Tesco
Let My People Go Surfing
Book

Let My People Go Surfing

The Education of a Reluctant Businessman

Yvon Chouinard
Penguin Press, 2016
First Edition: 2005

Read offline

Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Engaging
  • Insider's Take
  • Inspiring

Recommendation

In this memoir, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard lays out his unconventional business philosophy. The book – first published in 2005 and updated in 2016 with “10 more years of business unusual” – is a joy, but Chouinard only briefly addresses the main paradox in his business model: how to make sustainable gear affordable for the masses. Patagonia’s price tags are notoriously steep – $35 for a T-shirt or a pair of boxer shorts and $119 for a pair of jeans. Will consumers accustomed to fast fashion take Chouinard’s advice to buy a few high-quality garments and keep them for years? He’s an inspirational figure of great accomplishment, and his book includes wonderful surfing and climbing photographs, which few business biographies feature. getAbstract recommends this eccentric autobiography to managers seeking creative, sustainable approaches to commerce and to anyone who might enjoy the climb.

Take-Aways

  • Yvon Chouinard was born in Maine in 1938 to a French-Canadian family. He later moved to Southern California.
  • He did poorly academically, but he loved fishing, free diving, surfing and climbing.
  • In 1957, Chouinard began to manufacture his own rock-climbing hardware.

About the Author

Yvon Chouinard is founder and owner of Patagonia Inc., an apparel and sporting goods company based in Ventura, California.

Comment on this summary or Начать обсуждение