REI

"I adore this store as a single mom - my daughter loves it for rock climbing and my son wants all the gear for everything, lol. I love it for the amazing quality of things like insulated cups, climber level keychains (yes single mom life absolutely requires mounting climbing gear level performance from my items, lol), and super packable jackets! The staff, the clearly evident corporate culture, and amazing policies (like their returns policy for members is amazing!!!) will always keep me coming time and time again. I love sniffing through their clearance for amazing deals on top tier merch. I always thought of this place as over priced and for rugged out door types. This single mom is here for the amazing quality, amazing customer service, and the awesome and surprisingly amazing deals you can get."

"This REI is my “home” store and where most of my purchases are made. I really like this store and I’ve been shopping here for many years. Everyone on the staff that I’ve ever worked with were always very helpful and knowledgeable. I always like to check things out in person and this is one of the only retail stores that I actually go browse through. I will continue to shop at REI."

"Came to Austin for an outdoor climbing trip. I had a few issues with some shoes and needed to return one pair and exchange a second pair. The shoes were a bit muddy, a young man informed me that they needed to be cleaned prior to REI accepting them. I let him know I’m in from out of town and didn’t really have a way to clean them. He gave me paper towels and I went out front and cleaned them up to his satisfaction. (Thank you for being helpful) Once we started the exchange, the manager Molly came over, she didn’t seem happy from the start, she was very rude and abrasive towards my wife and I. She told me she wouldn’t take the shoes that they were too dirty. Even after the other gentleman said they were all good. We explained we were in from out of town and didn’t really have access to anything to clean. I was informed that was a “me problem”. Luckily she left and we had to clean the shoes in the restroom sink to get the exchange. This was a huge inconvenience, I understand the cleaning the gear, I don’t understand he attitude towards my wife and I. I shop at REI and pay the premium pricing to have the nation wide access to stores for this exact reason, exchange if I have an issue on a trip. I’ve been a member for several years and been to REI’s across the nation. This was by far the worst experience I’ve had at an REI. It’s bad when the manager leaves and the employees apologize because she was that rude. Molly, please take a refresher on customer service. If this was my local store, I would shop on Amazon."

"I've been a member of the co-op since 1989 (when I was a senior in high school). I have relied on REI for outdoor gear and apparel needs since (and even before) then. This is the better of the two physical locations in Austin simply because it is larger and, therefore, has more of a selection of products - but this should not be taken as a knock on the downtown store (which I also visit regularly). The employees are super-helpful and knowledgeable about the products they carry and their intended uses."

"Stopped by here and it was an awesome store. The staff were extremely helpful, welcoming, and upbeat. They carried a fantastic inventory, in fact, it was up there with one of the nicer REI’s I’ve visited. They had a great selection of camping, kayak/paddle boards, and surprising inventory and variety of climbing gear which was cool. They also had a great selection of clothing with a ton of inventory. Their bike section was pretty large, though limited in brand selection carrying the typical REI stack -Cannondale, etc. The store was easy to spot from the surrounding streets and had a nice sized parking lot immediately outside. Overall a great store, great staff, and great experience."