REI plans to open locations in Cleveland, OH and King of Prussia, PA in fall 2016.
The retail cooperative already serves 9,500 active members in Cleveland and 78,000 in the greater Philadelphia area.
“Our continued growth in Ohio and Pennsylvania speaks to the active outdoor lifestyle of both communities,” said Greg Medlyn, divisional vice president of retail for REI, which stands for Recreational Equipment Inc. “We are excited to open our fourth store in each state and can’t wait to better serve local adventurers looking to have fun and explore the outdoors.”
Cleveland is the second-largest market of active REI members currently without a store. REI Cleveland will be the first co-op location in Northeast Ohio and fourth store in the state since September 2012, joining stores in Cincinnati, Columbus-Easton and Columbus-Dublin. The 27,000-square-foot store will be located in the Pinecrest development at Interstate 271 and Harvard Boulevard. The closest REI store is currently over 120 miles away in Pittsburgh, PA.
REI King of Prussia will be the fourth location in the Philadelphia area, joining stores in Conshohocken, Pa., Marlton, N.J. and Christiana, Del., which will open this fall. The two-story, 34,000-square-foot store is centrally located in the King of Prussia Town Center. The location will continue REI’s commitment to the outdoor community in Pennsylvania as the first co-op in the state opened in Conshohocken in 1991.
Both locations will offer year-round REI Outdoor School classes, educating participants with a robust schedule of free and low-cost in-store classes taught by expert instructors. Popular topics include camping essentials, fitness monitoring and presentations about the best local places to play outside. The stores will also feature bike shops for expert assembly and repair.
REI, which invests millions of dollars annually in hundreds of local and national nonprofits to promote use and stewardship of inspiring outdoor places, has granted $60,000 to six organizations in Ohio this year, including Great Parks of Hamilton County, Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks, and Central Ohio Mountain Biking Organization. In the Philadelphia area, REI has invested $40,500 in three organizations in 2015, including Friends of the Wissahickon, Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association and Friends of the Black Run Preserve (Pinelands Preservation Alliance). Overall, the co-op will invest $5.90 million in over 300 nonprofits across the country to increase access to and steward over 1,000 outdoor places in 2015.
REI plans to hire approximately 50 employees for each new store.
REI has 140 stores in 33 states and operates REI Adventures, a global leader in active adventure travel that runs 150 custom-designed itineraries on every continent. REI’s Outdoor School is run by professionally-trained, expert-instructors who teach beginner- to advanced-level courses about a wide range of activities.
