By Emily Oberg
This week on the Book Club, we discuss one of my all time favorites written by someone who has been a big inspiration to me and my business. Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia wrote Let My People Go Surfing in 2005, long before being sustainable was “on trend”. Since the beginning, Patagonia has been a brand that focuses on sustainability, longevity and the idea of “less is more”. It was never Chouinard’s goal to make money, instead, he wanted to make products that people needed and that lasted.
Today, Patagonia is worth an estimated $1 billion dollars. And it’s all thanks to Chouinard’s genuine desire to make quality products. In the book, he discusses his philosophies when it comes to business, taking care of his people and giving back to the environment (he founded the organization @1percentftp which Sporty & Rich became a member of in 2019.) With such an impressive resume, you’d think that Chouinard would be strictly business. But nope, "We have a policy that when the surf comes up, you drop work and you go surfing," he says in the book. A true example of someone who hasn’t sacrificed their happiness for their success.
