We hadand havea lot of great supporters of our brand, people. Courtesy of Cotopaxi, Cotopaxis Nepal backpack. Smith is the founder and former CEO of Cotopaxi, an international outdoor apparel company based in Utah. The Church News is an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. MSU basketball updates, Spartans in the 2023 NFL Draft and TRIVIA TUESDAY!. The other success story Smith likes to point to is the companys Del Dia line of backpacks which are manufactured in the Philippines. In 2014, he launched Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear company with two fluffy llamas as mascots and an expressed mission to do good in the world. Cotopaxi is called the next Patagonia by many, but theres quite a unique story behind its foundation.Now, our main business is to sell outdoors products, but thats not how we got started, says Davis. Courtesy of Davis Smith, Cotopaxi CEO and co-founder Davis Smith current, Cotopaxis brand ambassadors travel the world to, spread the companys message of doing good while doing great things. Previously, Davis was the Founder at Pool Tables a nd also held positions at BB Box Comrcio Varejista de Artigos Infantis, BilliardEx, The Founders Club. Having lived 15 of his 38 years in foreign countries, Smith is no stranger to different cultures or types of people, and he has chosen to create a company and a brand based on the belief that people are innately good. The products Cotopaxi sells have a warranty of 61 years. Davis Smith was 4 years old when his family first moved to the Caribbean. Founded in 2014 by Davis Smith, Cotopaxi is a sustainable outdoor gear company named after the Cotopaxi volcano in the Andre Mountains of Ecuador. It was one of the first places where we started building our brand. He initially considered starting a nonprofit but decided that the best way he could help was by building another business. It was also about sacrifice.. The global leadership community of extraordinary chief executives. After starting up a few web companies in Brazil, he founded Cotopaxi in 2013.When I was little, Id cross the Amazon with my father on a handmade raft, go fishing for piranhas, and even lived a self-sufficient life on a small island. Most of their sales are online, but theyre considering opening more shops. For Cotopaxi, the factories arent just subcontractors. Davis was previously the founder and Co-CEO of Baby.com.br and Dinda.com.br, Brazil's leading e-commerce retailer in the baby space and "Startup of the Year 2012."In 2004, he co-founded PoolTables.com, America's largest pool table retailer, which he later sold. To understand the whole story, we must go back to Daviss roots. I think humans, by nature, are good. If I use the brand itself to inspire other people to do good.. What should it look like 100 years from now? So most of them add their own custom stitching, pockets, or customized design accents. Weve shown that you can build a sustainable, profitable, at-scale business that still does things the right way and you dont have to compromise., Copyright 2023 Deseret News Publishing Company. Today, Smith leads 200 employees, and hes proud of the community he and his team have built. Eradicating poverty whether its in America or globally cant happen just through government and non profits, says Smith. And Smith followed that adage, choosing to organize Cotopaxi as a benefit corporation which includes legal obligations to accountability, transparency and purpose. I certainly learned what we all know already, which is that there are great people all over the world, regardless of what faith they believe in or if they have a faith at all, Smith said. While the companies were successful, he still had not zeroed in on that elusive combination of business and altruism. Lifetime Warranty + Repairs. Then, he crossed paths with Utah entrepreneurial legend, philanthropist and educator, Steve Gibson. Achieving and maintaining B Corp certification requires verified performance and accountability on factors from employee benefits and charitable giving to supply chain practices and input materials. They take pictures and upload them to a special app. For Davis Smith, this began early. On Friday, Smith announced he would transition from CEO to become Cotopaxis chairman of the board on July 1 in preparation for a three-year calling to serve as a mission president for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Recife, Brazil. All Rights Reserved, Cotopaxi founder/CEO Davis Smith stepping down to serve Brazil mission, Utahs Cotopaxi doing good business by doing good, Utahs Cotopaxi finding ways to survive, help its community thrive amid COVID-19, Utahs Gear for Good company Cotopaxi launches charitable foundation, Hold on to your brookies, Utahs new Trader Joes is now open. Cotopaxi actually started with festivals. Smith grew up a natural entrepreneur. The company designs eye-catching high-performance apparel and outdoor products made especially for hiking, mountain climbing, backpacking, and traveling on the go. Among the newly called mission presidents for 2023 is President Davis M. Smith and his wife Asialene, who have been called to preside over the Brazil Recife North Mission. Courtesy of Cotopaxi, Cotopaxi builds brand loyalty by telling stories, through its globe-trotting brand ambassadors as well as through its own corporate giving back efforts. Davis Smith is the founder and CEO of Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear brand with a humanitarian mission. And as we continue to grow and scale, that impact will only grow.. Despite the quick success, both men still felt pulled to a greater purpose. I hope that they wherever they are when they start their missions, that they know it doesnt matter where they are, they can learn more, and they can grow., Subscribe for free and get daily or weekly updates straight to your inbox, The three things you need to know everyday, Highlights from the last week to keep you informed. They knew what they were getting. SALT LAKE CITY, Utah ( ABC4) Cotopaxi founder and CEO Davis Smith is stepping down as CEO and appointing former Eddie Bauer CEO Damien Huang in his place, according to a press release. Huang joined the company in May 2022 from Eddie Bauer, where he had served as CEO. In the 1950s, 55 percent of the worlds population lived in extreme poverty. Dont look for something that just helps your business or potential customers, he says. All rights reserved. To accomplish this, I needed to get my message across to as many people as I could.When asked how he did it, he smiled smugly and said,First, I bought two llamas on the internet., To get people to listen to his message, first, he had to gather attention. He attributes a great deal to his parents, saying they shaped his life. Unlike the clear blue sky over the majestic mountains of Salt Lake City, Utah, where the Winter Olympic Games were once held, Daviss face was clouded over. United Nations Foundation Davis Smith: First of all, we love the city of San Francisco. Davis was born in the United States but moved to the Dominican Republic at the age of four. Davis Smith is the Pacific U.S. regional honoree for the 2022 YPO Global Impact Award. Cotopaxi partners closely with local communities to preserve the tradition of llama farming and create pathways to market for rural smallholder farmers who would otherwise make less than$100 a year (yes thats a year). Cotopaxi's CEO Davis Smith started in this role in 2014. Yet Cotopaxi is part of a wave of successful start-ups who are proving that fundamentally realigning the balance between profit and philanthropy can generate win-win relationships for everyone involved . Smith . On this week's episode of Fortune's Leadership Next podcast, co-hosts Alan Murray and Ellen McGirt welcome Davis Smith, founder and CEO of Cotopaxi, and Cecilia Chao, managing director of. Posts Reels Tagged The businesss founders, Davis and Asialene Smith, have answered the call to be mission leaders for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Brazil Recife North Mission for the next three years. But we didnt make shirts or hats. Provided by David and Asialene Smith The Cotopaxi company stands by its slogan "gear for good" on a large scale, dedicating a percentage of its profits to communities experiencing poverty. Cotopaxi reports the entire executive leadership team, including Stephan Jacob, Cotpaxi co-founder and chief operating officer, will remain in place under Huangs leadership. Davis explains where Cotopaxi got its name and what went into selecting the llama as its mascot. Despite not wanting to go initially, she remembers it as one of their best experiences to date. For Smith, this meant adventures with his dad like building their own raft and fishing for piranhas while floating down the Amazon River or camping on an uninhabited island, surviving off fish they had caught themselves with spears. In a heartfelt post on LinkedIn, Smith shared the news along with his personal testimony of the life-changing impact of missionary work and photos of his own missionary service as a young man in Bolivia. For example, when you order something on the Cotopaxi website you will receive a handwritten note written by a refugee teenager in Utah. How can we do it better? Founder Davis Smith took to LinkedIn to break the news that Cotopaxi's Hayes Street store would close on Tuesday. She recalled living abroad in Lima, Peru, when the couple was first married for her husbands internship. In meetings he would share his personal experiences, growing up among those in poverty, the people his company would now work to help. Many traditional capital sources didnt think that a new digitally native brand could knock the outdoor industrys brick and mortar incumbents off their perch. The day of our launch, we saw teams wearing Cotopaxi shirts and hats. You cant just compete on the best technical performance, or make the best backpack anymore. Davis Smith, Founded Cotopaxi after working at a VC and starting up a few other companies. There are now 215 Academy chapters worldwide. About 3,000 people took part in our very first Questival. Where children still die because they dont have clean water.. At front is Amy Eisenmenger, a software engineer. Davis Smith 2:23 Where comfort and health go hand in hand. Contact Information Website www.cotopaxi.com Ownership Status Privately Held (backing) Financing Status Venture Capital-Backed Primary Industry Clothing Other Industries Internet Retail Accessories Primary Office 74 South Main Street Salt Lake City, UT 84101 United States Cotopaxi Timeline 2020 2021 2022 2023 Smith plans to be a player in creating change in the world through the private sector, trusting in his belief that people want to support businesses that share their values and companies that are looking beyond their bottom line to make the world a better place. Muley Freaks Erik Van Woerkom Charged With Felony Possession of Trophy Mule Deer, The Biggest Improvement to My Camp Kitchen Is a Mini Pizza Oven (But Not for Pizza), Get Up to 60% Off at REIs End of Season Clearance Sale, VanDOit Moov Builds on Adventure-Ready Ford Transit Trail, 8 Top Tips for New Adventure Motorcyclists From Riding Instructor Bret Tkacs. Cotopaxi founder and CEO Davis Smith is stepping down as head of the Utah-based outdoor gear company to return to Brazil, the place where he grew up and where the first seeds of the idea that would become Cotopaxi were sown. Before Cotopaxi the Wharton business school grad started (and exited) two other businesses, one of which based in Brazil raised over $40 million in start-up venture capital in 2010 and had 400 employees at its peak when Smith got out. Now, the socially minded company is turning its attention toward COVID-19 relief. Its been amazing, Smith said of his experience in Salt Lake City. The 1980s model of corporate social responsibility was to throw some money at something at the end of the year, Smith says. Cotopaxi has 6 board members and advisors, including Dan Wenhold. When he was 4 years old, his fathers job as a contractor for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints brought their family from Salt Lake City, Utah, to locations throughout Latin America. Davis is currently the founder and CEO of Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear and active lifestyle brand - with a social mission at its core. I believed that business could amplify my voice and message and believed I could get people to work alongside me to do good if I could build a brand that inspired people, Smith said. To do this, he looked for something in his roots from Latin America and chose two llamas that are native to the area, to take on his tour around universities in Utah, where he talked to the students about his vision. Thats something I hadnt really done with my first businesses, he says. Their shop/office is in Salt Lake City, Utah. This entire ecosystem herethe communityis passionate about the outdoors, and Utah is the most generous state in the nation, donating time and money. Transcript. So Ive always felt a deep sense of duty and responsibility to find a way to use my life to help others. Over the next 10 years, Smith did exactly that, launching a string of e-commerce companies. Davis Smith, Cotopaxi CEO and founder, poses for a photo in Salt Lake City on Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. Cotopaxi goes to great lengths to make sure the people who work with them work happily. Enter your email to receive updates on our LDS Living content, 2022 LDS Living A Division of Deseret Book Company, New leaders for 129 missions have been announcedfind out who and where theyre serving, Gear for Good: How Cotopaxis founder got the idea for his one-of-a-kind business, Countdown to Conference: Daily quotes from last conference to prepare you for April 2023, There is room for my brown paper-doll family: 2 gospel truths I learned as a young girl that carry my faith, Questions Worth Exploring: A new speaker series from Deseret Book. In 2014, he launched Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear company with two fluffy llamas as mascots and an expressed mission to do good in the world. This episode, we talk with Davis Smith about capitalism, kayaking, and why giving back is just good businessand Andrew leans on his shovel while talking trail-maintenance. SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., - Cotopaxi, a popular active wear brand is shutting down its only San Francisco store because of repeated break-ins. Their shop sells outdoor gear with unique colorful designs. The company only works with factories that provide fair wages and conditions. According to Smith, a chance encounter with Gibson on the BYU campus during a social impact conference led to his decision to become an entrepreneur as a means of making an impact on the world. But the irreverence and jubilee embodied by the brand its. Smith said a string of vandalism incidents, thefts and safety issues affecting his staff and wife were to blame for the . I was a young missionary myself from 1997-1999 in Bolivia, and the Parkers were my mission leaders. Most people in America dont even know what this looks like. So it is with Cotopaxi, the once scrappy (literally) outdoor gear brand that has won over adventurers young and old with its splashy, colorful designs, clever product innovations, and, well, llamas. This is the average lifespan of someone living in a developing country. It trended nationally on Twitter. It was immediately following their wedding in 2001 when Davis Smith and his wife, Asialene decided they needed an adventure. Heres what they have planned, Why the Christian flag can fly on this government flagpole, Breaking the fast: Eid ul-Fitr is an occasion of peace, The unique stories and struggles of Latino Muslims, The Black church, religious freedom and gay rights. I couldnt have built that when I was 24. Their corporate mission is to alleviate global poverty, and they donate a portion of their revenue to NPOs and educational organizations while also teaming up with fair trade certified organizations to improve the living standards of their factory workers. John Currie Board Member Nov 2017. Cotopaxi CEO to Hand Reins to President as He Takes On a Missionary Project Davis Smith will spend three years in Brazil and has anointed Damien Huang to take over the top role at the. Davis Smith, Cotopaxi CEO and founder, is interviewed in Salt Lake City on Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. Report incorrect company information. Cotopaxi founder and CEO Davis Smith is stepping down as head of the Utah-based outdoor gear company to return to Brazil, the place where he grew up and where the first seeds of the idea that would become Cotopaxi were sown. I knew I was not smarter or harder working or more ambitious than anyone around me. Davis Smith is the founder and CEO of Cotopaxi, an innovative outdoor gear brand with the heart of a humanitarian. But when Smith read my recent article about. The money will be given directly as extra pay or be used to run an in-house nursery or to serve free lunch. He is a serial eco. In addition to accurate and impartial news reporting, and compelling, original storytelling, his interests include camping in all climates and conditions, track cycling and bikepacking, all forms of fitness, the resplendent majesty of coffee, and sports of every kind. He parlayed social media strategy and a cross-country college campus tour of the U.S. with two full-grown llamas in tow to promote The Questival, a one-of-a-kind experience that introduced would-be customers to his new brand. Theyve been successful if someone leaves the store inspired. A few still wondered why you needed to tell a compelling brand story at all. Key Executive Tracking. He was the recipient of the 2022 Outdoor Media Summit Editor of the Year award, and regularly co-hosts the industrys Gear Guide at both summer and winter Outdoor Retailer trade shows.