Thursday January 13, 2022

Washington-based outdoor realtor REI to bring 280 jobs with new Lebanon facility

Al. Neyer is thrilled to support REI Co-Op in developing, designing, and building its fourth distribution center in Lebanon, TN, which will employ more than 280 employees. With “impact” the key focus—in their employees’ experience at work, the local community, and in overall sustainability—REI has big plans to serve as a long-term partner in Tennessee.

From Andy Humbles at The Tennessean:

WASHINGTON-BASED OUTDOOR REALTY REI TO BRING 280 JOBS WITH NEW LEBANON FACILITY

Recreational Equipment Inc., known as REI, has formally announced plans to open an approximate 400,000-square-foot distribution center in Lebanon.

The distribution center is scheduled to open in the fall of 2023 on about 41 acres at 1400 Murfreesboro Road, about one mile from Interstate 40.

REI, based in Washington near Seattle, is a specialty outdoor member-owned co-op retail company. REI has 20 million members of which 267,000 are in Tennessee.

The future Lebanon distribution center will have the ability to expand storage and service, REI Vice President of Supply Chain Bill Best said. Both expansion and additional locations could be considered if needed.

“Flexibility is important,” Best said.

The development has been under the code name Project Bluebird.

The distribution center is being built to support company growth on the East Coast, Midwest and South. The location is designed to reduce shipping times to fulfill online purchases. The building will support more than 70 REI stores.

…

REI distribution center operations intend to utilize 100% renewable energy and 100% electric energy and operate as a zero-waste facility, according to the company’s announcement.

The building design will “address the employee experience,” the company’s announcement states.

Population statistics, job market potential, construction readiness, regional environmental commitments and cost to build were all factors in choosing Lebanon over several locations.

Read more from The Tennessean.

 

About the Project

Al. Neyer’s integrated team of developers, architects, and construction experts are working closely with REI to build a state-of-the-art distribution center that will serve more than 70 REI stores and 5.6 million co-op members. The facility will be approximately 400,000 SF and include features that support the employee experience and community engagement while lessening its environmental impact. The project is expected to be completed in the fall of 2023. Read more in our portfolio.

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