REI Co-op to open new store in San Luis Obispo, California in fall 2019

New store will offer customers top-quality gear, equipment rentals and outdoor experiences

Apr 30, 2019

SEATTLE – REI Co-op is opening a new store in San Luis Obispo, California in fall 2019, offering a wide assortment of quality outdoor gear, equipment rentals, experiences and expertise to customers along California’s central coast. The new 22,000-square-foot store will be located at the SLO Promenade and gear for the region’s most popular outdoor activities including hiking, camping, cycling and climbing.

“Close to the California coast and Los Padres National Forest, San Luis Obispo is a thriving outdoor hub,” said Greg Mellinger, REI retail director for the California-Nevada district. “We are thrilled to finally join San Luis Obispo and further connect our members to the amazing outdoor opportunities this community has to offer.”

In addition to outdoor gear and rentals, REI San Luis Obispo will offer workshops and guided outdoor experiences to connect people to a life outdoors. A national leader in outdoor experiences, REI helped more than 350,000 people across the country get outside last year.

To celebrate the new store, REI will partner with The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County and Central Coast Concerned Mountain Bikers (CCMB) to support stewardship efforts in the local community. In 2018, REI invested over $900,000 in California.

REI opened its first store in California-- and its second store in the country-in Berkeley in 1975. Today, REI has 28 stores and more than 3.8 million members in the state. For more than 40 years, REI has invested heavily in California's outdoor community, actively working with nonprofits to steward and maintain local trails and public lands and connect people to the outdoors.

Join the REI team

Candidates interested in joining the REI team can apply online at REI.com/jobs. This year, REI expects to hire nearly 45 employees for the San Luis Obispo store. Employees receive a wide variety of benefits, including generous product and service discounts, competitive pay and retirement contributions. REI employees also enjoy unique perks, like two paid “Yay Days” that allow them to enjoy their favorite outdoor activity and an additional paid day off on Black Friday to #OptOutside with family and friends. REI has been recognized as one of Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” for 22 consecutive years.

Store facts:

  • Address: 313 Madonna Road, Suite B
  • Square footage: 22,000 square feet
  • Open date: Fall 2019
  • Special features: Bike shop for maintenance and repairs, gear rentals
  • REI Co-op membership: Over 3.8 million lifetime members in California

About the REI Co-op

REI is a specialty outdoor retailer, headquartered near Seattle. The nation’s largest consumer co-op, REI is a growing community of 23 million members who expect and love the best quality gear, inspiring expert classes and trips, and outstanding customer service. REI has 184 locations in 42 states and the District of Columbia. If you can’t visit a store, you can shop at REI.com, REI Outlet or the REI shopping app. REI isn’t just about gear. Adventurers can take the trip of a lifetime with REI’s active adventure travel company that runs more than 100 itineraries across the country. In many communities where REI has a presence, professionally trained instructors share their expertise by hosting beginner-to advanced-level classes and workshops about a wide range of activities. To build on the infrastructure that makes life outside possible, REI invests millions annually in hundreds of local and national nonprofits that create access to—and steward—the outdoor places that inspire us all.