REI — Attraction in Framingham

Title: "Disheartening Customer Service and Unresolved Bike Troubles at REI Store"

I had high expectations when I made the decision to purchase a brand new bike from the local REI store, with the goal of embarking on thrilling trail rides. The bike itself was a sight to behold, and its specifications seemed to promise an exciting journey. However, my interaction with the REI store's personnel has left me profoundly disheartened.

Shortly after taking possession of the bike, I didn't have the opportunity to explore the trails extensively, and I opted to store it in my garage. To my dismay, I noticed that the rear tire consistently went flat. After inflating it, I found myself having to do so again every four days. Concerned about this persistent issue, I reached out to the store and was instructed to bring the bike in for an evaluation.

Upon arriving at the REI store, I encountered a disheartening and dismissive attitude from their staff. They were adamant that frequent tire deflation was "normal" and implied that I should simply inflate it before every ride. This explanation didn't sit right with me, particularly when the front tire, which shared the same specifications, exhibited no such problems.

To exacerbate my frustration, when I insisted that they investigate the tube for leaks, they initially agreed and took the tube inside for examination. However, upon returning, they provided assurance that the tube had no leaks, without offering any concrete evidence or details of their inspection process.

They offered to replace the tube without a proper inspection, further highlighting their unwillingness to confront the problem's source.

When I requested a tube replacement, they abruptly declared that they had none in stock, reiterating their position that this was a "normal" occurrence that I should accept. My frustration reached its peak at this point, and I escalated the matter to the store manager, who acknowledged the unacceptability of my experience and pledged to address it with the bike technician.

However, even with the manager's intervention, the problem remained unresolved. To my dismay, after just four days of keeping the bike in my garage, the rear tire was flat once again, while the front tire retained the same tire pressure as when I initially acquired the bike three weeks ago.

As a result of my unsatisfactory experience at REI, I have chosen to seek assistance from a different local bike shop. This encounter has left me feeling disheartened and unsupported by REI's customer service. If you are contemplating a purchase at REI, I advise you to exercise caution and thoroughly assess their customer service and support, particularly if issues arise following your purchase. Their handling of the situation, including their insufficient inspection of the tube, has left me with serious doubts about their competence and dedication to customer...

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I recently purchased a bike from REI online shop as a birthday gift for my son, who contributed half of the cost with his savings. After about two months of use, the pedal began making a cracking sound. Our neighbor, a professional cyclist, recommended we have it looked at by a specialist, so we took the bike to an official REI repair shop, even though it was a bit far from us. When we arrived, the technician seemed to understand the issue, but the communication throughout the process was lacking. They told us that because we had assembled the bike ourselves, it was no longer under warranty – something we had no idea about, especially since we’ve only been in the U.S. for a year and had no prior bike experience. I tried explaining the pedal issue to the technician, but it felt like they didn’t really listen, and there was no discussion about the cost or what needed to be done. Instead, the bike was taken out of our sight into another room, where we couldn’t see what was happening. My 11-year-old son, who is an avid bike fan, asked several questions about the bike and the problem, but they completely ignored him. As a parent, this was incredibly frustrating, as I expected better customer service and more respect for his curiosity. After a while, we were handed an invoice for \

100, but the issue wasn’t even addressed. The work done had nothing to do with the pedal, and it didn’t seem like the bike was properly checked. The technician and support staff just discussed things regarding our bike amongst themselves, but didn’t keep me in the loop. I was frustrated because, as a customer, I wasn’t given any options or a clear explanation. To make matters worse, they suggested a full bike tune-up for \\

175 (additionally to $100), but they couldn’t schedule an appointment for another three weeks. This seemed unreasonable, considering the bike was brand new and the issue should have been addressed right away. I felt tricked and that I had been taken advantage of. However, when I spoke with the customer service representative, she was very understanding and kind. She listened to my concerns, acknowledged the frustration, and waived the fee, which I really appreciated.

I’m not trying to be difficult, but I would have been happy to pay if the problem had been fixed or if I was given more information about what was wrong with the bike and the pedal. You can't say 'oh, we don't know if your foot is broken, but we took your tonsils out and here is the bill'. I just wish the communication had been better from the start, and that my son’s questions had been...

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Was in the shop today. The thing that really put me off was the clothing moths. I found and killed 3 clothes moths while rifling through the clothes racks. I brought one to the employees to let them know they clearly have an infestation, and they didn't seem to care, or have anything to say about it. They didn't say anything to me except "would you like me to get rid of it for you?" and didn't alert any managers or... anything. They just went back to chatting with another employee, who listened and did nothing as well. I tried pressing, but they brushed me off.

The employees were very attentive overall, though, and one in particular (wish I remembered her name!) was extremely helpful with all my questions. Super friendly, quirky, knowledgable. Another employee ended up arguing with me about my clothing choices when I had some material-specific questions (I had reasons I was looking for what I was) and tried to tell me that the clothes that were advertised for certain activities weren't actually for those activities.... which was somewhat irritating. I went online to "prove" the tech specs, and she used her employee info to "prove" that the REI advertising is apparently false? Ugh. Then she told me to try Tractor Supply for what I was looking for, instead of helping find answers to my technical questions about the items. Leave me alone! If I wanted to go to Tractor Supply, I would have. Aaaaanyways. Another employee seemed lightly frustrated that I was trying on so many pants styles (I think I tried on 15 items over my several hours in the store) because of the need to quarantine clothes, and started discouraging me from continuing to try things on after my first 10 or so items (comfort/fit/ etc were not right - it's 2 sizes per pants style to try on, yanno?). It wasn't an issue because I only had 3 more items to try. Pants are hard, man! It's not like any of the sizing is consistent across brands, styles, etc.... and $100 is really expensive for me. It has to be right. I was only in the store for the purpose of trying on clothes that I had shopped online.

I really love REI, but tbh I'm not sure I'm gonna go back to this location. It's an hour 40 minutes (the closest REI to me) but I'd rather drive the extra 30 minutes to...

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