Great read, Mark, thanks so much! There was also the work we did with Patagonia when I worked as Coordinator of Sustainable Grazing for TNC in the Patagonia region of Argentina. In that case study, Patagonia seriously led by assuming losses in order to purchase wool that was certified as sustainable under solid scientific standards-- they paid a significant a price premium for that wool in order to influence the wool sourcing sector. The story then gets messy and was left (to date, at least), with a sad ending. But its full of valuable lessons that could be useful for others to learn from. Maybe you could write about it one day in the context of looking at how things sometimes get challenging, projects and collaborative agreements sometimes stumble, it´s not all streamlined-- and maybe pose ideas about how to stay the course in spite of these realities. I would totally read that (and I don´t give up on the idea of one day putting that project back together). My best to everyone in this community from Patagonia (the region).
Thanks for this insightful article Mark! Patagonia is indeed a trailblazer and proves that the model works. Many will argue though that because the company is privately-owned, it doesn't play by the same rules as listed companies especially when it comes to shareholders' accountability. Patagonia has been in business for 47 years and it still feels very lonely out there. Patagonia is the only company that managed so far to market at speed and at scale its social and environmental purpose. In my opinion, it all comes down to one success factor: leadership. Yvon Chouinard set the tone for decades and never derailed from his position. There is definitely a momentum and case for change, and the pandemic sadly helped. Please keep sharing success stories and practical solutions to scale purpose-driven business models.
Great read, Mark, thanks so much! There was also the work we did with Patagonia when I worked as Coordinator of Sustainable Grazing for TNC in the Patagonia region of Argentina. In that case study, Patagonia seriously led by assuming losses in order to purchase wool that was certified as sustainable under solid scientific standards-- they paid a significant a price premium for that wool in order to influence the wool sourcing sector. The story then gets messy and was left (to date, at least), with a sad ending. But its full of valuable lessons that could be useful for others to learn from. Maybe you could write about it one day in the context of looking at how things sometimes get challenging, projects and collaborative agreements sometimes stumble, it´s not all streamlined-- and maybe pose ideas about how to stay the course in spite of these realities. I would totally read that (and I don´t give up on the idea of one day putting that project back together). My best to everyone in this community from Patagonia (the region).
Thanks for this insightful article Mark! Patagonia is indeed a trailblazer and proves that the model works. Many will argue though that because the company is privately-owned, it doesn't play by the same rules as listed companies especially when it comes to shareholders' accountability. Patagonia has been in business for 47 years and it still feels very lonely out there. Patagonia is the only company that managed so far to market at speed and at scale its social and environmental purpose. In my opinion, it all comes down to one success factor: leadership. Yvon Chouinard set the tone for decades and never derailed from his position. There is definitely a momentum and case for change, and the pandemic sadly helped. Please keep sharing success stories and practical solutions to scale purpose-driven business models.
Can't wait to read your next newsletter!