Patagonia

Patagonia has always followed the philosophy of "Make the best product with as little impact on the environment as possible." Today, the activist company consistently advocates climate and environmental protection.

Patagonia Highlights

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More about Patagonia

Why is Patagonia a WIR DENKEN UM brand?

The company offers innovative outdoor clothing and equipment, but is also a vocal activist for people, nature and the climate. As a WIR DENKEN UM brand, Patagonia stands out in the following ways:

- The company is committed to accountability throughout the supply chain and is dedicated to responsible purchasing

- It is aware of the impact its business activities have on the environment and systematically analyzes and prioritizes risks

- Patagonia prides itself on ecologically friendly, resource-saving production

The activist company Patagonia

Patagonia grew out of a small company of climbers for climbers. Although the company continues to focus on mountaineering and still produces clothing for climbing, it also sells apparel for skiing, snowboarding, surfing, fly fishing, mountain biking and trail running. All these sports are silent and are rewarded with moments of unity between man and nature. The company is all the more vocal in its commitment to environmental and climate protection. But, why? "The environmental crisis has reached a critical tipping point. Without commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, defend clean water and air and divest from dirty technologies, humankind as a whole will destroy our planet’s ability to repair itself.”

Since 1996 Patagonia uses only organic cotton in the clothing collection. Eco-fibers are used in more than 60 % of all products and 89 % of the products, such as the popular Puff insulation jacket, are recyclable.

The extraordinary history of Patagonia

The American climber and founder of Patagonia, Yvon Chouniard, started to make reusable climbing hooks in the backyard of his parents' house more than 60 years ago. It was a great innovation for climbing, because climbing hooks weren’t reusable before. Although the business was booming and "Chouniard Equipment" was the biggest manufacturer of climbing gear in the USA in 1970, Chouinard was not satisfied. His hooks still caused harm to the environment, as they left holes in the rock. Therefore, Chouinard decided to discontinue the production of these hooks despite the economic risk and came up with an alternative: Aluminum chocks, which could be wedged in rock cracks and removed again.

The new concept was a complete success and soon afterwards the outdoor company began to produce outdoor apparel for women, men and kids, which became more and more sustainable and environmentally friendly over the years. To differentiate the garment line from the hardware company, it was sold under the name Patagonia. The name refers to the then still puzzling and unknown region in Chile and Argentina and should evoke images of "glaciers tumbling into fjords, jagged windswept peaks, gauchos and condors".

Patagonia: If it’s broke, fix it!

Patagonia uses only the best materials and is constantly looking for new ones all over the world (or alternatively develops them together with suppliers). Among other materials, the company uses the environmentally-friendly natural fiber hemp, organic cotton, recycled down from old linen and clothing, recycled nylon, recycled polyester from plastic bottles for fleece clothing and recycled wool.

Although the outdoor company produces only very high-quality, long-lasting products, it happens that the clothing is damaged after years of use. Therefore, Patagonia has introduced the "Worn Wear" program: Whether it is pants, jeans, shorts, pullovers and shirts, jackets or accessories, every Patagonia product gets repaired. Patagonia operates the largest textile repair center in North America with over 30.000 repairs per year, trains shop staff to carry out minor repairs, and provides free repair instructions for customers. Products that cannot be repaired are recycled to new fibers and fabrics.

In addition to Patagonia’s own efforts to protect the planet, the company supports a variety of projects and tries to strengthen the global awareness of environmental protection. To do so, Patagonia donates money to hundreds of environmental groups a year. As a result, the company makes a decisive contribution to the preservation of our planet. In addition, Patagonia is part of the "1 % for the planet" movement and thus donates 1 % of its sales to environmental organizations.