Giving away a $20 bill you find on the street is difficult for most of us, but Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard took that to another level as he and his family have decided to give away ownership of their $3 billion company in an effort to save the world.
Chouinard started the apparel company almost 50 years ago, and now, he, his spouse, and his two adult children have decided to dedicate all profits from Patagonia to projects and organizations that will protect wild land and biodiversity as well as fight the climate crisis, according to a report from the New York Times.
Chouinard is looking to reimagine capitalism, according to a letter he wrote and published on Patagonia's website on Wednesday.
In the letter, he wrote that they have been doing their best to "address the environmental crisis" but added that their best is "not enough."
"We needed to find a way to put more money into fighting the crisis while keeping the company's values intact. One option was to sell Patagonia and donate all the money," Chouinard wrote.
However, he continued saying they decided against that option because they could not guarantee that a new owner would keep up the values they have worked to ensure.
"Another path was to take the company public. What a disaster that would have been," the letter says. "Even public companies with good intentions are under too much pressure to create short-term gain at the expense of long-term vitality and responsibility."
After being unable to find an option that best suited their interests in helping the world, the letter says they created their own, which includes the company's private stock to be owned by a climate-focused trust and group of nonprofits.
The trust is called the Patagonia Purpose Trust, and the group will be named the Holdfast Collective. Now, "every dollar that is not reinvested back into Patagonia will be distributed as dividends to protect the planet."
Depending on how the business performs, Patagonia expects to donate $100 million annually from its sales of apparel and gear for outdoor activities.
Still, the Chouinard family and current company CEO Ryan Gellert are expected to remain on Patagonia's board.
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