I’ve spent a decade on the buying side of outdoor and footwear retail — buying, merchandising, and building the assortments brands are trying to get into. This guide is written from that seat: how the decision actually gets made at retailers like evo and REI, and what separates a brand that gets a line review from one that gets a polite no.
evo and REI are not the same buyer
They sit in the same industry and sell to overlapping customers, but they buy differently, and the pitch has to change accordingly.
evo is a curated action-sports and outdoor retailer — strong online, with a handful of flagship stores. It carries a deliberately edited assortment built around a lifestyle, so it is looking for brands and specific items that fit that world and add something the wall doesn’t already have. Fit and differentiation get you in the door; operational discipline keeps you there.
REI is a member-owned co-op with more than a thousand brand partners, and it treats the assortment as an expression of the co-op’s values. That means it buys through category merchandisers and applies published product impact and sustainability standards to everything it carries. For REI, the sustainability story is part of the product, not a nice-to-have.
How retailer vendor onboarding usually works
Across both, the path is roughly the same shape, and knowing the stages helps you show up at the right one:
- Buyer contact. You reach the merchant who owns your specific category with a short, relevant pitch. This is a targeted outreach, not a mass vendor form.
- Product submission & review. The buyer reviews the item against the assortment: fit, differentiation, margin, and whether it fills a real gap.
- Line review. On a set cycle, the buyer evaluates candidate products for a category together and decides what earns space. Timing matters — miss the window and you wait for the next one.
- Onboarding & compliance. Once accepted, you clear the operational bar: product data, packaging, logistics, and each retailer’s specific requirements.
- After approval. Ship on time, stay in stock, and don’t create problems after the PO. The first season is an audition for the second.
What evo expects once you’re in
evo publishes a vendor requirements and routing guide, and it is specific. Plan for:
- Complete digital content, early. Full product information, specs, materials and size charts, plus studio photography at a minimum of 2000×2000px, delivered through evo’s asset system at least 90 days before ship. California Prop 65 disclosures where they apply.
- Purchase-order discipline. Verify PO data before shipping, resolve discrepancies quickly, and hit cancel dates — late shipments carry automatic wholesale discounts, and shipping an incomplete or over-split order triggers chargebacks.
- Logistics and packaging to spec. Advance shipping notices, correct freight terms, one PO per carton, cartons within weight limits, and proper labeling and packing slips.
- EDI preferred. Transmitting POs, confirmations, shipping notices and invoices via EDI is expected of capable vendors.
None of this is exotic, but it is the part that quietly decides whether a first order becomes a lasting one.
What REI expects before it will carry you
REI’s bar is as much about how the product is made as what it does. Expect to document:
- A manufacturing code of conduct for your supply chain.
- A restricted substances list and compliance with REI’s chemical, material, and (where relevant) animal-welfare requirements.
- Recognized certifications where they fit — things like bluesign, Fair Trade, or verified recycled content clear the bar faster and can become preferred attributes shoppers filter for.
- Standard product data and EDI once you’re onboarded.
If sustainability documentation isn’t already in order, start there before you pitch — it’s often the gate, not the product.
Category review, line review, product submission — what they mean
These terms get used loosely, so it’s worth being precise. Product submission is you putting an item in front of a buyer for consideration. Category review is the buyer periodically re-evaluating a whole category — what to keep, drop, or add. A line review is the structured session where competing products are judged together for the space available. Retailers run these on cycles, which is why timing your outreach to land before a review, with everything ready, materially changes your odds.
How to prepare a stronger submission
Buyers are deciding one thing: will this item turn on my shelf without creating risk? Give them the evidence:
- Margin math that works for both sides, with MAP discipline so the item holds its price.
- Proof of demand — sell-through and full-price velocity elsewhere, repeat rates, a waitlist, anything that lowers their risk.
- Supply capacity to fulfill on time, in the packaging and data format the retailer requires.
- A low-risk way in — a focused set of SKUs or a test in select doors or a region, rather than asking for the whole chain on day one.
- Compliance handled — evo’s content and routing requirements, REI’s sustainability documentation — before you ask for the meeting.
Common reason submissions stall: the product is fine, but the readiness behind it isn’t, so the buyer can’t say yes without taking on risk they don’t need.