REI #OptOutside campaign returns for Black Friday

[LargeEddie]

I saw the banner on the REI outdoor equipment website saying that they are closing (again, it turns out) on Black Friday this year. Apparently it was a pretty big deal when they did this last year although I missed it. They’re doing it again and trying to make it a bigger deal this year:
http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/how-rei-expanding-its-blockbuster-optoutside-campaign-2016-174232

When REI announced it would close its doors on Black Friday last year and encourage its customers to enjoy the outdoors instead, it created a campaign that resonated with countless consumers—and won basically every advertising award on the planet, including accolades from The One Show, the Cannes Lions and the Clio Awards. Today, REI announced it would continue #OptOutside this year, and expand the campaign to include 275 other national and local organizations.

REI will not only shut down (both on and offline) on Black Friday, it will also pay all of its employees to take the day off. Brands joining in the effort include Subaru of America, which will provide a fleet of vehicles in New York so dog owners can take their own pups or shelter dogs into nature; and Google, which will work with REI to support outdoor-focused nonprofits in Seattle and Austin, starting with the Washington Trails Association and the Shoal Creek Conservancy. Outdoor brands Arc’teryx, Big Agnes, Burton, KEEN, Kuhl, Outdoor Research, prAna and Yeti will post about the effort on their social media channels.

Nonprofits and government agencies participating in #OptOutside include hiking and outdoor advocacy groups, The National Parks Service and The National Park Foundation. The Trust for Public Land will host an event in San Francisco to raise awareness for the program, and The Sierra Club will post about #OptOutside on its social media channels.

[…]

[TEAL]

I believe this is the right call for REI. They are an outdoor gear co-op company and from what I can tell a lot of their employees are outdoor enthusiasts. They should be outdoors instead of being consumerists on a “holiday”.

[William393]

@TEAL

I believe this is the right call for REI. They are an outdoor gear co-op company and from what I can tell a lot of their employees are outdoor enthusiasts. They should be outdoors instead of being consumerists on a “holiday”.

To encourage this, they should install HUGE wifi stations in the mountains and rivers, so we could also shop online.

[LargeEddie]

@William393

To encourage this, they should install HUGE wifi stations in the mountains and rivers, so we could also shop online.

That’s a bit bigger project than closing the stores for a day! In the adventure apps that REI sponsors (Mountain Project, Trail Run Project, Powder Project, etc), a key thing is that they work when your data connection goes away. Things like check-ins and trail ratings get buffered until the next time it has a chance to sync because that really does come up.

They haven’t said if they plan to do that for shopping too. Heat up your last freeze-dried turkey tetrazzini while bivouacked on the face of a mountain? Click the Re-order button before you forget!