REI Re/Supply returns feature

A Conversation with REI On Its Approach to Recommerce, Returns

| Mike O'Brien

Outdoor gear retailer REI has been at the forefront of recommerce, creating a successful channel by viewing returns not as a cost center but a revenue driver. It also helps REI achieve its sustainability goals while also spurring growth. Matthew Bergerson, REI’s DVP of returns and circular economy, talks about the company’s views on reverse logistics, circularity, sustainability and its customer ethos.

alt-commerce livestream shopping feature

Alt-Commerce: The Future of Consumer Buying and Selling

| Olivia Viniss

In recent years, a new wave of non-traditional, alt-commerce models has emerged, challenging our assumptions about consumer purchasing and preferences. Alt-commerce represents a radical shift in the way people buy and sell products. Innovation and technological advances, coupled with the need to foster closer customer relationships, have given rise to new selling channels.

REI mountain climber feature

REI Ups Circular Efforts With Second New Store for Old Gear

| Ian McRae

Outdoor retailer giant and sustainability market leader REI announced plans to open a new circular Re/Supply location in Clackamas, Oregon in late August 2023.  The new store follows REI’s Re/Supply store in Manhattan Beach, California, which opened in 2020. The new store location will feature lightly used gear and apparel that REI receives through its returns and trade-in programs.

The Growing Importance of Sustainability: How Should Retailers Respond?

| Brian Kilcourse

For retailers, sustainability encompasses everything from ethical sourcing and social responsibility on factory labor to environmentally conscious manufacturing processes and reducing the carbon footprint associated with bringing products to market, and all the way to product end-of-life recycling. The reason: consumers have clear ideas about what “sustainability” means when shopping for products.

Circularity and Recommerce: ACT Paving the Way

| Ian McRae

American Circular Textiles Group (ACT) is a coalition seeking to establish U.S. leadership and policy in textile waste and circularity, with a focus on the waste hierarchy. Founding members include Rent the Runway, The Real Real, thredUP and Fashionphile. ACT director and founder talks about the momentum behind circularity in apparel, and how ACT is working to influence legislators and industry leaders.

Sustainability and Recommerce Highlighted in Multichannel Merchant Spotlight

| Ian McRae

Multichannel Merchant has launched the first of its Sector Spotlights, which will feature weekly content focused on sustainability and recommerce, helping retail and ecommerce executives gain a better understanding of these important, related trends. Future Spotlights will focus on returns and demand forecasting. Check out our webinar with Brian Kilcourse of RSR Research on consumer attitudes in 2023.

REI hiker feature

REI Scores Highest on Recommerce Index

| Mike O'Brien

Outdoor co-op REI, high-end outdoor apparel/gear brand Arc’teryx, fashion brand Amour Vert, running supplier On and luxury brand Philip Lim stood out in the first recommerce leaders index compiled by Trove, as the growing category has added an estimated 100 programs in the past year.