I had completely forgotten (or never knew) that voting was a part of REI membership, and I&#x27;ve been a member nearly 15 years.<p>Regarding their commercial success though, I think is attributable to several factors, including:<p>- They have tended to their brand really well.  Their brand means the same thing (and more) to me as it did 20 years ago.<p>- As I have grown up, had a family, they have continued to provide things I want&#x2F;need:  I used to buy a lot of ski and camping gear there when I was younger, and now, it&#x27;s one of the first places I look for kids&#x27; outer-wear and sports gear for all seasons.  They are now far more than an outdoorman&#x27;s outfitter (EDIT: but they haven&#x27;t gotten so broad as to dilute the original reason I liked them).<p>- They have attached their brand to cultural symbols of the upper middle class, like ski vacations, environmentalism, etc.  Therefore their clientele are people of reliable means, similar to Costco&#x27;s customer demographics. In fact, In the Bay Area, I can think of 3 REI locations that are quite close to a Costco, FWIW.  EDIT: Also, these cultural symbols are things I am very likely to teach my children - my very young kids already know that when we want gear, we go to REI.