Business & Tech
Black Friday? Patagonia Urges "Celebrate The Stuff You Already Own"
The outdoor retailer unveils a new website that allows customers to fix their own gear rather than buy new.

Patagonia has joined a growing list of shopping malls and retailers that are fighting back against the growing hype ofΒ Black Friday.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Patagonia Β is asking shoppers to extend the lives of older, possiblyΒ damaged goods by fixing them upΒ rather than buying heavily advertised door busters and other specialsΒ the day after Thanksgiving.
βThereβs an environmental cost to anything thatβs made, even if itβs made environmentally responsibly,β said Vincent Stanley to the Times. StanleyΒ helps run marketing at Patagonia.
Patagonia paired withΒ IFixit as part of the campaign,Β a website that answers questions like how to wash wool, and how to fix a broken zipper.
Kyle Wiens, chief executive of iFixit, told the Times βYouβd be shocked at how many people would just never consider sewing a button on themselves. Itβs devastating. The idea is to get people back into the swing of things again.β
Patagonia will host IFixit representatives at its Palo Alto, San FranciscoΒ and Santa Cruz outlets on Black Friday to help customers with repairs.
Patagonia is promoting the campaign on Twitter with hashtags #BetterThanNew and #AntiBlackFriday.
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