The British Fashion Council (BFC) is delighted to announce that Yvon Chouinard, founder and former owner of Patagonia will receive the Outstanding Achievement Award at The Fashion Awards 2022 presented by Diet Coke, on Monday 5th December at the Royal Albert Hall, London. Chouinard is a mountain climber, activist, surfer, writer, and philanthropist who has pioneered the transition to a responsible apparel industry. He is recognised for his extraordinary dedication to environmentalism and his exceptional vision. His ability to merge business with purpose culminated this year in the transfer of his family’s ownership of the brand to two new entities: the Patagonia Purpose Trust and non-profit organisation the Holdfast Collective, to channel profits to environmental causes.
Chouinard’s business came to life in 1973 selling rugby shirts from England to climbers in the US. Since 1985 the business has donated 1 percent of sales to the preservation and restoration of the environment, awarding over $150mn to environmental groups. Chouinard is also the co-founder of One Percent for the Planet, a global movement that has now grown to over 5,000 business and individual members, coming together to protect the future of the planet. Today, Patagonia is a certified B Corp and a California Benefit Corporation. The company expects to give $100mn a year as a dividend to the Holdfast Collective to help fight the climate crisis.
Yvon Chouinard, founder and former owner, Patagonia: “We are 50 years into our experiment in responsible business, and we’re dead serious about addressing the environmental crisis. We started by building durable, quality products and using materials that caused less harm to the environment and to the people who made them. We’ve been using 100% organic cotton across our line since 1996, are founding members of groups such as the Fair Labor Association and Regenerative Organic Alliance, and today offer more Fair Trade Certified sewn styles than any other apparel brand. Being recognised by the British Fashion Council sends the message that responsible business practices far outweigh trends or short-term financial gains. With vision and creativity, the apparel industry is perfectly placed to set the standard for environmental protection – it is our hope that business leaders join us in committing to this work”.
Caroline Rush, Chief Executive British Fashion Council: “We are thrilled to present Yvon Chouinard with the Outstanding Achievement Award for his visionary work at Patagonia. Through his dedication to our planet, Yvon has set a new precedent for responsible businesses. By building a brand that consistently encourages its consumers to buy well and buy less he has shifted consumer mentality on the lifecycle of clothing and created an invaluable blueprint for a fair transition within the apparel industry.”
The Outstanding Achievement Award celebrates the overwhelming creative contribution of an individual to the fashion industry, who throughout their illustrious career has constantly shaped and reshaped the fashion world through their innovation and creativity. Previous winners of the Award include Giorgio Armani, Miuccia Prada, Ralph Lauren KBE, Karl Lagerfeld, Dame Anna Wintour, Terry and Tricia Jones and Manolo Blahnik CBE to name only a few.
The Fashion Awards presented by Diet Coke raises funds for the BFC Foundation (Registered Charity Number: 1185152) which supports the future growth and success of the British fashion industry by focusing on Talent, Education, Grant-Giving and Business Mentoring and aims to improve equality and opportunity so that the fashion industry remains diverse and open to all, helping talented designers at all stages of their career from school level through to becoming a global fashion brand. In the financial year 2021/2022, the BFC remitted over £1.3m in funds to designers and scholars
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General tickets for The Fashion Awards 2022 are available here.