The outdoor apparel company, Patagonia is no longer owned by Yvon Chouinard – who founded the company in 1973. Patagonia is now owned by a corporate trust and non-profit organisation that are committed to combatting climate change.
Yvon Chouinard, the man who founded popular outdoor clothing company Patagonia, has decided to give away ownership of his company. But his children won’t need to vie for said ownership Succession-style.
This is because, as reported by The New York Times, Chouinard and his family have agreed to give the company (valued at roughly US$3 billion) to a corporate trust and a non-profit organisation, both of which are dedicated to fighting climate change.
As the trust and non-profit (called the Patagonia Purpose Trust and Holdfast Collective respectively) were specially designed, moving forward, all of Patagonia’s profits will go towards combating climate change and protecting undeveloped land around the world.
Many are calling the decision unusual, but Chouinard, aged 83, is hoping it’ll inspire positive change. Speaking to The New York Times, Chouinard said, “Hopefully this will influence a new form of capitalism that doesn’t end up with a few rich people and a bunch of poor people.”
“We are going to give away the maximum amount of money to people who are actively working on saving this planet.”
Yvon Chouinard
Of course, prior to this decision, Chouinard considered other options. Leaving Patagonia to his children was quickly ruled out though, as neither Fletcher nor Claire wanted it. That left either selling Patagonia or taking the company public. Ultimately, Chouinard decided against both options because he wanted to ensure that Patagonia never became an “irresponsible” company.
“I don’t respect the stock market at all. Once you’re public, you’ve lost control over the company, and you have to maximize profits for the shareholder, and then you become one of these irresponsible companies.”
Yvon Chouinard
Presumably, all eyes will be on Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos for the next few days to see if either billionaire decides to do something as generous… We’re betting no.
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