Cotopaxi Releases 2020 Impact Report

March 29, 2021

Over 800,000 people assisted in breakthrough year

Salt Lake City, UT. (March 29, 2021) — Today, Cotopaxi—Benefit Corporation and outdoor gear and apparel brand—released its annual Global Reporting Initiative referencing impact report. The report aims to provide balanced and quantified information with regards to the brand’s holistic corporate social responsibility performance as well as to its giving through the Cotopaxi Foundation.

Highlights from the report include Cotopaxi’s progress with regards to sustainable product design, sustainable supply chain management, donation mask program, and corporate philanthropy. To respond to the manifold humanitarian crises caused and exaggerated by COVID-19, Cotopaxi leveraged its operations to increase giving, support factory workers, and utilize material waste.

According to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, 25 years of human development were undone in 25 weeks due to the pandemic.^[1] As Cotopaxi faced numerous uncertainties alongside its peers and stakeholders, leadership implemented numerous extraordinary measures to respond to the humanitarian crisis. In 2020, the Cotopaxi Foundation awarded close to $1 million in grants aimed at counteracting the social impacts of the pandemic. A portion of these funds stemmed from the over 10,000 customers who gave to Cotopaxi-funded nonprofits and programs. The 2020 Impact Report details how these efforts and campaigns worked to provide assistance to over 800,000 people.

Beyond Cotopaxi’s giving, the report also shares that in 2020, the company reached its goal of using responsible, recycled, or repurposed materials to make 90% of its products. The brand hopes to make 100% of its product line using these materials by the end of 2021. The report also shares Cotopaxi’s  commitment to achieve carbon neutrality in 2021through the measurement, reduction, and offsetting of its carbon footprint. Additionally, the report also announces the expansion of the Cotopaxi Foundation’s grant program to include additional diversity and inclusion partners, such as ROMP Ecuador and the Mona Foundation.

“2020 was a test of Cotopaxi’s mission, methodology, and creativity,” said Annie Agle, Director of Impact and Brand at Cotopaxi. “It was an honor to witness the commitment of Cotopaxi’s leadership, employees, suppliers, customers, and partners in responding to the pandemic. While the upheaval and setback caused by the pandemic remains ongoing, our impact model and governance feels up to the challenge to make good on our commitment to effectively fight poverty through sourcing, giving, and storytelling.”

To view the Cotopaxi 2020 Impact report, please visit https://www.cotopaxi.com/pages/impact-report

For more information on Cotopaxi, please visit https://www.cotopaxi.com/pages/about

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Cotopaxi Press Contact: Jess Smith | Jess@OutsidePR.com | 415.565.9530

About Cotopaxi

Cotopaxi is an outdoor gear brand and Benefit Corporation with a social mission. With two storefronts, a strong ecommerce platform, and over 80 employees, we design and sell gear that helps contribute to the fight against global poverty. We work to raise awareness of and funds for various humanitarian causes through the Cotopaxi Foundation. For more information please visit https://www.cotopaxi.com/pages/about.

^[1]Bill and Melinda Gates’ Foundation, Goalkeepers Report, 2020. Available at –  https://ww2.gatesfoundation.org/goalkeepers/report/2020-report/#GlobalPerspective