Wednesday, February 15, 2012

About Patagonia & their External Environment

Patagonia Inc. is an outdoor apparel company that designs and manufactures clothing, footwear, luggage, and other outdoor gear for for men, women, and children. Patagonia was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Ventura, California. Although the company offers its products to everyone, the target market is primarily outdoor sports enthusiasts. Patagonia is known for their philanthropy and active environmental efforts.

The external environment of Patagonia is filled with numerous opportunities and threats. Patagonia has done a nice job of taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the environment when making decisions regarding their products. As an envirnomentaly concious organization, Patagonia strives to protect the environment through initiatives, grants, and the ways they make their products and dispose of waste. There is opportunity for Patagonia to reach out to suppliers and buyers who are concerned with conserving the environment.

The threats that Patagonia faces has to do with the bargaining power of buyers and the threat of industry competition. As a company focused on quality, Patagonia faces the threat of buyers forcing down their prices by not purchasing their goods. Buyers might feel that their products, although high-quality, are too pricy to buy. There is also the threat of competitors in the outdoor apparel industry, such as the North Face, Marmot, and REI. Rivarly between the firms could be potentially hazardous to Patagonia.

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