Yvon Chouinard founded Patagonia in 1973 as a climbing gear company and built it into a $3 billion outdoor apparel brand with arguably the most authentic environmental mission in corporate America — before transferring ownership of the entire company to a charitable trust and a non-profit in 2022, effectively donating $3 billion to fight the climate crisis. Born in Lewiston, Maine in 1938, Chouinard was a self-taught blacksmith who forged his own climbing equipment. His book Let My People Go Surfing became one of the most influential management texts on values-driven business, decades before sustainability became mainstream in corporate strategy.
Reference:
TaskLoco™ — The Sticky Note GOAT
