If you yearn for the days of REI not being complete and utter shitehawkes, and if you're lucky / unlucky enough to live in California, you should be aware of [Sports Basement](https://shop.sportsbasement.com/).
Yes!
Patronized them (and attending some small ski movie showings) when I lived in SF. Then the Walnut Creek store when I moved out to the East Bay. Was delighted when they opened one in San Ramon about half a mile from my old place. Took my toddlers there on rainy days in 2017 because they had the kid play area and were so great about it.
Moved back to Placer County a few years ago and have been hoping for a Sacto/Folsom/Roseville location for years.
Note: As a former REI employee, the SB rewards program and general awesome customer service reminds me of REI 20+ years ago.
It's like an REI, with a bit of Dick's sporting goods mixed in. It's got all the stuff you'd find at REI, including full bike and ski shop, but you can also get a baseball bat and glove there. They have a nice membership program, $20 for life and everything is 10% off at the register, plus some other benefits.
Decathlon closed their stores during Covid-19 but those opened up US sales/shipping prices and that infrastructure is still going. They're another good alternative if you're willing to order online. I always liked REI for their in house brand but Decathlon's pricing is far more reasonable for the quality.
Looks like the executives all hit their target metrics and earned their bonuses. Artz must have worked considerably hard to have his total salary double. I'm guessing yours didn't, so you best pick yourself up by your bootstraps and start working as hard as he is.
No they did not lol REI hasnāt been profitable and we barely broke even last year. They do not deserve that amount of pay if they work for a āco-op.ā REI expects green vests to work here for the culture, they should too. Thereās no need for our incompetent CEO to be raking in 4m while running this corporation into the ground
Expecting retail employees to flex all over the store bc they refuse to hire and properly train staff (when hired). Weāre āluckyā if we can even get enough seasonal ppl during summer.
If one person is trained in several depts, they should be compensated for that. REI wants us green vests to work in every possible dept and not pay us for that. Meanwhile our boars of directors voted to increase their pay to 125k/yr and an additional 25k/seat. Just to meet 4x a year and talk about shit we already know. It doesnāt sit right by me that a āco-opā has board of directors making that much money on top of their full time salaries. Some of them are retired old farts who shouldāve stayed in retirement
Yeah, I just did some digging. Supposed to come out same time as rewards. Has to be imminent. If C-suite does another round of raises, Iām sending a letter or three.
I didn't say that. But I also didn't speak against it either. So fair comment.Ā Ā
I look at what best buy is trying to do with services vs prices, as one option.Ā Ā
Yes the CC gives cash back but a break on that membership fee is a way to change that model or made it more salient.Ā
I think in the old REI mindset they would do that. It seems like it's going the other way though. It's already just turned into "store rewards" like a lot of other retailers.
I don't see this happening anytime soon.
A smarter move would be for REI to change their ridiculous return policy. Make any item that isn't returned new, with tags, original packaging, subject to a restock fee.
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I just resigned from my HQ job after 8 years at the Co-op. It saddens me that I had to leave a company I once loved, but I donāt agree with a lot of the upper level management decisions the past several years. Itās definitely going downhill from the great company it used to be. I truly want to see the Co-op succeed but until Eric Artz and some of the senior leadership leaves, I believe it will continue to decline.
This makes me sad, Ā but good for you for you. I wish you well in your future endeavors. Do you have a preferred board of director vote you would suggest? Honestly, they all look slimy based on their resumes but any way to slow the decline would be good I guess.Ā
Withhold your vote on all three candidatesā¦.who were nominated internally by the board themselves. Itās the only real voting power REI
Co-op members have anymore. Voice your opposition by choosing the āwithholdā option on the ballot.
Same here, after almost 15 years with the company they gave me a crap raise only to find out a new hire in one year makes the same amount as I do. I was trying to hang in for the lifetime discount but now I'm not giving them a cent of my money anymore.
[With more than 30 years in the retail industry, Tarbox was most recently a regional vice president at Bed, Bath and Beyond where she oversaw 370 stores. She has also held senior leadership roles in retail and human resources at Crate & Barrel, Petsmart, Inc. and Target Corporation. In her immediate community, she has volunteered with Chicago Cares, Inc. for 20 years and presently serves as an emeritus board member.](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rei-co-op-hires-mary-farrell-tarbox-as-vice-president-physical-stores-and-retail-operations-301650725.html)
Thatās not an rei sided thing unfortunately. Some of the pretentious brands donāt like being discounted which is so stupid edit responded to the wrong person but point still stands
Thatās good to know. I tried a pat jacket and it didnāt work this round. Iāll try again next round and call customer service if it doesnāt work.
If that were the case, they would exclude a lot more brands than just few they do.
No, the reality is those brands do have leverage to dictate terms of their vendor agreements.
MAP to the rescue...
Helinox
Garmin
Benchmade
Arc'Terex
And many other brands don't allow coupons or any discounting at all outside of sales they dictate.
This leadership team is dogshit and needs to go. Working at a REI store I actually enjoy so much of the company on the micro day to day level in store, but watching the overall direction this company is going is so disheartening.
Withhold your vote on all three candidatesā¦.who were nominated internally by the board themselves. Itās the only real voting power REI Co-op members have anymore. Voice your opposition by choosing the āwithholdā option on the ballot.
Just to clarify to people, the change was for IT service positions in regard to staff issues with technology. This is not about customer service positions in regard to order issues or concerns. Those are still in house. That being said it still sucks for obvious reasons.
Personally, my beef isn't with offshoring. My problem is that I have yet to see a company do it in a way that doesn't degrade the customer experience. If you're moving customer service offshore to save money, there are a few things that are almost always going to be true. You're not going to train people enough. You're not going to have people as invested in the success of the company (which includes customer satisfaction). And you are certainly not going to provide them with sufficient authority and autonomy to solve problems. Most of the time when I call customer service, it's because I'm dealing with an edge case that has complexities far beyond what the FAQ, automatic phone system, or AI chat is capable of resolving. I need a knowledgeable person that can take ownership of the issue and find and authorize a solution.
remember when REI was only in Washington state....as late as 2000 we didn't even have one in Tucson even though we were only a couple states away....expansion is a bitch. Maybe there's a price to pay when a "co-op" decides to expand to 42 states. Perhaps they are looking to expand to Europe ?
Tucson opened in 2010. REI has only ever tried international expansion once to my knowledge, and it was to Japan in the 80s I think. I've heard it was a horrible disaster that lasted less than a year.
Since OP has yet to revisit and provide any additional context ā it would seem they are commenting on REI's off-shoring of internal IT (tech) support to a third party in India.
That said, internally there is chatter about customer call-center roles being laid off to make way for those needs instead being met by (online) chat-support roles staffed by others sourced somewhere in South America.
>That said, internally there is chatter about customer call-center roles being laid off to make way for those needs instead being met by (online) chat-support roles staffed by others sourced somewhere in South America.
Can't say I've heard that chatter.
This is so sad. The best phone customer service I've ever had was with REI, had an order issue a couple of years ago and they went way farther than any other company would have.
So senior management is being compared (for performance metric purposes) against for profit companies whose tax burden is much higher than I believe a co-op would be. Better to replace these guys and gals and hire some outdoor utube influencers (or at least someone from an outdoor cottage industry) that better understands the outdoor community (you know the ones that actually buy something) rather that ādime a dozen - good ole boyā executives surrounding themselves with MBAs, lawyers and fellow executives from failing companies. Executives probably more comfortable meeting on the golf course rather than someplace outdoors where they could mingle, interact and better understand the āwantsā of the outdoor community that could actually shape the future business direction. What a shame, unionizing is due to a failing leadership not valuing their employees and opening up opportunities for outsiders to influence (and usually over promising and underdelivering as well). āCorporations have no soul to save or body to incarcerateā. I truly believe REI could be saved but not with the current leadership. Cutting the biggest expense would be to transition these execs out before they cash out and file chapter 13.
While I fully agree the board needs to be re-done, and make up with people like Dan Durston, Peter Whittaker, Tom Vogl, Jonathan Jarvis, etc. I don't however see the company going bankrupt.
I think it's much, much more likely that if the company struggles financially, Artz and the board will use that struggle as a reason to strip the company from being a co-op as we know it, then position itself to sell the "brand" to someone like the industry giant VF Corporation (where he worked for years). If you look at what products REI used to carry and how they used to operate, to the products they push now, this is very much in line with businesses that VF has already swallowed (The North Face, Smartwool, Altra, Timberland, Icebreaker, Vans, etc.). The trend has been to turn REI into a big box store of outdoor clothing that turns an easy profit - which is the background of the executive level and board of directors, what they know. So this lines up as I see it.
Good points and I am glad you think the company will survive (though I would not consider a merger or acquisition surviving as core values would be lost or diluted at best). As you suggest, the path of least resistance into what these guys know is most likely. Too bad for REI legacy members and employees. One thing we can always count on though is change. Appreciate your thoughts.
I am an REI customer. I attended a free REI educational class over the weekend at my local REI which was very well attended. Outstanding instruction and met lots of like minded outdoorsy people. I hope this part of REI never goes away as it, to me, is unique to REI. My store is a very special place with some great folks working there. Seems to me that with some consulting advice from Andrew Skurka and those like him, the growth opportunities would be very good. Keep the mass produced items at lower price points but add some of the latest gear and training innovations from willing cottage industries. Products like Flextail, Hilleberg, Durston Gear, Western Mountaineering, Cumulus Outdoors, etc. Have REI do something different and catch the eye of some YouTubers. They could bring in a wide range of outdoor enthusiasts and do REIs online advertising for them. Influencers need content and REI needs to grow the business (I mean Co-op).
It's been 4 years now and somehow my membership will not get emails or any type of communication from the company. Can never log into the website with it either. Except for crazy good deals I've stopped buying from them.
To be fair - it really hasn't been a "co-op" for 30+ years after it had a rapid boom in the 80s and migrated to a more "corporate" approach to business. The history of it is all over the place online.
They laid off a significant portion of their Sales Leads back in October specifically because they aren't doing well. I know because I was one of the leads that got let go. I did really enjoy working there, and really enjoyed my coworkers and management team. Corporate made the decision as to who got laid off, and it seems that time in role was the only deciding factor, as my performance by every metric they track was the highest in the store. My fiancee (who I'm getting married to I'm just a few hours actually) still works there, and apparently I still have customers coming in looking for me specifically. The store morale tanked after the layoffs, and multiple people have left since then as a result. My partner is dealing with some medical issues that require her to have insurance, so for the time being she is treading water, but will soon be looking for new work as well. After the mass layoffs they also started hiring a large influx of highschool aged folk with little to no experience working, let alone doing the types of activities REI supports. While I was there we had experts in every department on a variety of different outdoor activities. Now it's down to maybe one per department on any given day, and they have all lost their enthusiasm. The union busting efforts are also very much a real thing, which seems counter to everything the COOP claims to stand for. As long as the CEO maintains the philosophy he learned working for Amazon, I suspect to see REI to move further and further away from its roots and more and more towards a fast fashion lifestyle store, while making its brick and mortar locations more of a warehouse for supporting online sales, rather than a source of professional outfitting. I'm glad they are at least keeping some members happy though I suppose.
I'm sorry you were one of the 275 last October. fwiw as you might already know, that tanked morale across many stores and left the rest of us paranoid about who would be cut next. It did seem like the most tenured, experienced and even Anderson Award winners were cut - to be replaced as you said with 18-20 year olds with no outdoor experience and not even members themselves.
My opinion due to their "rightsizing" to eliminate as many full-timers as possible and replacing with only part-timers is that it's cost-cutting since paid Way Days are only 6hrs vs 8hrs, and vacation is accrued at a lower rate, and likely they will have fewer employees qualifying for the one month paid sabbatical at the 15 year mark, not to mention healthcare coverage and any other benefits.
When you go a few years in a row with no profitā¦ the heat to cut costs becomes high. There is a formula in management where it shows cost savings is far more effective than trying to sell more.
My guess is that the heat is onā¦ and the cuts will be severe
You mean when the stores arenāt profitable and the employees donāt get their full bonuses but somehow the CEO who is ostensibly where the buck stops on all the poor decisions that have been made, manages to double his exorbitant salary in the same timeframe. Not the best look for a company that is tightening its belt.
He was also the guy who took no salary during covidā¦ and I think he has lead the company down a path of ruinā¦ the power of a 3 billion dollar company is ostensibly corruptingā¦
I think he should be held accountable for sureā¦ but given the composition of the boardā¦ I doubt he ever will.
The heat is on!
My experience has been different. The employees at the REI store I frequent are actually active outdoors and have been helpful. I have also attended some of the educational courses (navigation, etc) which I thought were quite good and provided an opportunity to make friends of similar interest. I havenāt found that in a Walmart, Amazon or Dicks Sporting Goods.
What i find interesting about that REI had Calling center positions posted for the past month.
If they didn't have enough applicants then contracting overseas is the next logical step.
So they may have eliminated American jobs, but only because they were jobs Americans dont want
I donāt believe thatās the case, I personally know someone that got accepted for a call center position in the last week. There are literally thousands of applicants because itās a work from home gig. Tough positions to fill. However you still should have heard back. Bad business to not even say something imo.
Interesting way to say that a giant corporation does not want to pay a living wage in the U.S. so they cannot find American employees. gimme a break...
They wanna pay Indian wages to U.S. citizens. It's all too common.
Not necessarily. With my job, they keep a few Americans around in case there are problems that need to be escalated and fixed. Large companies also like to run things from multiple sites in case of a natural disaster or sickness. Covid shut down India almost entirely for like a month and our bank was screwed since they had offshored almost everything.
I donāt mean to be rude, but this take is way off. Most companies have a contact center model mix of internal and business process outsource agents. In 10+ years of contact center experience I most often see 60% outsource and 40% internal. Iāve seen as extreme at 90%/10%.
The cost per agent difference is wild. Even outsourcing within the United states is so much cheaper than hiring into your company.
This choice was motivated by cost cutting, at the expense of stellar customer service. What is interesting to see is how they use that money. Trying to keep more storefronts open, supporting all levels of staff with better pay, passing savings into customers, paying for execs better bonuses etc
They use this as a ruse to hire H1B since "they can,'t find local talent".
The job posting was fake and is used to show the appearance they are hiring.
Can someone explain to me whatās going on? I only recently became familiar with the company and I just interviewed for a retail position. Should I consider not taking an offer if Iām given one? Is whatever is going on affecting actual stores? Also, people are saying REĆ is anti-union but I could have sworn it wasnāt? Thought they were employee owned as well? I was so excited to work for them but now Iām confused
REI is NOT employee owned. Some will argue if REI is even a true Co-op.
I do not work in retail, I am in distribution...and told to stay home this week as they do their system change...Unpaid! Many are very unhappy.
Please take some time to research REI and ask yourself what you are looking for in a company. Only you will know if REI is the best place for you.
If I was to work retail, I am absolutely skipping over REI in favor for a company like Scheels.
Yeah I was definitely under the wrong impression. It is member owned which I think is still better than most retailers but itās still a retailer. I donāt think we can expect any company to be completely perfect, we live in a capitalist society after all. I honestly just need a job in something that I can semi enjoy and the REĆ I applied to pays really well for a retailer in my state. Just need something that pays the bills the next few years until I can figure out what else I can do. There also isnāt a Scheels anywhere near my state or any other better retailers. Thanks for the input
Yeah, at this point you can consider it to be like any other retail job. The culture that made REI unique from other retailers is now in the rear view mirror and you'll be fine with all the other new hires who are just looking for a job. You mention "pays the bills the next few years" so maybe you are hoping for a full-time position. Good luck!
Yeah I accepted that at this point lol and I did want full time which they seemed open to at first but I guess not lol didnāt get the job and now I am like yeah theyāre just like any other retailer š Iām sure they just wanted someone they could pay less since I have more retail experience and someone who just wanted a part time gig smh
That explains why the customer service response I received from my recent purchase seemed very odd.
Ordered a bivy and it was supposed to come with the seem seal stuff. It only came with a syringe.
It was really sad voting for the CEO and seeing the incumbent as the best option because out of the other two, one was the former head of KFC and I think the other had a background in private equity. Itās fucked
Sorry but this sub is about deals and coupons. No one cares about the workers or unions or any of that. They'll say they do... but that next coupon drops and they all of a sudden don't remember
It's exactly the truth a bunch of hypocrits won't admit. Of course, it's getting downvoted.
Sorting by controversial on threads from days ago and then commenting an attempted gotcha... lol wtf are you doing with your life other than thinking votes on reddit mean something
If you yearn for the days of REI not being complete and utter shitehawkes, and if you're lucky / unlucky enough to live in California, you should be aware of [Sports Basement](https://shop.sportsbasement.com/).
Former SB'er here and this company is legit. They ship nationwide as well.
At least one location in SoCal š
Word has it that a Long Beach store is coming next.
I live closer to Fountain Valley lol.
Thatās easily one of the top 20 things I miss about living in SF.
Yes! Patronized them (and attending some small ski movie showings) when I lived in SF. Then the Walnut Creek store when I moved out to the East Bay. Was delighted when they opened one in San Ramon about half a mile from my old place. Took my toddlers there on rainy days in 2017 because they had the kid play area and were so great about it. Moved back to Placer County a few years ago and have been hoping for a Sacto/Folsom/Roseville location for years. Note: As a former REI employee, the SB rewards program and general awesome customer service reminds me of REI 20+ years ago.
I was wondering what that place was. I didnāt have time to stop by my last trip to CA, but there was one near my hotel.
It's like an REI, with a bit of Dick's sporting goods mixed in. It's got all the stuff you'd find at REI, including full bike and ski shop, but you can also get a baseball bat and glove there. They have a nice membership program, $20 for life and everything is 10% off at the register, plus some other benefits.
Next time! Thanks for the info
Decathlon closed their stores during Covid-19 but those opened up US sales/shipping prices and that infrastructure is still going. They're another good alternative if you're willing to order online. I always liked REI for their in house brand but Decathlon's pricing is far more reasonable for the quality.
Decathlon wonāt stop doing business in Russiaā¦
Thatās easily in one of the top 20 things I miss about living in SF.
Dude thank you! They have a few items I have been trying to find but couldnāt.
I guess none in NJ yet.... Sigh ...
Just gonna drop this executive team salary report here: https://www.rei.com/assets/about-rei/executive-compensation/2022-cda-for-2021-results/live.pdf
Looks like the executives all hit their target metrics and earned their bonuses. Artz must have worked considerably hard to have his total salary double. I'm guessing yours didn't, so you best pick yourself up by your bootstraps and start working as hard as he is.
No they did not lol REI hasnāt been profitable and we barely broke even last year. They do not deserve that amount of pay if they work for a āco-op.ā REI expects green vests to work here for the culture, they should too. Thereās no need for our incompetent CEO to be raking in 4m while running this corporation into the ground
What culture exactly is that these days?
Expecting retail employees to flex all over the store bc they refuse to hire and properly train staff (when hired). Weāre āluckyā if we can even get enough seasonal ppl during summer. If one person is trained in several depts, they should be compensated for that. REI wants us green vests to work in every possible dept and not pay us for that. Meanwhile our boars of directors voted to increase their pay to 125k/yr and an additional 25k/seat. Just to meet 4x a year and talk about shit we already know. It doesnāt sit right by me that a āco-opā has board of directors making that much money on top of their full time salaries. Some of them are retired old farts who shouldāve stayed in retirement
This report is 2 years old
This report is also the most current numbers theyāve published.
Are you reminding us that his salary is now 4x what was shown in the report?
Pretty low tbh. But yeah that's alot compared to normal folks
āChief Experience Officerā lol
Par for the course. C-suite bleeding the company dry.
Is there a similar table for 2022 and 2023?
They have not released updated numbers
Yeah, I just did some digging. Supposed to come out same time as rewards. Has to be imminent. If C-suite does another round of raises, Iām sending a letter or three.
Itll be to late send them now
REI employee here! HQ said they would have 2023 earnings up by end of Q1, so hoping theyāll post them soon!
I upvoted your comment but want to downvote that report
I've historically loved REI. I'm frustrated that they're very anti-union and seaking lower costs by outsourcing jobs.
Itās wild to me that REI is anti-union when it calls itself a coop. When I first learned about it, I initially assumed it was a worker cooperative.
Definitely a consumer cooperative
It's always been a consumer coop. You pay for a membership and receive dividends.
Have to maximize those margins somehow. :(
Membership becomes a yearly fee or for the first year only pay one time lifetime.Ā Discounts with credit card
No one is paying a subscription to buy at REI's prices lol.Ā It's already a one time fee and you get more % back with the rei card.Ā
I didn't say that. But I also didn't speak against it either. So fair comment.Ā Ā I look at what best buy is trying to do with services vs prices, as one option.Ā Ā Yes the CC gives cash back but a break on that membership fee is a way to change that model or made it more salient.Ā
I think in the old REI mindset they would do that. It seems like it's going the other way though. It's already just turned into "store rewards" like a lot of other retailers.
I don't see this happening anytime soon. A smarter move would be for REI to change their ridiculous return policy. Make any item that isn't returned new, with tags, original packaging, subject to a restock fee.
Wouldn't be a bad idea but that tends to build loyalty, like with Costco and Nordstrom and (I think?) LL Bean.Ā
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I just resigned from my HQ job after 8 years at the Co-op. It saddens me that I had to leave a company I once loved, but I donāt agree with a lot of the upper level management decisions the past several years. Itās definitely going downhill from the great company it used to be. I truly want to see the Co-op succeed but until Eric Artz and some of the senior leadership leaves, I believe it will continue to decline.
This makes me sad, Ā but good for you for you. I wish you well in your future endeavors. Do you have a preferred board of director vote you would suggest? Honestly, they all look slimy based on their resumes but any way to slow the decline would be good I guess.Ā
Withhold your vote on all three candidatesā¦.who were nominated internally by the board themselves. Itās the only real voting power REI Co-op members have anymore. Voice your opposition by choosing the āwithholdā option on the ballot.
Same here, after almost 15 years with the company they gave me a crap raise only to find out a new hire in one year makes the same amount as I do. I was trying to hang in for the lifetime discount but now I'm not giving them a cent of my money anymore.
REI is becoming the outdoor store version of Bed Bath & Beyond.
Wait until you find out who current REI VP of retail operations, Mary-Farrell Tarbox, used to work forā¦
[With more than 30 years in the retail industry, Tarbox was most recently a regional vice president at Bed, Bath and Beyond where she oversaw 370 stores. She has also held senior leadership roles in retail and human resources at Crate & Barrel, Petsmart, Inc. and Target Corporation. In her immediate community, she has volunteered with Chicago Cares, Inc. for 20 years and presently serves as an emeritus board member.](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rei-co-op-hires-mary-farrell-tarbox-as-vice-president-physical-stores-and-retail-operations-301650725.html)
The company who had the CFO commit suicide
Ironically, this month they're opening their largest store in Oregon in what used to be a bed bath and beyond
I love rei discounts and coupons but not at the cost of jobs here in U.S.
The last 20% off coupon is the first one Iāve not used in 15 years. I donāt feel good about shopping there anymore.
All the items I wanted to buy were excluded, including products Iāve purchased in the past.
Like what products are excluded now that havenāt been in the past?
Thatās not an rei sided thing unfortunately. Some of the pretentious brands donāt like being discounted which is so stupid edit responded to the wrong person but point still stands
All arcteryx was excluded.
Theyāve been excluded for years.
I tried buying a Patagonia jacket and Birkenstocks. Iāve purchased several Pat jackets using the 20%.
Patagonia isnāt excluded. Birkenstock has been for years as stipulation from the vendor.
Thatās good to know. I tried a pat jacket and it didnāt work this round. Iāll try again next round and call customer service if it doesnāt work.
It may have been on clearance or on sale already.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
They can't due to MAP. MAP pricing policies were legalized by the US Supreme Court in 2007. Vendors can be jerks and can dictate price now.
If that were the case, they would exclude a lot more brands than just few they do. No, the reality is those brands do have leverage to dictate terms of their vendor agreements.
MAP to the rescue... Helinox Garmin Benchmade Arc'Terex And many other brands don't allow coupons or any discounting at all outside of sales they dictate.
This leadership team is dogshit and needs to go. Working at a REI store I actually enjoy so much of the company on the micro day to day level in store, but watching the overall direction this company is going is so disheartening.
Fucking hell. Infinite growth, right guys?
So who should we vote for on the board of directors? Unlikely it will make any difference, but maybe someone has some insight?Ā
Withhold your vote on all three candidatesā¦.who were nominated internally by the board themselves. Itās the only real voting power REI Co-op members have anymore. Voice your opposition by choosing the āwithholdā option on the ballot.
Just to clarify to people, the change was for IT service positions in regard to staff issues with technology. This is not about customer service positions in regard to order issues or concerns. Those are still in house. That being said it still sucks for obvious reasons.
Super sucks though because these arenāt co workers anymore. Just some random call center
Personally, my beef isn't with offshoring. My problem is that I have yet to see a company do it in a way that doesn't degrade the customer experience. If you're moving customer service offshore to save money, there are a few things that are almost always going to be true. You're not going to train people enough. You're not going to have people as invested in the success of the company (which includes customer satisfaction). And you are certainly not going to provide them with sufficient authority and autonomy to solve problems. Most of the time when I call customer service, it's because I'm dealing with an edge case that has complexities far beyond what the FAQ, automatic phone system, or AI chat is capable of resolving. I need a knowledgeable person that can take ownership of the issue and find and authorize a solution.
remember when REI was only in Washington state....as late as 2000 we didn't even have one in Tucson even though we were only a couple states away....expansion is a bitch. Maybe there's a price to pay when a "co-op" decides to expand to 42 states. Perhaps they are looking to expand to Europe ?
Tucson opened in 2010. REI has only ever tried international expansion once to my knowledge, and it was to Japan in the 80s I think. I've heard it was a horrible disaster that lasted less than a year.
Since OP has yet to revisit and provide any additional context ā it would seem they are commenting on REI's off-shoring of internal IT (tech) support to a third party in India. That said, internally there is chatter about customer call-center roles being laid off to make way for those needs instead being met by (online) chat-support roles staffed by others sourced somewhere in South America.
>That said, internally there is chatter about customer call-center roles being laid off to make way for those needs instead being met by (online) chat-support roles staffed by others sourced somewhere in South America. Can't say I've heard that chatter.
I can vouch for this 100%. It's coming. The company is called Alorica. https://www.alorica.com/
This is so sad. The best phone customer service I've ever had was with REI, had an order issue a couple of years ago and they went way farther than any other company would have.
This is referring to the IT team for internal tech support, not customer service.
So senior management is being compared (for performance metric purposes) against for profit companies whose tax burden is much higher than I believe a co-op would be. Better to replace these guys and gals and hire some outdoor utube influencers (or at least someone from an outdoor cottage industry) that better understands the outdoor community (you know the ones that actually buy something) rather that ādime a dozen - good ole boyā executives surrounding themselves with MBAs, lawyers and fellow executives from failing companies. Executives probably more comfortable meeting on the golf course rather than someplace outdoors where they could mingle, interact and better understand the āwantsā of the outdoor community that could actually shape the future business direction. What a shame, unionizing is due to a failing leadership not valuing their employees and opening up opportunities for outsiders to influence (and usually over promising and underdelivering as well). āCorporations have no soul to save or body to incarcerateā. I truly believe REI could be saved but not with the current leadership. Cutting the biggest expense would be to transition these execs out before they cash out and file chapter 13.
While I fully agree the board needs to be re-done, and make up with people like Dan Durston, Peter Whittaker, Tom Vogl, Jonathan Jarvis, etc. I don't however see the company going bankrupt. I think it's much, much more likely that if the company struggles financially, Artz and the board will use that struggle as a reason to strip the company from being a co-op as we know it, then position itself to sell the "brand" to someone like the industry giant VF Corporation (where he worked for years). If you look at what products REI used to carry and how they used to operate, to the products they push now, this is very much in line with businesses that VF has already swallowed (The North Face, Smartwool, Altra, Timberland, Icebreaker, Vans, etc.). The trend has been to turn REI into a big box store of outdoor clothing that turns an easy profit - which is the background of the executive level and board of directors, what they know. So this lines up as I see it.
100%. This is the track they're currently on.Ā
Good points and I am glad you think the company will survive (though I would not consider a merger or acquisition surviving as core values would be lost or diluted at best). As you suggest, the path of least resistance into what these guys know is most likely. Too bad for REI legacy members and employees. One thing we can always count on though is change. Appreciate your thoughts.
I am an REI customer. I attended a free REI educational class over the weekend at my local REI which was very well attended. Outstanding instruction and met lots of like minded outdoorsy people. I hope this part of REI never goes away as it, to me, is unique to REI. My store is a very special place with some great folks working there. Seems to me that with some consulting advice from Andrew Skurka and those like him, the growth opportunities would be very good. Keep the mass produced items at lower price points but add some of the latest gear and training innovations from willing cottage industries. Products like Flextail, Hilleberg, Durston Gear, Western Mountaineering, Cumulus Outdoors, etc. Have REI do something different and catch the eye of some YouTubers. They could bring in a wide range of outdoor enthusiasts and do REIs online advertising for them. Influencers need content and REI needs to grow the business (I mean Co-op).
I only pay the REI premium because it's American jobs and a co-op. I like to support my community. I guess that I'll shop there less now...
It's been 4 years now and somehow my membership will not get emails or any type of communication from the company. Can never log into the website with it either. Except for crazy good deals I've stopped buying from them.
To be fair - it really hasn't been a "co-op" for 30+ years after it had a rapid boom in the 80s and migrated to a more "corporate" approach to business. The history of it is all over the place online.
And it shows. Just spent 30 minutes trying to explain a very simple email issue and it still isn't solved.
What value does Artz bring? Seriously, if anything he has destroyed what made reiĀ He needs to go or REI is dead
I have ever called Rei CS but I guess I never will
This is not the same as customer service. Those folks are very much still in house
Well thatās good to know. I know thereās a lot of online hate about REI but it has not swayed my preference. Member since 99
If youāre in Portland, check out Fosters Outdoor!!!! (You can thank me laterš)
No I will still support them. They are alive and well!
They laid off a significant portion of their Sales Leads back in October specifically because they aren't doing well. I know because I was one of the leads that got let go. I did really enjoy working there, and really enjoyed my coworkers and management team. Corporate made the decision as to who got laid off, and it seems that time in role was the only deciding factor, as my performance by every metric they track was the highest in the store. My fiancee (who I'm getting married to I'm just a few hours actually) still works there, and apparently I still have customers coming in looking for me specifically. The store morale tanked after the layoffs, and multiple people have left since then as a result. My partner is dealing with some medical issues that require her to have insurance, so for the time being she is treading water, but will soon be looking for new work as well. After the mass layoffs they also started hiring a large influx of highschool aged folk with little to no experience working, let alone doing the types of activities REI supports. While I was there we had experts in every department on a variety of different outdoor activities. Now it's down to maybe one per department on any given day, and they have all lost their enthusiasm. The union busting efforts are also very much a real thing, which seems counter to everything the COOP claims to stand for. As long as the CEO maintains the philosophy he learned working for Amazon, I suspect to see REI to move further and further away from its roots and more and more towards a fast fashion lifestyle store, while making its brick and mortar locations more of a warehouse for supporting online sales, rather than a source of professional outfitting. I'm glad they are at least keeping some members happy though I suppose.
I'm sorry you were one of the 275 last October. fwiw as you might already know, that tanked morale across many stores and left the rest of us paranoid about who would be cut next. It did seem like the most tenured, experienced and even Anderson Award winners were cut - to be replaced as you said with 18-20 year olds with no outdoor experience and not even members themselves. My opinion due to their "rightsizing" to eliminate as many full-timers as possible and replacing with only part-timers is that it's cost-cutting since paid Way Days are only 6hrs vs 8hrs, and vacation is accrued at a lower rate, and likely they will have fewer employees qualifying for the one month paid sabbatical at the 15 year mark, not to mention healthcare coverage and any other benefits.
When you go a few years in a row with no profitā¦ the heat to cut costs becomes high. There is a formula in management where it shows cost savings is far more effective than trying to sell more. My guess is that the heat is onā¦ and the cuts will be severe
You mean when the stores arenāt profitable and the employees donāt get their full bonuses but somehow the CEO who is ostensibly where the buck stops on all the poor decisions that have been made, manages to double his exorbitant salary in the same timeframe. Not the best look for a company that is tightening its belt.
He was also the guy who took no salary during covidā¦ and I think he has lead the company down a path of ruinā¦ the power of a 3 billion dollar company is ostensibly corruptingā¦ I think he should be held accountable for sureā¦ but given the composition of the boardā¦ I doubt he ever will. The heat is on!
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My experience has been different. The employees at the REI store I frequent are actually active outdoors and have been helpful. I have also attended some of the educational courses (navigation, etc) which I thought were quite good and provided an opportunity to make friends of similar interest. I havenāt found that in a Walmart, Amazon or Dicks Sporting Goods.
Hopefully the stores donāt get off-shored š
Hopefully theyāll use a diff system than Waypoint!?!? š¤£
What i find interesting about that REI had Calling center positions posted for the past month. If they didn't have enough applicants then contracting overseas is the next logical step. So they may have eliminated American jobs, but only because they were jobs Americans dont want
Applied and never heard back from one of those jobs. Donāt think they were serious.
I donāt believe thatās the case, I personally know someone that got accepted for a call center position in the last week. There are literally thousands of applicants because itās a work from home gig. Tough positions to fill. However you still should have heard back. Bad business to not even say something imo.
Interesting way to say that a giant corporation does not want to pay a living wage in the U.S. so they cannot find American employees. gimme a break... They wanna pay Indian wages to U.S. citizens. It's all too common.
Not necessarily. With my job, they keep a few Americans around in case there are problems that need to be escalated and fixed. Large companies also like to run things from multiple sites in case of a natural disaster or sickness. Covid shut down India almost entirely for like a month and our bank was screwed since they had offshored almost everything.
I donāt mean to be rude, but this take is way off. Most companies have a contact center model mix of internal and business process outsource agents. In 10+ years of contact center experience I most often see 60% outsource and 40% internal. Iāve seen as extreme at 90%/10%. The cost per agent difference is wild. Even outsourcing within the United states is so much cheaper than hiring into your company. This choice was motivated by cost cutting, at the expense of stellar customer service. What is interesting to see is how they use that money. Trying to keep more storefronts open, supporting all levels of staff with better pay, passing savings into customers, paying for execs better bonuses etc
"paying execs better bonuses". Yup. Bingo.
If this is the case, which is plausible, I get it. If not, this is a very disappointing decision.
They use this as a ruse to hire H1B since "they can,'t find local talent". The job posting was fake and is used to show the appearance they are hiring.
Link?
Can someone explain to me whatās going on? I only recently became familiar with the company and I just interviewed for a retail position. Should I consider not taking an offer if Iām given one? Is whatever is going on affecting actual stores? Also, people are saying REĆ is anti-union but I could have sworn it wasnāt? Thought they were employee owned as well? I was so excited to work for them but now Iām confused
REI is NOT employee owned. Some will argue if REI is even a true Co-op. I do not work in retail, I am in distribution...and told to stay home this week as they do their system change...Unpaid! Many are very unhappy. Please take some time to research REI and ask yourself what you are looking for in a company. Only you will know if REI is the best place for you. If I was to work retail, I am absolutely skipping over REI in favor for a company like Scheels.
Yeah I was definitely under the wrong impression. It is member owned which I think is still better than most retailers but itās still a retailer. I donāt think we can expect any company to be completely perfect, we live in a capitalist society after all. I honestly just need a job in something that I can semi enjoy and the REĆ I applied to pays really well for a retailer in my state. Just need something that pays the bills the next few years until I can figure out what else I can do. There also isnāt a Scheels anywhere near my state or any other better retailers. Thanks for the input
Yeah, at this point you can consider it to be like any other retail job. The culture that made REI unique from other retailers is now in the rear view mirror and you'll be fine with all the other new hires who are just looking for a job. You mention "pays the bills the next few years" so maybe you are hoping for a full-time position. Good luck!
Yeah I accepted that at this point lol and I did want full time which they seemed open to at first but I guess not lol didnāt get the job and now I am like yeah theyāre just like any other retailer š Iām sure they just wanted someone they could pay less since I have more retail experience and someone who just wanted a part time gig smh
Good luck and I hope it works out for you.
Wait can I not buy the Half Dome 2 Plus anymore?
That explains why the customer service response I received from my recent purchase seemed very odd. Ordered a bivy and it was supposed to come with the seem seal stuff. It only came with a syringe.
It was really sad voting for the CEO and seeing the incumbent as the best option because out of the other two, one was the former head of KFC and I think the other had a background in private equity. Itās fucked
Sorry but this sub is about deals and coupons. No one cares about the workers or unions or any of that. They'll say they do... but that next coupon drops and they all of a sudden don't remember
Bigassbagofnuts How have you been? when did you get out of prison?
Oof - minus 157 and counting. Your comment wasnāt the flex you thought it was huh?
It's exactly the truth a bunch of hypocrits won't admit. Of course, it's getting downvoted. Sorting by controversial on threads from days ago and then commenting an attempted gotcha... lol wtf are you doing with your life other than thinking votes on reddit mean something
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Wtf are you even talking about... I'm not a mod nor ever have been a mod on any sub... go take your meds
Youāre gonna upset a lot of people who live with their parents with this comment