Outdoor retailer REI plans to close three Northeast stores in 2026: report

Outdoor retailer Recreational Equipment, Inc. has reportedly (REI) plans to close three of its stores in the United States next year.

The closures will affect REI locations throughout the Northeast, including Paramus, New Jersey, during the first three months of 2026, as well as in Boston and its flagship SoHo location in New York City at the end of that year, USA Today reported.

“We are extremely grateful to our teams, members, customers and store communities for their support over the years,” REI said in a statement to USA TODAY. “As markets and customer needs evolve, we must adapt to position the co-op for long-term success. We will continue to serve members and customers in these locations until closing, and in our other stores across the New York and Boston areas.”

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Despite the upcoming lockdowns, the retailer has continued to expand into other areas. REI opened six new stores this year, including in Durango, Colorado; Elk Grove, California; and Amherst, New York, according to REI.

The announcement comes as The Orvis Company, another longtime third-party retailer, announced plans to close more than two dozen stores by 2026 as part of a broader effort to shrink its retail footprint and streamline operations in response to rising tariffs.

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A customer walks into a Recreational Equipment Inc. store. (REI) in the SoHo neighborhood of New York, United States, on Monday, December 14, 2020. (Gabe Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)

Orvis boss Simon Perkins said in a statement that 31 stores and five outlets will close as the company enters a “new chapter” aiming for a “more focused retail portfolio” and leveraging retail partners that sell its products.

Last year, REI laid off 357 employees, according to a letter shared with employees at the time by former CEO Eric Artz, who retired in March.

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A store closing sign outside the Orvis store on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, on May 27, 2025 (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)

“Outdoor specialty retail has had four quarters of decline, and this trend is getting worse,” Artz said in January of last year. “While we were able to outperform this trend for most of last year, it caught up with us in the fourth quarter and we now expect conditions to remain very challenging throughout 2024.”

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REI did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.

FOX Business’ Daniella Genovese contributed to this report.