'Heartbreak' as REI announces closure of popular locations, including in New York

The outdoors retailer REI announced it is shutting down three locations, including its only store in New York City. This news has led to widespread customer disappointment.

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REI announced the closing of its only New York City location, the 35,000-square-foot SoHo flagship in the historic Puck Building. It will officially shut down by the end of 2026.

The SoHo location was the first REI store to unionize in 2022 and is now among 11 out of 195 total stores across the U.S. to unionize.

The Washington state-based outdoors retailer is also shuttering two other stores in Paramus and Boston.

When the SoHo store opened in 2011, the chain described it as one of its “most extensive restoration projects.” The co-op hired the architecture firm Callison to revitalize the space.

On Oct. 4, OpenAI announced that it would become neighbors with the REI store in the Puck Building and rent out 90,000 square feet of the retail space.

“After thoughtful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to close our Paramus, N.J. store in Q1 2026 and Boston, MA and SoHo, NYC, stores in late 2026,” REI said in a statement this week.

“We are deeply grateful to our teams, our members and customers, and the stores’ communities for their support over the years. As markets and customer needs evolve, we must adapt to position the co-op for long-term success. We will continue serving members and customers at these locations until closing, and at our other stores across the New York and Boston regions.”

Back in 2024, REI reported a 6.2 percent revenue decline to $3.53 billion, following a 2.4 percent drop in 2023.

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New REI CEO announced a strategic plan

This store closure plan follows REI CEO Mary Beth Laughton’s strategic plan announcement in September, “Peak 28: Ascending Together.”

According to this plan, the company sets out to be the most trusted outdoors retailer, with its customer base at the core of the mission. Laughton strives to achieve this by leading a purpose-led organization, delivering products that shape outdoor culture and emotional connection, elevating services and experiences for customers, and reinventing its membership.

“Making these shifts will not be easy; they’ll require us to fundamentally transform, make difficult choices and evolve the way we work over the next few years,” Laughton stated in the release, possibly hinting at the store closure announcement.

Customer disappointment over REI SoHo closure

Customers are disappointed by the news as they prepare to say goodbye to the only REI location in NYC.

In the NYC Subreddit, one user shares, “That’s bad news. I really enjoyed being able to order stuff online & pickup in-store, as well as trying things on. It was really nice having a store like this within subway access.”

Another shared a similar sentiment, saying, “This is literally the most heartbreaking closure I’ve read all year. I love having that rei. Also GREAT bathroom in the area.”

Someone else said, “That's a bummer. A primary reason I'm happy to order from REI is the ability to return things in-store for free (they charge shipping for mailed returns otherwise).”