Forget about shopping on Black Friday: This retailer wants you to go outside
Black Friday is usually when hoards of shoppers descend on their favorite stores in hopes of snagging the perfect gifts. While it can be a time of excitement, it can also be a time of chaos and stress.
REI decided to set the trend toward something more peaceful on this often chaotic day.
Through its initiative "Opt Outside," the company is encouraging both shoppers and its employees to forget about being part of the commercial frenzy on Black Friday and to instead opt for a more peaceful experience in nature.
"As an organization, we often say ‘A life outdoors is a life well lived’," said Andy Frey, general manager, REI Denver Flagship.
To give people this opportunity to be outdoors on Black Friday, REI shuts down its nearly 200 retail locations, distribution centers and website on that day. The company's more than 15,000 employees also get Black Friday as a paid day off.
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"The fact that we took what was ultimately our core being a retailer and said, ‘No, we're going to reprioritize things,’ I think is just really special and shows the commitment to Opt Outside as a movement," Frey said.
For Frey, Black Friday no longer involves waking up early to prepare a store for the holiday shoppers. Rather, he wakes up that day to make cinnamon buns for his children, go for a run or bike ride and then go for a family hike in the afternoon.
FILE: Walkers take their dogs along a snow-covered hiking trail. (Credit: Swen Pförtner/dpa picture alliance via Getty Images)
"When you're outside, you feel the warmth of the sun, you feel that nice breeze, you catch that snowflake. There's just something special and energizing about that," he said. "I think when you think about physical and mental health, there's no better place to be than outside."
REI launched Opt Outside nearly a decade ago in 2015. At the time, no other large retailer had ever closed its stores on both Thanksgiving and Black Friday, according to REI.
After the first Opt Outside, however, the company learned that it had set a trend in that more than 1.4 million people and 170 outdoor companies, nonprofits and organizations also began to shut their doors on Black Friday.
"To see it become more than just an employee experience piece and see it become something that is truly societal and bigger than us is really impactful," Frey said.