Pros

The people that they hire are mostly excellent-- Great, friendly people, hard workers and very knowledgable. They also have benefits for the uninsured as long as you work 20+ for six months. Shoppers are mostly very friendly.

Cons

REI would have you believe that it's a great place to work because they will tell you that all the time. You will do well there if you sell memberships-- that is the only way to be successful there. You will be told that selling membership is not the most important part of working at REI, but it really is the only metric that management uses to rate your performance. You will also have to "drink the koolaid" to have management notice you. They want you to be "authentic" but what they mean is unrealistically enthusiastic all the time. It's almost a cult-like atmosphere, which they rely on to pay you the bare minimum. If it wasn't for the healthcare, I would not have been there as long as I was. They will also tell you that they value a "work life balance" but there's no way to do it on pay that low. I was actually outside less when I worked there because I didn't have the opportunity financially. I also noticed a drop in benefits and discounts the longer I worked there.