New REI chief drops suit and tie

Three months after taking the helm at REI, Jerry Stritzke looks every bit the part of the CEO of the Northwest's popular outdoor-equipment retailer.

Stritzke, 53, walks the grounds of REI's Kent, Wash., headquarters sporting jeans, flannel shirt and Patagonia vest instead of the suit and tie he wore as president and chief operating officer at posh New York-based handbag-maker Coach.

The Stillwater, Okla., native describes himself as an avid outdoorsman. He spends his summer vacations fly-fishing and mountain-climbing, skis and snowboards in the winter, and now bikes to work from his new home on Mercer Island.

While his appointment last fall to REI's top post seemed something of a head-scratcher, Stritzke said the opportunity to combine his retail expertise with a passion for the outdoors "was really a dream come true."

He gives the impression that selling tents and bikes is what he was meant to do all along.

"We do a lot of different things for work," he said of REI's core customers. "But our love for the outdoors is a constant through our lives, and that's been true for me."

Stritzke is the seventh CEO in REI's 75-year history, replacing Sally Jewell, who joined the Obama administration as secretary of the interior last spring.

Stritzke, a lawyer by training, brings a different background to REI. He was the No. 2 executive of publicly traded Coach for more than five years. Before then, he held top posts at Limited Brands in Columbus, Ohio, including a stint as COO of Victoria's Secret.

REI, which was founded in 1938 as a member-owned co-op, has 132 stores in 33 states and more than 5 million active members. In Minnesota, REI has stores in Bloomington, Roseville and Maple Grove.

Stritzke sees competition mounting, and one of his responses is to mull more flagships like REI's big downtown Seattle store.

REI Board Chairman John Hamlin said Stritzke was chosen for his long history in retail, strong leadership skills and "passion" for the outdoors.

Hamlin also rejected the notion that Stritzke is an odd cultural fit because he comes from fashion mainstay Coach.

"We now strongly believe we need the retail expertise, and we're seeing that value from him already," Hamlin said.

Stritzke said he has been in listening mode since his Oct. 1 start date and will lay out his priorities in a few months.

One of his first moves was to launch a national search for a chief marketing officer, a new position. REI announced this month the new CMO will replace senior marketing vice president Angela Owen, who is leaving the company.

Stritzke said he's also asked his leadership team to consider new store concepts and a separate strategy for more flagships. He praised REI's largest stores in Seattle and Denver and another flagship in Manhattan's SoHo district.

"They're incredibly successful, and I actually believe there's an opportunity for us to do more of that," he said.

"Increasingly, we're seeing a number of retailers try to take a piece of that outdoor experience and integrate it into their stores," he said. "What makes REI unique is it's at the core of what we do. That puts us in a position of amazing authenticity, and we're able to tell that story in a very different way."

REI's annual profit declined 4 percent in 2012 amid tepid sales growth. Last year's results won't be announced for a couple more months.