Forbes' Richest List Entrant Rejects Status and Sells All Shares
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The founder of the fashion brand Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard, took a historic step by handing over full ownership of his company to fight the climate crisis back in 2022. The 83-year-old billionaire had previously been one of the richest individuals according to Forbes.
Forbes estimated Chouinard’s wealth at US$1.2 billion, equivalent to Rp20.4 trillion, before he relinquished control of the company. He is no longer a billionaire.
Citing The Guardian on Wednesday (27/8/2025), Patagonia affirmed that “the Earth is now our only shareholder”. All company profits, without time limit, will be directed towards the mission of saving the planet.
Chouinard, along with his wife and two children, collaborated with a team of lawyers to create a new legal structure. This scheme allows Patagonia to continue operating as a for-profit company, but with all proceeds redirected towards environmental causes.
The Chouinard family donated 2% of shares along with decision-making rights to a trust that will safeguard the company’s mission. Meanwhile, 98% of shares were transferred to a non-profit organisation called Holdfast Collective, which will channel all funds to combat the climate crisis and protect biodiversity.
Every year, Patagonia’s profits after reinvestment will be given to Holdfast Collective. This structure is designed to prevent the sale of the company or an IPO that could undermine its core values.
“Instead of ‘going public’, we’re ‘going purpose’,” Chouinard stated.
He emphasised that the company’s wealth will be used to protect the true source of wealth, namely nature.
Patagonia’s board chairman, Charles Conn, wrote in Fortune that this step reverses the shareholder capitalism paradigm. According to him, Patagonia proves that a company’s purpose does not have to be solely about pursuing profit.
For nearly 50 years since its founding, Patagonia has been known as a pioneer in environmental activism and employee welfare. The company from Ventura, California, even provides facilities such as on-site childcare and afternoon off on days with good surf waves.
In the 1980s, Patagonia began donating 1% of its sales to support environmental groups. This programme was formalised in 2001 under the name “1% for the Planet Scheme” and has since generated donations worth US$140 million.
Patagonia was also one of the first companies to achieve B-Corp certification, meeting certain social and environmental standards. Recently, the company updated its official mission to: “We’re in business to save our home planet.”
Chouinard, who initially made climbing equipment from scrap metal and lived in a van while hiking, is known as an eccentric figure. He even admitted to being angry about entering Forbes’ billionaire list because he did not feel he lived as luxuriously as other tycoons.
The Chouinard family is now considered at the forefront of modern philanthropy practices. According to David Callahan, founder of Inside Philanthropy, they differ greatly from the majority of billionaires who typically donate only a small portion of their wealth.