Nicolas Ind tells the tale of Patagonia, an inspirational outdoor clothing company that places environmental issues at the heart of its strategy
Meet Chip Bell: 11 times world freestyle Frisbee champion, occasional surfing instructor and receptionist for outdoor clothing company Patagonia. Based in Ventura, California, Patagonia is an organization with a very distinctive culture. Not only does it employ a world Frisbee champion to answer the phone and greet people – it also has a clear philosophy, born out of the organisation’s earliest days.
This is a $267 million turnover company (2006), where the founder and chief executive conducts job interviews while surfing and employees are trained to abseil from building tops unfurling environmental protest banners. This is a company where workers leave their desks for the beach when the waves are over six feet. It has an influence, particularly in the United States, far larger than its size would suggest and serves as a model for how business can have a genuine and positive impact on the environment. Patagonia is a standard bearer for an ‘employee centric approach’ that stresses the value of engaging people with the organization they work for and stimulating them to live the brand.
Yvon Chouinard, a French Canadian who grew up in Burbank, California, founded the company that became Patagonia in 1958. As a young man he was a keen surfer and climber. He also taught himself to be a blacksmith. Using his forging skills, at the age of 18 he started out in business making climbing pitons for himself and then selling a few to friends. The company’s first mail order sheet in 1966 noted ‘Don’t expect speedy delivery in the months of May, June, July, August and September.’ This was when Chouinard would close down and go climbing. Despite this whimsical approach to business, his passionate beliefs helped to galvanise the company and by 1970 it had become the largest supplier of climbing hardware in the United States.
However, climbing pitons have to be hammered in and out of cracks, which disfigures the rockface. Chouinard decided that he should set an example to others and he pulled out of the piton business and instead began offering aluminium chocks that could be wedged in by hand.
Patagonia takes an ethical stance that encourages putting principle before profit. This created a corporate culture that was and is against consumption for its own sake. The company actively encourages people to send their clothing in to be repaired when damaged – generally for free – rather than encouraging replacement purchases.
For example, when Patagonia was concerned about wasting the scraps left over from the pattern cutting of garments, it created a range of children’s clothes from the offcuts. The pieces were oddments so nothing matched, but customers liked the story behind the idea and the range was a success. Most organizations would have capitalised on this, but Patagonia capped its sales and refused to produce additional product to meet demand. Chris Van Dyke, marketing director at Patagonia, says:
“As a small company we have the leverage to move a large company, because we don’t compromise. That creates an incredible power, grossly disproportionate to the revenues we generate. Yvon has always known that being a business model is a huge reason to grow. He’s always said that if you do the right thing you’ll make money and you also become more powerful.”
This is an edited extract from Living the Brand, by Nicholas Ind, published by Kogan Page, www.koganpage.com, £19.99. Marketing Society members can benefit from 20% off by contacting LBS on tel 01903 828 503 or email mailorders@lbsltd.co.uk and quote Reference MF334. (Postage and packing are not included.)