Patagonia was mentioned in The Wall Street Journal article titled "Companies Boost Startup Spending" focusing on the growing trend of Venture Capital funds. Below is the excerpt about Patagonia. Read the full article here.
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By John Kester and Noelle Knox
There are also some companies for which the financial returns are less important than the mission.
That includes Patagonia. It started its own VC unit last year called $20 Million & Change with “the purpose of funding like-minded startup companies” that are disrupting their industries by being more environmentally friendly, said Rose Marcario, Patagonia’s chief executive.
The clothing retailer invested in CO2Nexus Inc., for example, which processes textiles using liquefied, recycled carbon dioxide rather than water. Patagonia is also looking for investments in “clean power and the food-supply chain.”
In addition to financial measures, Patagonia also sets environmental goals. “This idea that somehow business is bifurcated from the environment of the planet we live on, to me, is completely insane,” Ms. Marcario said.
Added CO2Nexus CEO Richard Kinsman : “Strict financial VCs sometimes don’t align with companies like us. What we’re doing is not going to happen overnight.” He adds that, for Patagonia, a private company, “it’s not at all about a three-year exit, in and out. They’ve partnered up for the long term with us.”