It’s the time of year when retailers are climbing over each other to sell, sell, sell. So why is Patagonia, a manufacturer of outdoor sports apparel, taking a stand against buying one of their own products? On Cyber Monday, the Black Friday of internet shopping, Patagonia sent an email out to customers urging them to think twice before buying anything, especially a Patagonia jacket. What the?
The anti-sell commands attention, for sure. You could call it a brilliant marketing strategy. But it’s so much more than that. Patagonia is imploring people to live healthier financially and environmentally. Plenty of companies fly the environmental awareness flag. But Patagonia’s not messing around with this mission: “Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.” To prove it, they’re telling you to join them in their mission, to the detriment of their own sales. To illustrate their point, they strip down the jacket pictured in the email, thread by thread, to illustrate their point: “This jacket comes with an environmental cost higher than its price.”
The comments are flying on the internet about “Don’t Buy This Jacket.” It boils down to authenticity. Patagonia wants you to join them in their mission and take the “Common Threads Initiative Pledge,” even if it means not buying that jacket.
Jacki
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