EXEC: REI to Shutter Three Northeast Stores
SGB Executive | OCT 7, 2025
REI Co-op has confirmed plans to close its store in Paramus, NJ, in the first quarter of 2026, as well as stores in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City and the city of Boston, in late 2026.
REI said in a statement:
“After thoughtful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to close our Paramus, NJ store in Q1 2026 and Boston, MA and SoHo, NYC, stores in late 2026. 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.”
REI SoHo and REI Boston are two of the 11 REI stores that are unionized. REI operates 195 stores, including 193 REI stores and two REI Re/Supply stores.
The REI SoHo store opened in November 2011, the Boston location in the Fenway neighborhood opened in May 2003, and the Paramus store in Bergen Town Center opened in August 2011.
The pending closures follow REI’s reported 6.2 percent revenue decline in 2024 to $3.53 billion, on top of a 2.4 percent drop in 2023.
Last week, Mary Beth Laughton, a former Nike executive appointed CEO in March, laid out a new three-year strategic plan, “Peak 28: Ascending Together,” that calls for a focus on “building trust with consumers, product leadership, elevated service, and a revamped membership program.”
Image courtesy REI SoHo