From the Archive to Now: REI Introduces a Color Palette of Modern Nostalgia

For the first time in our nearly 90-year history, we’re putting names to the colors that feel unmistakably REI. Each hue comes from the gear and stories that have shaped who we are as a co-op and will continue to appear across REI products for years to come.

“Our colors have a staying power that’s hard to miss,” said Ian Eburah, REI Co-op creative director, gear and cycle. “When something still feels relevant decades later, you know it’s part of who you are. We’re taking that heritage and reinterpreting it across products in a way that feels fresh again.”

For Amanda Russell, REI’s senior manager of color and print, the work goes deeper than product design. It is about capturing the feeling of the co-op through color, and how a single hue can spark memory, emotion and connection.

“Color is one of the most powerful ways we show who we are,” said Russell. “It’s emotional. It ties us to moments outside, to the green of a rain jacket, the red of a sleeping bag or the yellow of a tent at sunset. We wanted to honor those feelings and carry them forward.”

^{A behind the scenes look at REI Archive Colors Design Process. An REI Co-op Studios production Producer / Director: Amy Enser Cinematography: Jonathan Houser, Amy Enser Editor: Eric Munch Executive Producer: Joe Crosby}

A Palette That Feels Both Familiar and New

For this color palette, inspired by the REI Co-op Living Archive, the team surveyed every color-printed REI catalog since 1967, studying vintage gear and tracking down original dye recipes, looking for sparks of joy and connection.

“Looking back at nearly 90 years of design, the archive shows us patterns that have always been part of who we are and still feel right today,” said Co-op Historian Will Dunn, who oversees REI’s Living Archive. “It’s our compass, guiding us where we should go next.”

Russell’s team discovered four familiar hues that have quietly shaped outdoor gear for generations:

• REI Green – inspired by a vintage cotton twill parka with a subtle turquoise undertone.
• REI Blue – a deep, enduring hue drawn from a 1960s blue cotton anorak.
• REI Yellow – inspired by the bright trim of a 1962 Cyclops Bivy sleeping bag and our iconic tents.
• REI Red – a vibrant red that reminds you of warm tomato soup, seen on REI backpacks, sleeping bags and our classic puffy jackets since the 1970s.

“We’re not just chasing trends,” said Dunn. “We’re creating something that lasts, colors that have shown up decade after decade and still feel right today.”

A Green Made for REI

Of all the colors in the archive, REI Green proved the hardest to pin down. The team scoured catalogs and jackets before finding the right match: a cotton twill parka with a hint of turquoise that stood out from every other green.

“We didn’t want the obvious REI green,” said Russell. “We wanted the right one.”

To bring the perfect shade to life, the team worked with Archroma, a third-party color standard provider like Pantone, to custom-dye and create a color standard that exists only at REI.

Russell says the green feels like stepping back to 1987. “It’s the kind of color that makes you feel like a kid again,” she said. “It’s nostalgic and new all at once, connecting generations of REI Co-op products.”

REI Red appears this fall in Campwell and Trailmade collections, offering the first glimpse of the co-op’s evolving color story. REI Green will follow in 2026 as the team perfects the custom-dyed shade made just for the co-op.

Discover more about the journey from archive to color palette on Uncommon Path.

^{Photos & Video by Amy Enser}

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