Patagonia Donates $10 Million Tax Savings to Green Groups

By Eric Roston

Outdoor clothing company Patagonia Inc. has committed the $10 million it saved from federal tax cuts championed by President Donald Trump to nonprofit groups who work on conservation and climate issues, according to a LinkedIn post by Chief Executive Officer Rose Marcario. 

“Taxes protect the most vulnerable in our society, our public lands and other life-giving resources,” she wrote. “In spite of this, the Trump administration initiated a corporate tax cut, threatening these services at the expense of our planet.”

The release last week of the fourth U.S. National Climate Assessment gave urgency to the decision, she wrote. Trump responded to the report by 13 federal agencies and more than 300 scientists by saying, “I don’t believe it.”

The company in September for the first time endorsed two Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate, Jon Tester of Montana and Jacky Rosen of Nevada, both of whom won.

Patagonia has linked its brand with conservation, such as its 2011 Black Friday advertisement telling consumers not to engage in empty consumption by purchasing its jackets. In 2017, it launched a program called “Worn Wear,” which allows customers to pay for repairs to old items or trade them in for store credit.

First Published: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-28/patagonia-donates-10-million-trump-tax-savings-to-green-groups