—Liz Richardson, C3MD president and co-owner of Indigo Ink Digital Printing
Last month, Patagonia announced that the Chouinards have transferred all ownership of the company to a specially designed trust, Patagonia Purpose Trust, and a non-profit organization, Holdfast Collective, to fight climate change and today’s environmental crisis.
When I heard the news, I was not surprised. Though I could not have predicted this would happen – they did quite literally invent a new uncharted path with this decision – it all makes perfect sense given Yvon Chouinard’s history and what he and his family and Patagonia have been up to for decades. I should come out and disclose the fact that I’ve been a huge Yvon Chouinard and Patagonia fan for a very long time, and his writings and my close following of Patagonia and how they operate have been a huge influence on the way I and my husband have led and operate our company over the past 19 years. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Yvon and Malinda Chouinard have been among some of the most influential people in my life, even though we’ve never met.
I was excited to hear the news. However, there has been something about the media coverage that has been a little unsettling for me. At first, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. It has taken me a few weeks to wrap my head around what I was observing. I mean, haters aside, what could possibly be wrong with “Patagonia ownership bombshell changes the game for American Business” (Fast Company)!? This article is my best attempt to add to the narrative in a way that perhaps widens the picture a bit.
The story on the street is that Patagonia keeps raising the bar to even higher levels, and this move is no exception. However, the way the media tells the story, I can imagine many well-intentioned people in the business community feel both awestruck and overwhelmed… maybe even a bit cynical.
There is a part of the story that seems to be getting very little attention, though. A part of the story that if shared, might make it easier for businesspeople to wrap their heads around how Patagonia can serve as a useful and practical example to follow. This is the story of the many decades leading up to this moment. In fact, I’d argue we need to be talking about all the small decisions and events and learning moments over the decades leading up to all the “media moments” where they made some grand move that seemingly raised the bar again. This is no exception.
Critics and fans alike have commented that Patagonia has been able to make many of these moves because they enjoy a freedom that other companies simply don’t have: the luxury of being privately owned. To be clear, from what he himself has said and written publicly, Chouinard and his family have, for the past 50 years, been very intentional about their decision to keep the company privately held. In fact, I would argue that the Chouinards have made many intentional decisions both large and small with the big picture in mind. They have been laying the foundation over the course of decades for this moment.
Many of the bold decisions Patagonia has had the privilege of making over the years have been because of the intentional, strategic, and dedicated work that began decades ago. Work that has made current decisions and actions much more feasible and possible today. For an analogy, think of making the decision to practice the guitar every day, and doing it consistently, so that if you are given the opportunity to play at an important event, you are able to take advantage of the opportunity and succeed. This is what Patagonia has done in the area of conscious business and environmental activism. As Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinsweig (founders of Zingerman’s) say in their 12 Natural Laws of Business, “Law #11: It takes a lot longer to make something great happen than people think.” For every great thing we see today, there are likely years if not decades of work and thoughtful/intentional decision-making that have made today’s “great thing” possible.
I will be forever grateful for the way the Chouinards and Patagonia have creatively paved the way for a better and more hopeful future. I am equally encouraged by their dedication to continue. Yvon said in his public statement, “It’s been nearly 50 years since we began our experiment in responsible business, and we are just getting started.” As per the “Natural Law of Business #8: To get to greatness you’ve got to keep getting better, all the time.” The world should expect that Patagonia is not done raising its own bar even higher as the future unfolds.
Feel free to reach out to us via email, and/or follow us (and engage) on Instagram, LinkedIn, or Facebook.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Join us for Ignite Howard County #7 on October 24 at Jailbreak Brewing Company. Register here.