Which are the most interesting– and challenging– aspects of your new role, and what are your immediate goals?
I’ve been with Patagonia for about four months, yet it feels a lot longer since I’ve worn its products for years and spent the past decade and a half working in a variety of roles for Black Diamond; its origins go back to Chouinard Equipment, which – like Patagonia – was founded by Yvon Chouinard. The most inspiring aspect of the role is the opportunity to introduce Patagonia to a broader community across Europe while strengthening existing relationships.
My immediate goals are to ensure that we have the people and plans in place to deliver on our mission – to build the best product in the most responsible way while causing no unnecessary harm– while ensuring that we are good commercial partners to our dealer-base. I don’t think we have done as good a job as we can on the second part in Europe and I want to change that quickly. We are currently filling key positions that will allow us to do so while also investing in the operational infrastructure to support the business.
Patagonia is known as much for its sustainable approach as its technically advanced product. What are the latest moves in securing ethical production?
Beginning in fall 2014, Patagonia down products contain only 100% Traceable Down, which means the down in all of our products can be traced back to birds that were never force-fed, never live-plucked. This standard provides the highest assurance of animal welfare in the apparel industry – and we’re actively working to encourage other brands to strive for this high standard as well. In October, we announced a new line of Fair Trade Certified clothing – one of the very first available from any clothing manufacturer – starting with a handful of styles in fall 2014.
As far as what’s next, in fall 2015 we are overhauling our denim program to ensure that Patagonia Denim uses only 100% organic cotton grown without polluting fertilizers, poisonous pesticides, or herbicides. A low-impact dyeing process allows us to dramatically reduce water, energy and chemical use and produce less carbon dioxide. We also never distress our denim with harsh chemicals or other methods. Finally, with Fair Trade Certified sewing, we believe that Patagonia Denim is the way denim should be made.
The Worn Wear program is another sustainable Patagonia invention. How does it work in practice?
The Worn Wear® program celebrates the durability of our product and the fact that it can be handed down from generation to generation and that you can bring it back to us and we’ll repair it. We believe that one of the most responsible things we can do as a company is to make high-quality stuff that lasts for years and can be repaired, so you don’t have to buy more of it. Extending the life of our clothing by just nine months would result in a 20-30 % reduction in carbon, waste and water footprints stemming from the production, use and disposal of clothing. That has more impact than any changes we could make in fibre choice, production practices, laundering and recycling.
To help drive this message, the Malloy family (Patagonia Surf Ambassadors) have produced a short film to share the stories of Patagonia customers and their beloved Patagonia gear that has stood the test of time. In addition to Worn Wear, we have also worked on a repair program with iFixit co-publishing a series of free repair guides for Patagonia clothing. We also sell an Expedition Sewing Kit in our retail stores and online, encouraging customers to repair old products instead of buying new.