Patagonia clothing is a relatively small American apparel company that makes clothing for a number of outdoor activities like rock climbing, surfing and skiing. It was established in Ventura, California almost four decades ago in 1972 by Yvon Chouinard. In the time since then, this small company has been a well kept secret among sports persons and the clothing and accessories that Patagonia makes are some of the most widely worn by sporting and nature enthusiasts. It is easy to spot Patagonias pieces of clothing from afar by their distinctive logo that features the silhouette of the Cero Fitzroy Mountains that lie in southern Argentina and Chile, from which Patagonia takes its name.
The Patagonia brand has only recently started making clothing with a broader appeal to anyone who loves the outdoors and spends a considerable time in them. For decades Patagonia made clothing targeted at people who spent a lot of time doing a number of very specific activities like skiing, camping, surfing, hiking, rock climbing and Nordic skiing. With these people Patagonia has made a name for itself with a line of clothing that has a base layer of material called Capilene.
The Patagonia company has also recently taken a very positive approach to surfing with two major initiatives that benefit both customers and employees. For its customers Patagonia has in the last few years started making a collection targeted at surfers.
Patagonia clothing has long been said to be one of the coolest places to work in the industry due to its culture and its flex timing. It now takes that even further with company employees getting time off to go surfing if they so choose.
Another reason that true outdoor enthusiasts love Patagonia as a company besides the amazingingly wide range of high quality clothing is due to its true concern for the environment. For a couple of decades now Patagonia has been a major contributor to environmental groups in the US as well as abroad. Patagonia commits to environmental groups one percent of its total sales in a fiscal year or ten percent of its overall profits, whichever is higher. The company has donated money to the tune of twenty five million US Dollars to over one thousand organisations over the past two decades or more. People who buy Patagonias often pricey clothing can feel better about their purchases with the knowledge that a small part of their money spent is going towards protecting the great outdoors that they are so passionate about.
