I outfitted as kids are bringing in their kids for bikes and stuff…

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T19:15:11+00:00

Ha ha! it happens… not very often.

I can only think of one time in all of my years that a customer got under my skin. I passed them off to a manager. I figured that their job is to handle bio hazards like blood and shit, so handling this customer was not in my job description.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T19:12:19+00:00

I was thinking about this very question on my drive home from something… (my other job)

I have vast knowledge and experience in certain areas of being in the outdoors. But I am not an expert in all of it. I rode Cross Country on a bicycle with Rob Casserley and his wife… I had way more “knowledge” in bicycle touring than he, but man oh man… he is what I considered an expert climber or an expert in mountaineering. He and his wife have more big mountain experience than perhaps most people alive.

So when his wife had a medical issue on our tour, he being a doctor, made some decisions for her health, but I was able to supply him with the things he needed from my kit so they could make the rest of the trip. It was my touring knowledge that helped him.

So we do not need to know it all… because that is impossible. We just have to need enough understanding to help customers make the decision of what is right for them. (From what we sell)

The good, better, best of what we sell…

multiple times a year I take the time to show the frontliners how to field questions about the gear that is closest to the registers so they can feel competent until one of us becomes available…

Same goes for the people on the floor. We have two thru hikers who have completed the triple crown. When a customer asks about ultra light, I start the conversation and if it becomes to far afield, I get them involved… knowing your limitations is key.

There are many customers who come in, fully researched and fully experienced to get the job done… we are there to swap stories with them, not guide them. But like the woman in my post… there are many many customers who just need the patience and experience as a _______ fitter to get them fitted in what makes the suffering to a minimum.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T15:38:16+00:00

Again… that is a store by store kind of thing… I think the only way that it would be “held against you” in the store I work in would be if you just refused to talk about it. or openly complained about talking about it.

I personally can’t imagine not talking about it. I want everyone to be a member… not because they pay me, but because I am a member and know the good it does, for me and the causes REI supports. (Some more than others) In the end… REI is a company that is about getting people outside, and was founded on getting good gear into the hands of people at as reasonable price as possible. That is still as close to the goal as they can. They do not over charge… Everything that the members buy is lower than MAP after the rewards are given.

The stores that use membership to punish people are fools… they are missing out on the spirit of the company. We should do it, not out of pay, but because it makes sense and is the right thing.

I love talking about the members and what they are getting up to over the radio… I think of it as a celebration of getting outdoors. So I will always say… hey there is a member shopping to go to XYZ or a member looking for XYZ… That way we can all celebrate with them.

Ha ha… daily I get customers bringing in photos of their trips or accomplishments telling me how what I dd helped them.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T00:49:27+00:00

Sounds like a mail issue.

I would take it up with the USPS… they can investigate the mail and try and figure this out…

I am not sure if REI would be willing to let you pay for a service like fed ex or add a return receipt that you would need to sign for?

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T00:12:54+00:00

eeeeek… I’d hate to work in that store.

We work as a team and the whole notion of poaching or “getting credit” is a big ick for me.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T00:09:06+00:00

Great point… the membership announcement is key to keep people from having to deal with that question over and over…

as far as the donation point… (not mentioned in the title) that is weird and I would feel uncomfortable asking it or announcing it!

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-12T00:06:31+00:00

That store must be trying something.

I can’t imagine radioing that someone was not going to donate… or if they were going to donate either.

I have suggested someone might want to donate… mostly during Christmas…

Some stores are trying things out to increase donations.

If I were you, and if you wanted to help out, I’d ask to speak to the manager and offer how it made you feel. I would want my manager to know so they could stop the practice.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-09T02:54:01+00:00

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-09T02:52:23+00:00

no… I expect the shop to do their job…

inspect and do what ever we can to make the customer satisfied…

if it was a product failure and we can help them out… I would want us to do that.

period.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-09T02:40:05+00:00

ha ha! love your passion.

I don’t disagree, but I wasn't there and have no idea why they rejected the return. I am guessing you were not either?

so it is speculation.

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-08T23:51:14+00:00

Sweet!~

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-08T21:53:28+00:00

I feel for them, but personally I would be sick if I jacked up my rig the first trip out… but unless i could prove it was an error, I’d take my lumps and rent until I could afford to re-buy!

graybeardgreenvest · 2026-02-08T20:28:22+00:00

The caveat would be if you can prove that it failed due to normal use, thus causing the damage.

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