Editor’s Note: On October 29, REI Co-op CEO and President Jerry Stritzke wrote to employees about #OptOutside 2017.
Two years ago, we started a new tradition. We opted out of Black Friday, closed our stores and invited the world to #OptOutside with us. In 2016, we shifted the focus of #OptOutside to our hundreds of nonprofit partners who build trails, protect public lands and connect people with natural places. Since 2015, seven hundred organizations and seven million people joined in.
What started as a moment, became a movement. This year we’ll be closing again and paying all of you to spend the day outdoors!
As we embark on year three, I want to pause to reflect on why we do this.
Closing our doors on such a huge sales day in the world of retail is a bold decision—but it’s what the co-op is all about. It’s a choice we make to show the outdoor life we love matters more than a day of sales.
We do it so we can take a breath…
0
0
0
