REI (Recreational Equipment, Inc. will open its first store in Florida in spring 2013 after opening a a store in San Antonio, Texas in the fall of 2012.
The San Antonio location will occupy 27,500 square-feet at Huebner Oaks and the nearly 23,400 square-feet store in Jacksonville will be located at The Markets at Town Center. Both stores will offer expert assembly and repair services through bike shops and support to customers looking to test new outdoor activities through its seasonal gear rental departments.
“Texas and Florida offer an abundance of ways to enjoy the outdoors, and REI is eager to bring our quality products, helpful advice and hands-on classes to our current members and aspiring adventurers,” said Rachel Ligtenberg, REI’s regional vice president, East Region. “Through our expert employees, outdoor programming and local relationships, we want to inspire more people to live an active lifestyle.”
REI currently operates 122 retail stores in 29 states with two online stores rei.com and REI-OUTLET.com. The new store in San Antonio joins seven other REI stores in Texas, the first of which opened in Austin in 1989 and was later relocated in 1995. Other locations opening this fall include Cincinnati, Ohio, Woodbridge, Va. and Medford, Ore. A new store in Indianapolis, Ind. will open on March 16.
The nation’s largest consumer cooperative, REI has more than four million active members, including 7,700 residing in San Antonio and more than 3,100 in Jacksonville. Members pay a one-time $20 fee and receive a share in the company’s profits through an annual member refund each March based on their purchases from the previous year.
