Paradoxical Growth
Article from The New Yorker
Written by J.B. MacKinnon, this article highlights the Patagonia’s thinking and success behind their recent rapid growth. MacKinnon opens with a description of a hippie vehicle that sold and repaired Patagonia gear.
Rick Ridgeway, the vice president of Patagonia’s environmental affairs, states he realized that shoppers starting “seeking goods that offered enduring worth,” and that Patagonia delivered on this proposition. On Black Friday, 2011, Patagonia, therefore, printed an advertisement in the Times that informed viewers to not buy the featured product: the R2 fleece sweater, one of Patagonia’s top-sellers. The ad’s infamy, however, worked for the company’s benefit, significantly driving up Patagonia’s 2012 sales, though MacKinnon does not inform us of the R2′s sales number.
MacKinnon explains that Ridgeway argued that a model based purely on growth is a dead end and “that global environmental crises such as climate change, toxic pollution, and resource depletion were only symptoms of a larger problem.” Yet, Patagonia has expanded, and Ridgeway and others from Patagonia have stated that this growth allows Patagonia to deliver products that allow their customers to live more responsibly.
Ultimately, Patagonia leads a somewhat paradoxical existence. The brand realizes that continued growth may eventually lead to a harmful impact-- creating more problems that solutions, but until then, Patagonia hopes pave the way in sustainability. MacKinnon ends on an optimistic note with Lydia Baird, a student at Fashion Institute of Technology, ‘“We definitely have to consume less, and there’s no way the world is going to be a perfect place. But maybe production can be done better. Maybe production doesn’t have to be a bad thing. And maybe Patagonia can lead us there.”’ Enclosure.
Great article and one that gives us hope for a brighter future. I think that MacKinnon covered a wide range of economics and environmentalism and that Ridgeway provided answers that show he truly understands. I like that Patagonia views itself as a leader in environmentalism and corporate responsibility, especially with its repair warehouse in Reno, NV, apparently the largest in North America. The only downside, however, to this Patagonia view is that only a select percentage from the world’s population can actually afford Patagonia gear. The R2 Fleece Jack on Patagonia’s website sells for $169. So, I suppose endorse Patagonia if you can and purchase wisely and live even more responsibly if you can’t, even if environmentalism and sustainability should be for everyone.
