In a rare kind of donation, Yvon Chouinard, the Patagonia fashion firm owner, has donated his company to fight climate change. By making this decision, Yvon has fulfilled his responsibility towards mother nature.
Yvon has written an open letter to the public to announce his decision. The company has also posted about this on its Twitter account.
Yvon Chouinard, the Patagonia Owner:
83-year-old Yvon Chouinard always says that he is a businessman by chance. He never wanted to be one. That is why he does not possess the qualities of a business-minded person.
In his young days, Yvon Chouinard was passionate about climbing rocks. Due to his passion, he began to make metal climbing spikes for himself and his friends so that they could help in rock climbing. Slowly, he moved into the clothing sector and ultimately formed a sportswear and fashion brand called Patagonia in 1973.
Even though his net worth is billions, he gets embarrassed whenever he is called a billionaire. He is quite a simple and down-to-earth person. He has an old car and does not possess any computer system or even a mobile phone.
The donation amount to fight climate change:
Initially, Yvon Chouinard wanted to sell his business and gave the money to charitable trusts. But on second thought, he changed his mind and decided to donate the maximum part of the profits.
While making the donation decision, Yvon Chouinard said that from the profit earned by the company, only a part would be kept to run the business, and the rest would be donated to fight climate change.
As per current estimates, the company would be able to donate approximately $100 million per year, and the rest will depend upon the company's earnings.
"Earth is now our only shareholder," the tagline Patagonia’s website bears now.
The company chairman Charles Conn says that the manufacturing units of the company use as less water as they can to save water. The chemistries and dyes used are of good quality and the least dangerous. The use of carbon is also at the lowest level. This makes the cost of production a bit higher.
It has always encouraged its buyers to buy only those clothes that they actually need, and this strategy has never harmed the sales of the company.
The Patagonia fashion brand offers a lifetime guarantee on its clothes and repairs at reasonable prices. That is why the clothes are comparatively high priced.
This donation will definitely make Yvon Chouinard, the Patagonia Owner, among the biggest names who are fighting climate change. He is also getting the support of many celebrities.
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