REI continues its retail expansion with two stores to open in the D.C. area

REI will be opening two stores in the Washington, D.C., region, the company announced today. Lease agreements have been signed for stores in Fairfax, Va., and the Congressional Village Shopping Center in Rockville, Md.

The 22,500-square-foot Fairfax store, located on the south side of Interstate 66 between Fairfax County Parkway and Route 50, is slated to open in fall 2003 and will feature a freestanding, 18-foot climbing pinnacle behind a glass façade. REI will be part of the Fairfax Corner multi-use development, including entertainment, retail, office and residential space. The store will employ 50 full- and part-time staff.

The Rockville store, scheduled for a fall 2004 opening, will be located in the new Congressional Village Shopping Center at Rockville Pike and Halpine Road. Approximately 80 full- and part-time staff will work in the 26,000-square-foot store, which will include a climbing boulder for testing rock shoes and gear. REI currently operates stores in Timonium and College Park, Md., and one in Bailey’s Crossroads, Va. and reports that the co-op has 56,000 active members in the region.