The Story Behind the Brand: Cotopaxi

• Posted on 9 March 2023
• By Steve Bates
• Posted in Cotopaxi, the story behind the brand
• 0

The Story Behind the Brand: Cotopaxi

Adventure inspires us to see the world and make it better. That’s why we build gear that fuels both outdoor experiences and global change. To achieve our mission, we dedicate at least 1% of our revenue to nonprofits that help communities experiencing poverty.

Cotopaxi is a sustainable outdoor apparel brand with a mission. Cotopaxi does more than just pledging to do good, but rather makes doing good the entire core of its business. Cotopaxi is a fair fashion brand known for their high quality outdoor essentials. The brand sells colorful products that make the world a little bit better with every purchase. 

Adventure inspires us to see the world and make it better. That’s why we build gear that fuels both outdoor experiences and global change. To achieve our mission, we dedicate at least 1% of our revenue to nonprofits that help communities experiencing poverty.

Cotopaxi is a sustainable outdoor apparel brand with a mission. Cotopaxi does more than just pledging to do good, but rather makes doing good the entire core of its business. Cotopaxi is a fair fashion brand known for their high quality outdoor essentials. The brand sells colorful products that make the world a little bit better with every purchase. 

Cotopaxi

Cotpaxi is a sustainable outdoor brand based out of Salt Lake City, Utah. The brand was named after one of the world's highest active volcanos, Cotopaxi. The Ecuadorian mountain’s roaming llamas, seemingly endless trails, and beautiful glacial streams are what inspired Cotopaxi founder, Davis Smith, to choose the name.

Founder

Davis Smith founded the B Corp Certified brand, Cotopaxi, in 2014. Smith was born in the United States but grew up in various parts of Latin America. His father's construction job took them many places including Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, and the Dominican Republic. 

Living in South America, he witnessed firsthand the effects of poverty. During his formative years, Smith recognized that the difference between himself and the children he saw living on the street could be contributed largely to the countries that they were born into. This experience sparked in him a desire to combat poverty in production countries and around the globe.

In 2014, Smith moved from Brazil back to Utah and set out to found Cotopaxi with the intention of building people and humanity into the heart of the brand.

He gathered some of his friends from Wharton to be his cofounders- Stephan Jacob and CJ Whittaker, an outdoor industry veteran. The 3 of them managed to raise venture capital, hire a small team, and then they got to work. 

Early Days

The team first created multicolored backpack designs and water bottles. All the items were printed with the Cotopaxi mascot, an Andes-native llama. Then... they actually bought real llamas. 

According to Smith, “We found the llamas on Craigslist and took them around to college campuses to advertise our company-launch event called Questival." Questival was a 24-hour adventure race in which teams are given challenges from summiting a peak to picking up trash, and it was a huge hit. The company gifted all participants a backpack made of remnant fabrics. 

Today

Today, Questivals happen annually across the country and Cotopaxi has grown from the small team of 6. The brand now has 126 employees and sells a wide variety of gear and apparel. 

Cotopaxi now has 5 brick and mortar stores in Utah, Washington, and Colorado, although most of their business takes place online.

Mission

Gear For Good

Cotopaxi's slogan is Gear for Good. The Gear for Good promise is to make durable gear as ethically and sustainably as possible, and to use the company as a way of supporting communities in need.

Donating

Doing good is the core of Cotopaxi's business model, and at the heart of that is donating. Cotopaxi donates one percent of sales (not profits, sales) per year to alleviating poverty through nonprofit partners like Mercy Corps and the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Although they pledge 1 percent to charitable causes, it is typically more like three percent when all is said and done. Smith's perspective is that "selling a billion dollars’ worth of apparel and gear means more money to support global and social causes."

Cotopaxi also organizes programs and scholarships that benefit people working in production facilities, "behind the seams." 

Cotopaxi is a B Corporation and is committed to independent ethical, social and sustainable standards. It is the brand's mission to carry out each step of the production chain as responsibly as possible.

Cotopaxi Foundation 

The Cotopaxi Foundation is a private 501c3 nonprofit organization that distributes revenue through targeted grants.To ensure their giving is fair and effective, Cotopaxi uses double-blind studies and proven methodologies.

Cotopaxi emphasizes transparency in their design and manufacturing by working with innovative factories that do more than just meet fair labor standards, but that prioritize workers’ input at all stages of the production. 

Cotopaxi Gear

Aside from their mission, Cotopaxi is well known for making attractive, high performing, and well made outdoor gear and apparel. You can find Cotopaxi in store or online at Quest Outdoors. Here are some of the standout pieces from Cotopaxi:

MEN'S ABRAZO HALF-ZIP FLEECE JACKET: $110

The Abrazo is a cozy statement piece that embodies Cotopaxi's commitment to sustainability. The Abrazo Half-Zip Fleece Jacket puts a Cotopaxi spin on the classic fleece pullover with fresh colorful patterns and 100% recycled fleece.

WOMEN'S TECA FLEECE HOODED HALF-ZIP JACKET: $130

The Teca Fleece Hooded Half-Zip is great as a stand-alone jacket or midlayer. Each fleece is made from best-in-class, recycled fleece and repurposed polyester taffeta that would otherwise end up in the landfill.

MEN'S FUEGO DOWN PULLOVER

The Fuego is Cotopaxi's quintessential insulation layer. Made with responsibly sourced 800-fill down and a DWR-finished ripstop nylon shell, this lightweight insulated pullover is one to turn to year-round, from summer camping to winter wandering. Both the down insulation and shell are water-resistant to keep you warm in wet conditions.

WOMEN'S CAPA INSULATED HOODED JACKET: $235

The Capa is a jacket you will bring on every adventure. Whether you are winter wandering, fall hiking, or summer camping—the versatile Capa Jacket is here for it all. Made with Primaloft Gold P.U.R.E. 100% recycled synthetic insulation, this jacket retains warmth even when wet. It also features a windproof and water-resistant recycled nylon shell to keep you really comfortable in weather. The Capa is packable, breathable, warm, and great for layering.

TECA FLEECE FULL FINGER GLOVES: $30

Cotopaxi took the coziness and resourcefulness of their bestselling Teca Fleece and turned it into full-finger gloves.

DO GOOD 5-PANEL HAT: $35

This classic five-panel hat sports the Cotopaxi motto, do good. Made from 100% recycled polyester, this comfy hat features a subtle, graphic screenprint, and an adjustable, nylon strap with clip closure for easy adjustability.