UKBouldering.com
the shizzle => shootin' the shit => Topic started by: andy popp on September 15, 2022, 07:47:25 am
-
Chouinard family wholesale transfers Patagonia to a trust, irrevocably relinquishing all ownership. This story has made a huge splash in the US papers overnight, who seem staggered by the boldness and originality of the move, which is certainly unusual in a US context*.
See for example: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/14/climate/patagonia-climate-philanthropy-chouinard.html (paywalled but I think everyone can read a set number of articles for free).
A lot to pick over here, but it does seem to have been shaped by a determination to maintain values by avoiding selling, going public or even transferring within the family (the next generation work in the business but didn't want to inherit it) while generating ongoing revenue streams for environmental work and advocacy.
*perhaps less unusual elsewhere. Many of Denmark's leading firms (e.g. Maersk, Lego, Carlsberg, Grundfos - all No.1 or 2 in the world in their industries - and others) are owned by foundations (though those foundations are typically controlled by the founding families, who continue to derive considerable wealth even as the foundations do a great deal of philanthropic work).
-
Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard is certainly worth a read.
-
It's possible to read the NYT article here https://archive.ph/HoLPC
I've got a lot of respect for Yvon Chouinard and the rest of the family. They seem remarkably straightforward, which rarely appears to be the case when people become extremely wealthy.
-
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/sep/14/patagonias-billionaire-owner-gives-away-company-to-fight-climate-crisis-yvon-chouinard
Also here. Incredibly bold move. Guess he's made a few of those in the past.
-
At a first glance, it looks a lot better than IKEA which pretends to be a charity to avoid tax, but use most of its profits for investments in IKEA and renumeration to board members. (Then again, IKEA was created by a nazi and Patagonia wasn't).
Anyway, charities should be taxed like any other company, IMHO.
-
Indeed. Until a few years back I worked for one of the largest "charities" https://nonprofitquarterly.org/1bn-lloyd-s-register-foundation-britain-s-biggest/ and it didn't feel much like working for one, just a large corporation.
-
At a first glance, it looks a lot better than IKEA which pretends to be a charity to avoid tax
Yep. My first reaction on seeing little more than the headlines was "OK, but who owns the foundation?" But this does look like the real deal.
-
Patagonia seem to have consistently made the most ethical moves they reasonably could have. Certainly enough for me to shell out £400 next time I need a new coat, rather than spending half that price elsewhere.
-
Excellent, Patagonia has always felt different. The Go Ape people transferred most of the company to an Employee Trust last year. Said something like this at the time "we've made enough money now". https://goape.co.uk/inside-go-ape/employee-ownership
-
Patagonia seem to have consistently made the most ethical moves they reasonably could have. Certainly enough for me to shell out £400 next time I need a new coat, rather than spending half that price elsewhere.
Would you stretch to a £400 - £500 wetsuit? I've heard they are amazing.
I don't have a lot of Patagonia kit, but it's all very old and still holding up well. I might even have my old Chouinard harness in a cupboard somewhere, not that I would dare to use it. It must be 30 years old.
-
At a first glance, it looks a lot better than IKEA which pretends to be a charity to avoid tax, but use most of its profits for investments in IKEA and renumeration to board members. (Then again, IKEA was created by a nazi and Patagonia wasn't).
Anyway, charities should be taxed like any other company, IMHO.
Complete tangent, but it's interesting just how many giant modern corporations, whose services we all use happily, were established by nazis or otherwise heavily dependent on nazis. Porsche, Dr Oetker, IKEA, VW, BMW, Daimler / Mercedes. Even Krispy Kreme and Pret a Manger!
There's a recent book about it all; Nazi Billionaires: The Dark History of Germany's Wealthiest Dynasties, which I've been meaning to read.
-
Likewise Bayer.
https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/bayer-monsanto-merger-cant-erase-nazi-chemists-past/
-
IKEA is not German though, so the founders Nazi roots are extra disgusting I'd argue.
Even more on a tangent Eric Vuillard's The Order of the Day, which I've already recommended in the books thread, is a good account. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Order_of_the_Day
-
There's a lot I could write about the relationship between business and the Nazi regime; it's a big topic in my field.
Anyway, looking at the wiki page for IKEA I came across the delightful story of the time in 1973 they accidentally opened a new store in Konstanz when they'd fully intended to open one in Koblenz, more than 300km away.
-
As an aside, Lyon Equipment became an employee owned trust when Ben and a bunch of directors retired.