[pct-l] REI Past and Present

[Montedodge at aol.com (Montedodge@xxxxxxx)]

 The old brick building with wood floors fits well with all the best things 
about Seattle, like Pike Street Market and all the Waterfront shops which are 
all top draws and parts of Seattle past. 
  Today's REI has all the warmth of a McDonald's and a Strip Mall all wrapped 
in one!! Their job is the sell the the widest range of clients to make a 
buck.  They have got away from the " Meat And Potatoes" hikers and climbers to 
turn more money . That is why today's catolog doesn't have pictures of big 
mountain exp. ,but looks more like a "Toy's For US" catalog.with large sections of 
it's calalog devoted to baby fleece sleepers, kid's REI Logo boots and family 
car camping hoopla.
   REI on line is a good tool and I am sure their are a few knowledgable 
employee's still around , but as a whole, REI is just a big swiss army knife. It 
serves a lot of purposes, but none very well!!!!!
   In the old store on any given day , you would be standing next to Fred 
Becky, Havery Manning, Lou Whitaker or any number of Northwest legends who were 
happy to answer any question just by asking. Most of today's service people are 
not well rounded in their knowledge and it's kind of like buying a bucket of 
paint from Home Depot. If you get that sales person out of their area of the 
store , they look at you with that " Deer in the Headlights" look.
    Unless you were around at the old store, a person isn't qualifyied to 
compare the old REI with today's Home Depot version.