Name: Florian's review of Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard
Item: Let My People Go Surfing
Rating: 4
Author: Florian

Yvon Chouinard

In this newly revised 10th anniversary edition, Yvon Chouinard--legendary climber, businessman, environmentalist, and founder of Patagonia, Inc.--shares the persistence and courage that have gone into being head of one of the most respected and environmentally responsible companies on earth. From his youth as the son of a French Canadian handyman to the thrilling, ambitious climbing expeditions that inspired his innovative designs for the sport's equipment, Let My People Go Surfing is the story of a man who brought doing good and having grand adventures into the heart of his business life-a book that will deeply affect entrepreneurs and outdoor enthusiasts alike. "This is the story of an attempt to do more than change a single corporation--it is an attempt to challenge the culture of consumption tat is at the hear of the global ecological crisis." --From the Foreword by Naomi Klein, bestselling author of This Changes Everything From the Trade Paperback edition.

The Education of a Reluctant Businessman--Including 10 More Years of Business Unusual

Let My People Go Surfing

As a child, Yvon Chouinard moved to Southern California with little English and less money. Today his company, Patagonia, earns more than $600 million a year and is a beacon and benchmark for sustainable capitalism. This is the amazing story of a young man who found escape by scaling the world's highest peaks, of an innovator who used his father's blacksmith tools to fashion equipment that changed climbing forever, and of the entrepreneur who brought doing good and having a blast into the heart of a business.

The Education of a Reluctant Businessman, Including 10 More Years of Business Unusual

I really like the way simplicity is described here by Antoine de Saint Exupéry. 

Perfection is reached when you have nothing to take away.

Dewith

Have you ever thought, not only about the airplane but whatever man builds, that all of man's industrial efforts, all his computations and calculations, all the nights spent working over drafts and blue-prints, invariably culminate in the production of a thing whose sole and guiding principle is the ultimate principle of simplicity?

It is as if there were a natural law which ordained that to achieve this end, to refine the curve of a piece of furniture, or a ship's keel, or the fuselage of an airplane, until gradually it partakes of the elementary purity of the curve of the human breast or shoulder, there must be experimentation of several generations of craftsmen. In anything at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away, when a body has been stripped down to its nakedness.

Piet Terheyden

André Ramos

The personal stories of the founder of Patagonia, Inc. describes his underprivileged childhood as an immigrant in southern California, early fame as a successful mountain climber, and company's dedication to quality and environmental responsibility. Reprint. 75,000 first printing.

The Education of a Reluctant Businessman

Book consists of 3 parts - autobiography, company culture, environmental activism. The book lives off of real life examples and stories from Yvon. While this works great in the first two sections, it gets a bit repetitive in the last. This mostly due to the last section being vague in terms of what to carry over into your own life. The first two sections on the other hand are inspiring and tell a fascinating story of an unique character.

Florian

Loved the storytelling behind the creation of Patagonia and the business lay down! 

Kyra Cracchiola

Hannah Yang

i love everything patagonia stands for as a business, and respect yvon chouinard as a leader + entrepreneur + thinker. the lower rating is not because i disagree with any of the ideas that the book stands for; it just ends up feeling a bit like a patagonia catalog by the end, which is not really what i look for in a memoir. i think what contributed to this feeling was that the first half was much more biographical, sharing chouinard's business origin story, while the second half was more of a summary of patagonia's initiatives and values -- less attached to chouinard's own experiences and learnings.

while chouinard acknowledges that no business can be perfect in the effort to use fewer resources/minimize negative impact on planet, this book doesn't *really* dive into any problems that patagonia has/is continuing to grapple with and is more focused on what they've done well (which ultimately, perhaps despite his intentions, makes it feel like it's marketing patagonia despite so much of his narrative discouraging unnecessary consumption). i would have been curious to read about some of the issues that they're still trying to come up w solutions for, or mistakes they've made that go deeper than 'we designed a product that was so popular it sold out too fast' 

since part of patagonia's mission is finding ways to use business to preserve and restore nature (with the intention of encouraging other businesses to do the same), i think it would have been helpful to conclude with some kind of summary/how-to guide of their business model that could be applied to other businesses. while it was interesting to read about patagonia's philosophies from product design to management, it could have been more impactful to emphasize how translatable patagonia's ethos is to other businesses rather than merely berating ~big business~ for its sins. what are the main things that every business can do better based on what chouinard has learned from founding patagonia? besides 'care more' i don't think people necessarily leave this book with a clear framework or actionable goals. 

anyways, i did like this book! much love to patagonia! if you already care about the environment, you'll agree with everything he says; if you don't, i imagine you'd feel a little bit looked down upon - despite being a wildly successful businessman himself, chouinard is no fan of ~typical capitalist success stories~

Tuago

I bought a Patagonia sweater after reading the book as I’m deeply moved by their mission. However, although this book might have been revolutionary for the environment when it was written, reading it in 2021 felt boring and outdated.

I still use a lot of the oneliners I‘ve learned from this book! Great read.

Otte

Jon Dubielzyk

This is a book about the sustainability and environment wrapped in a business book. It gives fascinating insights into how Patagonia runs their business and how they try to make conscious sustainable decisions for both employees, their customers and the environment.

It's a book that left a big mark on me in the way I view consumption and businesses that will stay with me for years.

Udit Desai

Must read for anyone interested in the Patagonia, and building a sustainable and happy company

Kaitlyn Wendler

Good but dragged on repeating the same messages. Did leave me admiring the way Patagonia chooses to run their company and feeling hopeful for the standards we hold companies to into the future, especially in fashion and retail

Nat Welch

It's a little preachy, but talks a lot about Patagonia's attempts to produce clothes that will not hurt the environment. I wish it focused a little more on Patagonia and less on how we're slowly killing the world, but overall, good book.

I should mention the audiobook is confusing as the reader uses the same voice even when the author of a passage changes. It can be very confusing at times.

Luke Kanies

Fantastic dive into the experience of building a great company.

The book changes pretty dramatically at the end, switching from the story of the founding of Patagonia into an argument for environmentalism, but it's still a great book. I'm not offended by the argument, I just didn't need it, and it's out of place.

It turned me from a skeptic into a believer of the company, but also just gave me a lot of respect for the founding team. They really did something special, and they did it in ways that no one else did before or has since. Others could, they just aren't brave enough to try.

Luke Leighfield

I love Patagonia more with everything I learn about them. This book, by founder Yvon Chouinard, is equal parts personal memoir, business philosophy, and manifesto for saving the world. He's an exceptional writer with an incredible story, and a lot to say about all aspects of business, from effective copywriting to workplace equality to ethical business practice. It's one of the best books I've read all year. 

"I have a definition of evil different from most people. Evil doesn't have to be an overt act; it can be merely the absence of good. If you have the ability, the resources, and the opportunity to do good and you do nothing, that can be evil."

Lance Willett

Enjoyable and easy to read. My review is here: http://simpledream.net/2015/09/17/boo...

Danny White

As Mahatma Gandhi said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”


A practical manifesto for that, through the lens of Patagonia and its founder.

Andrew Molina

Yvon Chouinard is such a badass. And super inspiring. Great stories of outdoor shenanigans mixed with business philosophies that all MBAs should have to read so they understand the full implications of "business." It can lag a bit after the History, but pretty quick read.

Ilia Markov

It's not a bad book but the way it's organized makes it hard to follow. I had very high expectations after reading Phil Knight's "Shoe Dog".

Les Reynolds

A neat history of an innovative company that is passionately dedicated to saving the environment. It meanders a bit, and goes on a bit long about environmental causes, but a worthwhile read.

André Ramos &
Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard

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