A Warm Worn Wear Welcome From Patagonia

July 6, 2020 ☼ Design

These old friends went to meet their maker today, part of Patagonia’s Worn Wear initiative, a marketplace for used gear and support for customers to mend and sew to make their garments last longer.

I wrote about the initiative when it was announced in 2017 and thought the repair part was strong. I was more skeptical about the repurchase-resell component. How could it work, when there’s a good eBay market for high-end vintage fleeces, but not as much for some schlub’s shirts, that flap on him like prayer flags after his quarantine diet?

Turns out I was wrong. The Worn Wear event tour primed the pump with activations, and got people stoked about their right to repair, creating the market. A few years later, it feels robust.

I got an email prompt yesterday, which liberated these from my closet, and ultimately maybe a landfill. Hopefully they’ll see some more adventure.

I’ll probably get $50 in credit for these shirts—not enough for a single new shirt—but it’s the belief that I can be part of a holistic system that tempers my consumption institutional courage that’ll keep me with the brand for decades.