Patagonia and Columbia Sportswear’s Circular Economy
Materials Used by Patagonia
Modern times of environmental crisis and global warming demand for-profit organizations to find ways of sustainable manufacturing to minimize pollution. Corporations started to realize that sustainable, innovative strategies “can deliver a competitive edge that can allow them to increase profits and take advantage of opportunities in new markets” (Rattalino, 2018, p. 1). Patagonia is one of the companies that implemented the circular economy principles into its development and production process. The company has a 40-year history of producing outdoor apparel of exceptional design (Patagonia Works, 2019). Indeed, it is believed to be one of the most socially responsible firms globally. This corporation donates 1% of its annual revenue to organizations that work on projects to preserve nature and slow down climate change (Patagonia Works, 2019). Patagonia understands the importance of sustainability for the world and highlights quality, environmentalism, and integrity as its core values (Rattalino, 2018). The central goal of this corporation is to build superior products without unnecessary harm to the planet and its inhabitants (Eich, 2021). Therefore, they utilize such materials as polyester, natural rubber, recycled down, and many other textiles recycled from trash to manufacture eco-friendly brands.
Get your customized and 100% plagiarism-free paper done in as little as 1 hour
Clothing from Recycled Materials
Patagonia is the first apparel firm to introduce a circular economy to develop clothes with zero harm to the environment. For example, it was the first to produce Synchilla fleeces from recycled plastic bottles in 1993 (Rattalino, 2018). Their solution-dyed backpacks made of plastic bottles allow them to save almost two liters of water and produce 96% less carbon dioxide emissions than a similar process in a conventional factory (Patagonia Works, 2019). Furthermore, they utilize polyester fiber recycled from trash to create new clothes. Although Patagonia remains one of the few companies that manufacture clothes from garbage, they continue to follow its mission of diminishing environmental pollution, which enhances the support and loyalty of its clients.
Specific Examples of Innovative Materials
This corporation’s sustainable inventions in the textile industry revolutionized this sector. Patagonia was also the pioneer in implementing organic cotton only for sewing their products, popularizing this trend among other organizations (Ferrara, 2021). In fact, this strategy facilitated the growth of the organic cotton sector, reducing the use of pesticides and other dangerous chemicals in growing this plant. Moreover, Patagonia is famous for reducing the toxicity of water-repellant materials used for jackets by substituting C8 fluorocarbon with the C6 alternative (Rattalino, 2018). This change was less harmful to nature because a shorter fluorocarbon chain fabric could degrade faster. Another innovation Patagonia made in this sector was accepting old clothing in its stores for recycling (Rattalino, 2018). It is one of the firms that encourages repair, reuse, and recycling among its customers, making it a unique circular economy player in the apparel sector.
Patagonia’s materials vary from recycled down to natural rubber and polyester. Since polyester, a fiber synthesized from petroleum is naturally water-resistant, it is used in outdoor clothing (Patagonia, n.d.). However, Patagonia strives to diminish its dependence on this expensive and harmful resource; thus, it is converted to recycling and reusing this material to produce new items (Patagonia, n.d.). Indeed, they plan to entirely remove virgin polyester from utilization by 2025 (Patagonia, n.d.). Another material used by this firm is recycled down, which is a cheap and eco-friendly insulating material. The company included it in manufacturing 47 clothing pieces in 2021 (Patagonia, n.d.). Moreover, Patagonia replaced neoprene rubber with natural rubber from hevea trees in wetsuits for surfers, reducing petroleum-derived materials in production (Patagonia, n.d.). This innovation not only increased the quality of clothing but also resulted in an 80% decrease in carbon dioxide emissions from every suit (Patagonia, n.d.). Overall, Patagonia is one of the few unique corporations in the apparel industry that cares about protecting nature from the negative influence of modern anthropologic activity