Never buying from REI again

My REI number is so old that it is written in Roman numerals.

–B.G.–

"my number is 257xxx. whose going to beat me?"

IXXIILXIILXXI

Wow, I thought mine was old, and I have the original card 467xxx. One of the clerks in the local REI (yonkers, NY) said he'd never seen one like that.

You're gonna be hard to beat, Jerry.

Can we move this thread to chaff or all chip in a dollar for new trousers
for Brett ;-(

roman numeral convertor says that IXXIILXIILXXI isn't legal number

I have an REI card with an address from Pasadena, must have been 1976

I need to throw out a bunch of junk

"roman numeral convertor says that IXXIILXIILXXI isn't legal number"

OK, OK, so I made it up. But I think you get the point. @#%^$#^! engineers. ;0))

This thread completely unraveled a couple pages back!

so, i'm confused, is your number greater or less than 257xxx? : )

I’ve never seen a member number with a question mark at the end. Thread is pure Chaff.

Reminds me of this one

You Stink

"You old timers have me beat, 946xxx. I have an REI about a mile from where I live and it is my goto store for little things and bike stuff on Sundays when the local bike shops are closed. My problem with REI isn't what they are or their policies, it is that I've outgrown the backpacking gear they carry. Still a good shop for other things but browsing those sections just isn't fun anymore. I find myself walking around thinking nope, too heavy, mines better."

Yep, my thoughts exactly. Gas canisters and socks are my usual buy. Not a big refund at the end of the year.

Jerry you must have joined in the 60's, cause my 1970 number is 307XXX

564XXX from 1977 or 1978.

I've returned some things over the years. A $5 toothbrush that melted in my car. Shoes that didn't fit the kids (my own shoes, I check the fit in the shoe before purchase). But the kids' shoes were only worn inside and were returned with all original packaging.

I worked in a BP/ski shop for a few years and I try to be a reasonable customer. I find REI to be more than reasonable as a retailer.

But I wish they would quote weights on all items.

David, your number is slightly lower than mine, and mine came from May 1977.

–B.G.–

My member number is 504xxx – joined in January of 1975.

Wow, James, mine is 362XXX from June 1973. There were scads of people joining REI between 6/73 and 1/75. That was about the time that backpacking started to become popular. Maybe John Denver's Rocky Mountain High had something to do with it. What do you suppose the most current number might be?

Wikipedia says 11.6 million members. 5.1 million of whom are active. Currently membership cost $20.

I joined in 2011 and my number is 11254XXX. That doesn't mean I'm young though.

On another thread I saw where a guy referred to some backpackers as "snooty REI types". I assume he was talking about the customers. I shop at the REI in Paradise Valley (right next to Scottsdale) and I'd say that's fairly accurate. Gets me to thinking about the "Gentrification" thread.

"My member number is 504xxx – joined in January of 1975."

Mine is 481XXX from April of 1975… you're likely January of 1976?

>"My member number is 504xxx – joined in January of 1975."
>Mine is 481XXX from April of 1975… you're likely January of 1976?

No the date is correct. Numbers are not issued sequentially though. Not sure about the 70s, but currently stores have a 'stack' of member cards to issue, distributed to different registers, so it is entirely possible that both dates and numbers are correct. My membership was purchased from the the Seattle store. I am guessing you purchased yours at the the Berkley store though.

I don't know my number but joined in 1973 or 1974 when I purchased a "Downside Up" mummy bag with down on top (550 fill) and Dacron (88)hollowfill on the bottom. It was mailed ordered as I was living in Rochester Minnesota at the time and IIRC membership was $10 but it may have been $15.

72XX: I joined in 1954 when the Co-op occupied a space the size of a two car garage above the Green Apple Pie restaurant on Pike St. Several of my climbing buddies had 3-digit numbers.

I knew someone would beat me : )

I somehow think no one will beat this

Good stuff, folks.

REI has been around for a long time and apparently is still going strong. Yes, they have changed, and their product mix has changed — that is driven by consumer demand, and REI has adapted to a changing world. Their recent satisfaction guarantee switch is due to a changing customer base, the previous policy was no longer sustainable.

I first joined REI in the early 70's. At the time there were only one or two REI stores. Most people shopped via the REI catalog and other mail order companies. There was no Internet, and there were few backpacking oriented brick and mortar stores. I bought most of my mail order gear from Campmor, who had a plain paper booklet catalog with the weight of every single item in it.

If I wanted to buy quality gear from an actual store, I would drive from LA down to the San Diego area where A16 had a huge store. That was an all day endeavor.

Interesting, a couple years ago I was doing a section hike in the Northeast and needed a couple of items, most importantly some fuel. I stopped by Campmor in Paramus, NJ and they still have those cheap paper catalogues.

Maybe some don't like the new policy, maybe some don't like the product mix. Aside from gear, REI does a lot of good things in their communities and in helping to protect our wild places. They normally sell at retail prices and even with the annual dividend you can find the same gear at cheaper prices. I think we need to step back and look at the overall picture; gear and the ancillary things REI does. Whenever possible, I patronize REI.

Last year I was looking at buying a couple touring bikes. It came down to a Novara and a Surly. I bought two Novara bikes from REI because of the warranty and service, which is not as good as it once was. I know that if I have a legitimate problem and if I am a reasonable customer, REI will be a reasonable company to work with.

If I have a bad experience with any company, not necessarily a backpacking oriented company, I just don't go back. I don't spend time posting my dissatisfaction online. My time is too valuable to waste on ranting. I don't need or want to know what others think, I am a big boy and can think for myself. I don't need to try and sway the opinions of others because I had a bad experience. I simply don't spend anymore money there. A simple solution.

>"and the ancillary things REI does"

+1

In addition to the environmental groups they donate to and the trail-work days they organize, REI offers classes. My (now) wife and I took an avalanche-awareness / rescue class held in the evenings over a few weeks from the Seattle store. The class conlucded with a Saturday session at Snoqualmie Pass where we analyzed snow pits and practiced finding buried transceivers. Amazon doesn't offer that.

The next year, when we got married, we registered at REI. So we got kayak paddles, spray skirts and BP gear. Which is is not only more fun to receive but is also more fun to give than yet another silverware place setting or monogrammed towels.

Is there staff perfect at product knowledge and customer service? Of course not. Most of their staff hasn't been alive as long as I've been backpacking and rarely has much to teach me about BPing or caving. But in realms that are new to me – yes, I find their staff gives me helpful guidance (unlike many stores, they don't pay a commission which makes a huge difference). If you don't think REI staff is pretty knowledgable, helpful, and human-powered sports enthusiasts themselves; try asking detailed questions about BPing gear at Sportmen's Warehouse, Big 5 Sports, or Walmart! They'll have a prepper gun nut at the gun counter, but never a thru-hiker in the backpacking section.

As a former Dick's Lodge Associate between real jobs, I joined to sell backpacking stuff. They stuck me behind the gun counter because I was responsible. And knew guns somewhat. We had a pretty good crew though. I had a good base coverage of camping and backpacking, we had a semi-pro bass fisherman who was there for the employee discount, a competition rifle shooter, and a bow hunter rated to do bow work. I'd have put our knowledge up against anybody at REI in our respective fields.

I wasn't surprised when REI changed their return policy. I remember thinking at the time that it was kind of crap that they were retroactively applying it to everything, but it didn't surprise me since the amount of REI branded equipment seems to have gone down, and the quality has gone down even in the last few years really noticeably.