I have a new-ish REI membership, and 90% of my purchases have been socks. You can get some killer deals on socks. I picked up a Twin Six jersey on closeout (which is very nice) and at the right time of year, the cycling clearance stuff can be pretty reasonable. I look at REI like any other store trying to hold on to brick and mortar in this age-- sometimes we shop there in the hopes that the place will stick around. I've become "that" old guy, who pays a little extra at the LBS rather than hitting the internet, because I really want them to keep the lights on.