Patagonia, the high-end outdoor apparel and gear retailer, says it is limiting the number of new customers it's branding its apparel for, and will only work with companies that align with its values of being environmentally conscious and prioritizing the planet.
That mean's Wall Street's out. Fleece zip-up vests had become a staple of what became known as the "Midtown uniform," which consists of a button down, a vest, and slacks.
The "Midtown uniform" became so popular that there's even an entire Instagram account dedicated to the style.
A Patagonia representative confirmed that the company's corporate sales program will focus "more mission-driven companies that prioritize the planet." The change will effect only new customers, not existing ones.
The news became public knowledge after Binna Kim, the president of the public-relations company Vested, tweeted a message Patagonia had sent her saying it would no longer work with companies in the financial service sector.
The company wrote in part:
"Due to their environmental activism, they are reluctant to co-brand with oil, drilling, mining, dam construction, etc. companies that they view to be ecologically damaging. This also includes any religious group/Churches, food groups, political affiliated companies/groups, financial institutions, and more."
The move has gone over rather well, in fact.
Patagonia is known for sticking to its principles. The company made huge headlines in November 2016, for instance, after it generated a "record-breaking" $10 million in Black Friday sales––five times the amount it had initially projected––and announced it would donate every cent of those profits to nonprofits focused on protecting and saving the environment.
In a statement, the company thanked its customers for showing "enormous love" for what they took to calling a "fundraiser for the earth" and said all Black Friday profits would benefit hundreds of "underfunded and under the radar" grassroots environmental organizations around the globe "working on the front lines to protect our air, water and soil for future generations.
According to company spokeswoman Corley Kenna, the idea for the fundraiser was the result of an internal brainstorming meeting following the outcome of the United States presidential election.
The company, she said at the time, decided to take action to showcase the importance of the environment and climate change. "We felt that these were issues that united us and I think this is a demonstration that people agree," Kenna said. "Our customers agree."
We bet they do.
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