REI.com’s record-breaking sales

Seattle-based Recreational Equipment Inc. is reporting record sales in its direct sales division for the first six months of the year. Direct sales, which include catalog and web, reached $55 million, a 55% increase over the same period last year. The company says the majority of direct sales occur via the web. The figure is a record for the outdoor gear retailer that started selling on the web in 1997, when it posted $3.4 million in sales. For the full year 2000, REI.com’s sales grew 125% to $92 million.

REI also notes that its online business is profitable. “We’ve continued to see impressive growth in online sales over the last five years,” said Joan Broughton, vice president of online and direct sales. “The division has been profitable every month this year, and with the biggest sales period of the year coming up we are optimistic for a strong 2001.”