NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and REI Co-op officials today announced the specialty outdoor retailer will establish a new distribution center in Lebanon.
REI, the nation’s largest consumer co-op, will create more than 280 new jobs in Wilson County as a result of the project. Construction is now underway and the facility, REI’s fourth distribution center in the country, is expected to open fall 2023. Once complete, it will serve more than 70 REI stores on the East Coast and in the Midwest and South.
Situated on 41 acres in Wilson County, the 400,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility will be one mile from I-40 and three miles from downtown Lebanon at 1400 Murfreesboro Road. It is being constructed with industry-leading sustainability and technology features. The design is centered on a productive and healthy build environment that intentionally takes into consideration how employees work, rest and connect to nature.
Headquartered near Seattle, REI is a specialty outdoor retailer with 174 locations across 41 states and the District of Columbia. Since 1938, the company has provided quality gear and apparel and expert advice to consumers with a love of the outdoors. REI operates five stores in Tennessee that employ nearly 300 people across the state.
Since 2017, TNECD has supported 15 economic development projects in Wilson County, resulting in 4,750 job commitments and $971 million in capital investment.
