Outdoor equipment cooperative REI plans to open a store in the fast-growing Christiana Mall area this year.
An expansion plan, announced Tuesday, will also bring stores to Virginia Beach and West Des Moines, Iowa. REI is based in Seattle.
“We have wanted to open stores in Delaware and Iowa for years, so this is exciting, and we can’t wait to bring the REI experience closer to our members and customers in Virginia. At each store, we’ll work to engage, support and grow the outdoor community,” said Tim Spangler, REI’s senior vice president of retail. “The co-op is here to help everyone have fun living healthy, outdoor lives with great products and advice that gets you out there exploring.”
In the fall , REI will open a 23,500 square foot, one floor store in the new Christiana Fashion Center adjacent to the mall, the co-op announced. It is the second store announced for the center, with Nordstrom Rack, the first to announce its opening late this year.
At present, 74,000 members live in the region and they have loyally shopped REI.com or have traveled more than 40 miles to their nearest REI. The closest REI is in Plymouth Meeting Pa., with more distant stores north of Baltimore and in Marlton, NJ.
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Also this fall, REI will bring a new store to the outdoor community in West Des Moines. The 23,500 square foot, one story building will be in Mills Crossing, a new retail and housing development.
The company will open its doors at Pembroke Mall in Virginia Beach in the spring of 2016, on the corners of Virginia Beach and Independence Boulevards. At more than 27,400 square feet, the new freestanding store will serve nearly 7,500 local REI members.
Each location will offer year-round REI Outdoor School classes and a bike shop for assembly and repairs. Watersports hard goods such as kayaks and stand up paddle boards will be available year-round in Virginia, and seasonally in Christiana and West Des Moines. REI Christiana will offer snow sports hard goods on a seasonal basis.
Founded as a co-op in 1938, today REI has 5.6 million members and 138 stores in 33 states. Anyone can shop with REI, but members pay a one-time $20 fee to receive a share in the company’s profits.
REI membership also includes special promotions and discounts on trips with REI Adventures and REI Outdoor School classes and events, the co-op noted.
Plans to open the store come after the success of the hunting-focused Cabela’s store adjacent to the mall.
