Patagonia, a trailblazer in high-end outdoor apparel and environmental advocacy, is stepping up its corporate responsibility commitment to sustainability with $20 Million and Change, a venture capital fund to invest in startups with innovative solutions involving food, water, energy or waste.

“We believe in our company’s long-term vision around the environment and areas we want to make change in,” said Rose Marcario, CEO of the newly created holding company Patagonia Works. “We know there are great entrepreneurs out there with really great ideas and resources and they could be the next Patagonia.”

Already in the business of providing grants, Patagonia is hoping to nurture the next movement leader, Marcario said. "I do think business is an untapped well for change."

The company has just reorganized into a new umbrella holding company, Patagonia Works, through which it's earmarking the initial $20 million for investment in early-stage small businesses, ranging from $500,000 to $5 million. The plan has only one prerequisite—that a company must already have $1 million in revenue or capitalization.Continue reading...

Analysts had thought that Nike’s third quarter earnings would come in at 67 cents per share, but when the info was finally doled out Thursday, the company surprised with a 16 percent increase in net income to $662 million. That’s 73 cents per share. Not too shabby.

The sporting brand saw growth across the globe, except for a teensy consumer market called Asia. Apparently, Nike is doing just fine without China and Japan, as stocks hit a 20-month high at $58.69, Bloomberg reports.

"Our team delivered strong results in Q3. We did it with a relentless flow of innovation into our key categories," said Mark Parker, president and CEO of Nike. "Given the diversity of our portfolio, we're able to capture big opportunities that drive sustainable, profitable growth. At the same time we continue to invest in new ways to enhance athletic performance, build strong consumer communities, and improve how we design and manufacture our products. That’s how we increase our potential and drive shareholder value."Continue reading...

A few of America’s biggest shoe brands owned by the same company will be going their separate ways soon. A purchase price of $2 billion works wonders to make those kinds of things happen. Collective Brands Inc., which owns such footwear brands as Sperry Top-Sider and Keds as well as discount shoe retailer Payless ShoeSource, has agreed to be sold for $2 billion and divided into two companies.

As the Chicago Tribune reports, Collective will be a collective no more, with its brands divided between Wolverine Worldwide, Blum Capital and Golden Gate Capital, which all have a tough financial road ahead for these brands.Continue reading...

As McDonald's looks to buff up its brand perception by responding to critics of its animal products sourcing, another US-based brand is under fire for its sourcing of animal products. 

The North Face outdoor apparel brand confirmed to the Telegraph in London that it purchases goose down feathers from California's Allied Feather & Down, the world's leading supplier of down to the garment industry — which primarily sources its down feathers from foie gras producers in Hungary, who force-feed geese in a process deemed cruel by animal rights activists.

A North Face rep didn't deny knowledge of the source, tellng the Telegraph reporter, “All of the down we are supplied by Allied Feather is a by-product of the food industry which, as the largest purchaser of goose product, drives the practice of force-feeding. We are working with our partners to identify alternative long-term sources of goose down that is not a by-product of force-feeding.”Continue reading...

Patagonia raised eyebrows with its Black Friday/Cyber Monday message this year — "Don't Buy This Jacket" — including taking out a full-page ad in the New York Times.

It's all part of the brand's Common Threads initiative, which promotes sustainability and avoiding waste. The message: "Cyber Monday, and the culture of consumption it reflects, puts the economy of natural systems that support all life firmly in the red. We’re now using the resources of one-and-a-half planets on our one and only planet."

As explained on the brand's Cleanest Line blog, "It’s time for us as a company to address the issue of consumerism and do it head on. The most challenging, and important, element of the Common Threads Initiative is this: to lighten our environmental footprint, everyone needs to consume less. Businesses need to make fewer things but of higher quality. Customers need to think twice before they buy."

Below, learn more about the initiative including Patagonia's partnership with eBay to promote Common Threads.Continue reading...

Apple's environmental impact concerns China.

AT&T has an 11th hour plan to salvage T-Mobile deal and win over reluctant FCC.

American Airlines parent AMR files for bankruptcy protection to restructure debt as talks with pilots end.

American Express launches $20-million giveaway to spur online sales.

BSkyB holds annual meeting as James Murdoch survives investor vote; singer Charlotte Church alleges coverage trade-off for singing at Rupert Murdoch's wedding; and The Guardian reports broadening of News Corp. hacking scandal to include a North Ireland government minister.

Chevrolet gives three-day Sonic test drives to Klout leaders.

Cyber Monday sales come in 15-20 percent higher than a year ago.

Facebook targets $10 billion IPO for spring that would value social network at $100B.

Groupon shares plummet post-IPO.Continue reading...

Last week we saw GoodGuide come out with sustainability grades and give Levi Strauss an A for do-gooder denim moves.

Today sees the formal launch of an industry-based Sustainable Apparel Coalition, an almost unimaginable collection of commercial companies (including Levi Strauss) and brands, governmental agencies, and nonprofit organizations. The group is out to change the world by developing a set of common metrics and standards.

They may not have the flashiest logo, but they have bigger aims: namely, to develop "a comprehensive database of the environmental impact of every manufacturer, component and process in apparel production, with the aim of using that information to eventually give every garment a sustainability score," according to the New York Times.Continue reading...

AOL and several private-equity firms are exploring making an offer to buy Yahoo, according to the Wall Street Journal, "devising a bold plan to marry two big Internet brands facing steep challenges." (The New York Times' take: not so fast.) Yahoo's shares soared this morning on the report.

Audi Q5, Cadillac SRX, Volvo XC60 and other "less sexy models" propel U.S. luxury auto sales.

Burberry sales rise, fueled by Asia.

BYD gets a setback in plant construction from the Chinese government.

Corona Light aims to be “most liked” brew on social media.

Edge shave gel launches “anti-irritation” campaign via Twitter.Continue reading...