Successfully interviewing for a UX/UI Designer position at REI requires a balanced preparation strategy. You must demonstrate both high-level strategic thinking and sharp execution skills.

Portfolio Craft & Presentation – Your portfolio is the single most important element of your application. You must be prepared to present a deep-dive case study of a past project, focusing on your specific contributions, your process, and the ultimate business and user impact. Interviewers will look for clear problem definitions, structured user research, iterative design cycles, and polished visual execution.

User-Centered Problem Solving – You must show that you start with the user in every design challenge. Be ready to explain how you gather user feedback, interpret data, and translate insights into actionable design requirements. Your ability to articulate the "why" behind your design choices is just as important as the final UI.

Cross-Functional Collaboration – REI values a highly collaborative, non-adversarial working environment. You need to demonstrate that you can partner effectively with engineering, product management, and business teams. Show that you view constraints as creative challenges and that you can compromise without sacrificing user experience.

Cultural Alignment – REI is a mission-driven co-op. Familiarize yourself with their commitment to sustainability, diversity, and outdoor stewardship. Be prepared to discuss how you incorporate these values into your design philosophy and how you contribute to a positive, inclusive team culture.

The interview process for a UX/UI Designer at REI is designed to evaluate both your technical execution and your collaborative mindset. Candidates generally describe the process as friendly and encouraging, though it requires stamina and thorough preparation.

The journey typically begins with an initial touchpoint. This is followed by a deeper technical screen, usually a one-hour phone or video call with the hiring manager. This conversation is typically casual and non-adversarial, focusing on standard behavioral questions, your background, and your high-level design philosophy. The hiring manager wants to understand your motivations and ensure your experience aligns with the team's current needs.

If you progress past the initial screen, you will move to the virtual or in-person loop. Historically, this loop is a highly intensive, three-hour session consisting of multiple back-to-back interviews with different sets of cross-functional stakeholders. This round typically includes a formal portfolio presentation where you walk through a prepared deck of your key projects, followed by behavioral and situational interviews.

This visual timeline illustrates the typical progression from the initial recruiter screen to the intensive final loop. Candidates should use this overview to pace their preparation, ensuring they allocate ample time to build a dedicated portfolio presentation deck before reaching the final stage. Because the final loop is highly collaborative, preparing for multiple stakeholder perspectives is essential.

To pass the REI interview loop, you must demonstrate mastery across several core competency areas. Interviewers use specific rubrics to evaluate your performance in each of these domains.

Portfolio Presentation

The portfolio presentation is the cornerstone of the final loop. You are expected to present one or two key projects in a structured, highly professional format. Do not simply scroll through a live website; instead, build a dedicated slide deck that tells a compelling story.

Be ready to go over:

• Problem Definition – Clearly articulate the user pain point and the business opportunity you were trying to solve.
• Your Individual Contribution – Explicitly state what you did versus what the broader team did.
• The Design Process – Show your messy middle: early sketches, failed prototypes, and how user testing guided your iterations.
• Impact and Metrics – Highlight the quantitative and qualitative outcomes of your design.

Advanced concepts to differentiate yourself:

• Detail how you handled technical constraints by collaborating directly with engineering during the design phase.
• Explain how you integrated accessibility requirements from the very beginning of the project, rather than as an afterthought.

Example scenarios:

• "Walk us through a project where your initial user research hypothesis was proven completely wrong, and explain how you pivoted."
• "Show us how you translated a complex, multi-step physical process into a simplified digital flow."

Cross-Functional Collaboration

REI values designers who can build bridges across departments. You will be evaluated on your ability to negotiate, align, and co-create with product managers, engineers, and retail business partners.

Be ready to go over:

• Developer Handoff – How you prepare your files, document design specs, and support engineers during implementation.
• Managing Conflict – Your strategy for resolving disagreements regarding scope, design patterns, or user research findings.
• Stakeholder Alignment – How you present design concepts to non-designers in a language they understand (e.g., linking design to business metrics).

Example scenarios:

• "Tell me about a time you had to compromise on your ideal design due to technical limitations. How did you ensure the user experience was not compromised?"
• "Describe a situation where a product manager wanted to launch a feature that you felt was not ready for users. How did you handle it?"

User-Centered Design Process

This evaluation area focuses on your methodology. Interviewers want to see that you do not just jump straight into high-fidelity UI, but that you follow a rigorous, structured design process.

Be ready to go over:

• User Research – How you plan, execute, and synthesize user research to inform your design decisions.
• Information Architecture – Your ability to organize complex information systems logically.
• Interaction Design – Your mastery of user flows, wireframes, and prototyping to test usability.

Example scenarios:

• "How do you approach designing for an audience with diverse digital literacy and physical abilities?"
• "Describe a time when you used quantitative data (like analytics) alongside qualitative data (like user testing) to solve a design problem."

As a UX/UI Designer at REI, your day-to-day work will be highly dynamic and deeply integrated with the co-op's digital product strategy. You will be responsible for defining, designing, and delivering end-to-end user experiences across various digital touchpoints.

Your primary responsibilities will include:

• Collaborating with product managers and user researchers to identify user needs, define product requirements, and establish design strategies.
• Creating user flows, journey maps, wireframes, and interactive prototypes to effectively communicate design concepts and interaction patterns.
• Designing high-fidelity, polished user interfaces that adhere to and help evolve REI's digital design system.
• Partnering with front-end engineers to ensure design integrity is maintained from concept to production.
• Participating in and occasionally leading usability testing sessions to gather direct feedback from REI members and customers.
• Advocating for accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA standards) across all digital products, ensuring that everyone can access REI's digital offerings.

You will typically work in an agile environment, participating in daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and design reviews. Your ability to self-manage, prioritize your tasks, and communicate your progress clearly to your team is essential for success in this role.