California Apparel News

Patagonia Inc. joined conservation groups to sue the Trump Administration over its decision to reduce the acreage of Bears Ears national monument in Utah.

The suit was filed in US District Court in Washington DC Dec. 6.The Ventura, Calif.-eco-minded clothier charged the Trump administration with overstepping its boundaries under the 1906 Antiquities Act, according to a Bloomberg report.

Earlier this week, Patagonia posted a pop-up message on its company website Patagonia.com with the provocative note “The President Stole Your Land.” The pop-up recommended that people give support to groups protecting national monuments and also requested that people post tweets protesting the Trump Administration’s decision.

Patagonia’s statement and suit on national monuments is the latest action in a battle on public lands that is growing. In February, the Outdoor Retailer trade show announced that it would stop exhibiting in Salt Lake City to protest Utah Gov. Gary Herbert’s petition to the Trump administration to reduce acreage of Bears Ears.

Retailers and trade shows making strong, public political statements is rare and perhaps unprecedented. It may be the start of an age of retail activism, according to marketing journal DMN. Recently, auto company Volvo and coffee company Keurig got involved in twitterstorm on broadcaster Sean Hannity. These companies posted tweets on pulling ads from Hannity’s broadcasts, which resulted in Hannity fans tweeting for boycotts of these companies. Also this year, Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus dropped the Ivanka Trump line owned by the president’s daughter. The line was a focus of consumer boycott called “Grab Your Wallet.” Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus spokespeople said the line was dropped due to poor sales.