REI union vows Anniversary Sale boycott

REI’s biggest sale of the year is turning into a labor fight. On May 4, the REI Union called for customers to boycott the co-op’s Anniversary Sale, which runs May 15 through May 25, after contract talks ended without a deal. That matters because this sale is a huge traffic driver for REI — basically the moment when a lot of members stock up on big-ticket gear. Now the union is trying to turn that moment into leverage. (ufcw.org) ### What exactly happened? The union said workers at all 11 unionized REI stores voted to boycott the Anniversary Sale after negotiations wrapped last week without what organizers considered a fair contract offer. REI pushed back in its own statement, saying it came prepared to bargain in good faith but the sides remained far apart. (ufcw.org) ### Why target this sale? Because the Anniversary Sale is REI’s marquee spring event. It is the co-op’s best-known promotional window, and union organizers are betting that asking members not to shop during those 11 days will hurt in a way a normal protest(ufcw.org)talled bargaining directly to lost sales. (ufcw.org) ### How big is the boycott effort? The union says 70,000 REI co-op members have already pledged not to shop the sale. That number is hard to independently verify in real time, but even as an organizing metric it is meaningful, because it shows this is not just an internal workplace(ufcw.org)tion vote in March and a public pledge campaign aimed at customers as well as workers. (ufcw.org) ### What are workers angry about? The fight has been building for years. Union organizers say REI has dragged out first-contract talks and imposed cuts to pay or benefits while bargaining remained unresolved. REI rejects the union’s framing and says the bo(ufcw.org)wages or scheduling — it is over whether REI is genuinely trying to get to a contract at all. (ourrei.com) ### Why does this sting now? Because REI had just put out better-looking financials. The co-op reported $3.54 billion in 2025 net sales, up slightly from 2024, and said its net loss narrowed sharply year over year. In other words, management was trying to tell a recovery story. The boycott threatens to interrupt that story right(ourrei.com)rei.com) ### Is this just about 11 stores? Not really. Eleven stores is still a small slice of REI’s overall footprint, but the symbolic risk is bigger than the store count. REI is a consumer co-op with a values-heavy brand — outdoors, community, stewardship, worker-friendly vibes. A boycott campaign work(rei.com)shopping as a referendum on whether the brand lives up to its image. That last part is an inference, but it fits the union’s member-focused strategy and REI’s own co-op identity. (ufcw.org) ### What should we watch next? Watch whether bargaining resumes before May 15, whether REI offers any public concessions, and whether the boycott spreads beyond the union’s core supporters. If the sale holds up, REI can argue the campaign was noisy but lim(ufcw.org)bargaining power. (ufcw.org) ### Bottom line? This is a contract fight disguised as a shopping decision. The union picked REI’s most important sale because that is where customer goodwill becomes money — and where pressure is hardest to ignore.