>>1251021>suburban shopping mall place that sells clueless baby boomers and weekend warriors cheap Chinese junk for 3000% markupsYes.
>sells normie-targeted Premium Brands® gear that perform just as well as cheaper brands that cost 1/10th of the priceYes.
>pseudo-milsurp storeNo.
>A hipster place that sells artisan sleeping bags hand-sewn from organic vegan materials for $1,000No.
It's a big store and they have a wide selection of gear and clothing (and also a small climbing wall). Some of it is good quality, "brand name" gear that is generally recommended. Some of it is made in China, off-brand gear and clothing. They put their own name on it, so it's "REI brand," but that doesn't really mean anything. The off-brand stuff gets pushed hard by the salesmen, so the reviews you hear are somewhat biased toward being used by clueless users. Some of it is borderline junk, in my experience, some of it will perform just about as well as better gear. They do have a solid warranty for all their gear and great return policy for everything else, but I'd rather just buy the gear I want and not have to deal with a return.
My biggest issue with outdoor gear stores, not just REI, but pretty much all the outdoor stores local to me is that like 80% of the inventory is clothing, 10% is bicycles and maybe 10% is gear. Of the gear, 90% is entry level junk that I'd never use or buy.
Even the clothing is mostly entry level, non-enthusiast-oriented. Not too long ago, I went in there looking for some uninsulated polyester hiking pants that don't zip off into shorts, aren't loaded down with cargo pockets and aren't so lightweight that they go "swish-swish" as you walk in them. It sounds like I'm being very specific, but I'm really not. I'm describing basic hiking pants and I've found that Patagonia makes a model that fits my needs exactly. However, I left REI stores empty-handed three times over different seasons and had to just order the pants online eventually.
