1) Would you rather spend an extra 60 minutes renting gear from REI or having gear arrive at your place when all your friends do and then leave all together?
2) We're cheaper than REI
3) REI is not open 24/7 like we are. This is actually why we're so focused on being a last minute business, because people today are really really last minute. There are numerous instances where this happens:
Coworker A: "Hey really psyched about Tahoe trip this weekend!"
Coworker B: "Oh crap, can't go, and forgot to tell you earlier, I'm the worst!"
Coworker A: "What?! We're leaving in 2 hours!!"
Coworker B: "Yeah, don't worry I'll find my replacement, hey Coworker C, want to go on this trip? It'll be super fun and I already paid!"
Coworker C: "Yeah sure!"
Coworker C: ~oh... don't have any gear~
Also, if you're calling yourself a "camper" already and have an REI account, we're probably not right for you because you probably go frequently enough to make buying gear worth it. Check out this calculator we built on that: www.lastmingear.com/protips/buy_vs_rent