Sales staff at a clothing store in the United States discovered that some clothes smelled different from usual when they were selling them. They decided to trace the source and eventually discovered that the clothes came from a Taiwanese supplier. Because a certain chemical substance was produced during the manufacturing process, the clothes had a special smell and odor, the supplier later solved this problem through technical adjustments.
Paying attention to product quality is not only a matter for quality control personnel, but also front-line sales staff are willing to put in the effort to track down. This is the story of the outdoor clothing brand Patagonia. As a "B Corporation", Patagonia is committed to the sustainable development of the environment and society. It was named one of the most influential companies in 2023 by TIME magazine.
Focusing on sustainable development is often labeled as sacrificing profits. Although Patagonia does not disclose revenue data, the Michigan Journal of Economics pointed out that Patagonia's annual revenue has doubled in the past 10 years, reaching 1 billion US dollars.
In November 2024, Kenji Shino, Patagonia's Asia Environment Chief and Director of B Market Builder Japan, accepted an exclusive interview. When asked why Patagonia can achieve both commercial success and sustainability, he believed that "telling the story well" is very important. , we need to be able to effectively convey the impact of sustainable actions so that consumers and employees are willing to support them.
Patagonia Asia Environment Director Kenji Shino (right) came to Taiwan to participate in the press conference of B Corporation DOMI Earth's 10th anniversary and sustainable business model process white paper release. On the left is DOMI Earth's CEO Lien Ting-kai.
Turn the impact of sustainable actions into stories to win consumers' trust
Kenji Shino pointed out that the key to telling a good story is to clearly convey the impact of the brand's sustainability actions. For example, although some companies claim that their products use environmentally friendly raw materials, when consumers further inquire about relevant details, the store staff cannot answer them, resulting in sustainability issues. Action messaging is only superficial and difficult to impress consumers.
In contrast, Patagonia not only tells consumers what materials are used in clothes, but also tells consumers the source of the materials and the stories behind them. For example, traditional cotton crops are doused with millions of pounds of chemicals every year, causing damage to the land and farmers. Therefore, starting in 1996, Patagonia has used 100% organic virgin cotton in all cotton products and also encourages farmers to convert to organic. Planting methods, for example, Patagonia cooperates with a supplier in Peru, who provides planting technical support. Patagonia purchases cotton at a price higher than the market price to help improve farmers' lives. Or cooperate with Fair Trade USA and pay an additional premium for each product made in a Fair Trade certified factory.
This kind of communication not only provides information, but also allows consumers to feel the meaning and value behind each purchase, thereby establishing more connections and trust with the brand, and also elevates the behavior of purchasing Patagonia products to a commitment to sustainable living. choice and support.
Patagonia not only tells consumers what materials are used in clothes, but also tells consumers where the materials come from and the stories behind them.
When an enterprise invests in sustainability, its positioning must be clear to motivate employees to participate.
Patagonia's sustainability efforts go deep into the entire value chain, from material selection to after-sales service to organizational operations, taking the impact on the environment and humans into consideration. For example, in terms of materials, cotton products only use 100% organically grown cotton, and encourage shopping less, and provide repair services after products are sold; in terms of operations, 98% of the company's ownership is donated to non-profit environmental protection Organization etc.
To achieve this level, in addition to communication with consumers, communication with employees is also important. Lian Ting-kai, co-founder of the Asian B Lab Movement and CEO of DOMI Earth, said that one of the biggest problems companies encounter when carrying out sustainable transformation is internal communication. When employees do not understand sustainability, If the relationship between continuing actions and oneself is limited, it will be difficult to promote transformation.
He suggested that companies should first clearly define sustainable actions and decide what they should do and to what extent they should do it, so that employees can have a clear direction to follow. For example, Patagonia's corporate mission is to "commit to the cause of saving our homeland" in order to make the earth sustainable. We run our business with sustainable development as the core, so we try to minimize the harm to the earth from product manufacturing, sales to recycling. Kenji Shino said that when a company's mission is clear enough, colleagues will be affected and take relevant actions. For example, colleagues in the design department will think about how to make clothes last the longest, and the finance department will discuss how to evaluate the company's non-financial performance. Performance etc.
Lien Ting-kai pointed out that many companies regard sustainability actions as additional costs and therefore hesitate to move forward. When companies hesitate, employees are more likely to be swayed. Therefore, when companies face sustainable transformation, they should find business development potential. For example, Patagonia launched the Worn Wear program in 2012. As long as consumers recycle second-hand clothes, they will receive rebates that can be used to purchase other Patagonia products. These Second-hand clothes will also be put on the Worn Wear website for other consumers to choose from. Patagonia combines the concept of sustainability with business, not only creating business opportunities for itself, but also motivating employees and consumers to practice sustainable behaviors, creating a positive cycle.
Source: Patagonia
