REI rocks. Living here in Boston we have the luxury of two convenient stores, Boston and Framingham. Anybody who doesn't live close to a store is missing out on better than half of the REI experience. I use my REI Visa card for everything and my dividend is usually several hundred dollars every Spring, so that's nice too. Using an REI credit card is the only way to get dividend credit for REI "on sale" items. Since we buy as much as we can on sale, our dividend used to be miniscule before we got REI credit cards. Free shipping to stores is fantastic. There are times where I'll order 3 sizes of something, have them delivered to the store and return 2 of them right then and there (sometimes all 3), all for no cost whatsover beyond the purchase price of items kept. Their sale stuff online is great, but nothing compared to the ridiculously low sale prices you'll stumble on in the store. With two young children, my wife and I will often buy something for them they won't wear for years but it's just too ridiculously cheap to pass up. They've spent all of their winters since birth outfitted in REI base layers, fleeces, and SmartWool socks purchased at tremendous bargains.
Last year I got a $200 pair of GORE BikeWear Gore-Tex Paclite waterproof/breathable cycling pants. They were marked down to $100 and were paid for in full out of our dividend. I must have used them at least 75 days this past Winter and they were fantastic.
Lest I repeat, REI rocks.
Last edited by RaleighComp; 06-30-10 at 12:10 PM.