Inside The Forge, Patagonia’s Top-Secret Research And Design Center
Outdoor equipment and apparel brand Patagonia is widely known for environmental activism, often in unconventional and provocative ways. Over the years, their biggest campaigns have encouraged consumers to avoid overconsumption, repair and reuse gear, and vote against politicians who deny climate change; decisions that make a point and risk their own sales at the same time.
Of course, this isn’t really news. Plenty of ink has been spilled over Patagonia’s ethos and the way they do business. However, the brand has seldom let reporters in on how they source materials, design new products, test prototypes and integrate sustainability—all efforts that build their reputation as a brand deeply committed to the climate, consumers and the impact of their products. This summer, I was given an exclusive opportunity to pull back the curtain.
The Forge, Patagonia’s Advanced Research And Design Center, has an almost mythic reputation. Named after the tin shed Yvon Chouinard worked from while make climbing pitons in the 1960s, it’s been a part of the brand from the very beginning, yet even its location is kept secret. Fewer than ten journalists have found their way beyond the front door, making my day-long visit a unique opportunity to see how the brand innovates.
We spent a day at the Forge, Patagonia’s top-secret research and design center in California.
The Enigma Of The Forge
Tucked away behind Patagonia’s Ventura, California headquarters, the Forge deliberately avoids attention. The exterior walls are nondescript, with a single door and small sign that reads, “no visitors allowed.” For a building that brought so many impactful innovations to market—organic cotton, Yulex wetsuits, traceable down, synthetic fleece and DWR without PFCs among them—I found the building’s nondescript facade almost comical; it looks like a generic office building.
But don’t let appearances fool you. The inside is a large, open space with dozens of sewing and CNC machines, laser cutters, rolls of materials, racks of prototypes and countless half-baked ideas and far-flung designs tacked to the walls. Take a step inside and it feels like a more chaotic version of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory; colorful scraps of material lay on the ground, miscellaneous sketches and cut-outs consume tabletops and tests take place in real time as machines whirr to life.
As I walked around the room, it dawned on me that the chaos in the air was intentional. The Forge doesn’t operate on a linear path like a traditional assembly line. Instead, it’s a mix of art and science, where creative iteration meets empirical process. In the span of ten minutes. I watched a designer mock up a new jacket before heading inside the lab to watch a prototype endure a fatigue test that simulates years of use in mere minutes.
The end result of this iterative, messy process is a product that’s reliable, clever and often unique. Perhaps the best example of this is the Big Water Foul Weather Jacket and Bibs that Patagonia launched last fall. After eight years of prototyping with the Polynesian Voyaging Society, a non-profit that advocates for ocean health by sailing around the world on a traditional, wooden sailboat, they launched a product that’s purpose-built for the toughest ocean weather.
Bringing these ideas to life is one of the many examples of the Forge bringing a dream to life. Inside the R&D facility, there’s a palpable buzz, a feeling of curiosity and a sense of limitless potential. Designers are encouraged to think 5, 10 or even 20 years into the future, without sales targets and production deadlines holding them back. It’s widely accepted that most of these ideas will never see the light of day, giving the team the freedom to chase wild concepts without worrying over commercialization. For every Big Water kit that comes to market, ten others don’t. And that’s a big part of the magic at the Forge.
The sewing room inside the Forge is a frenzied space, complete with materials, sketches and working … [+]
Cutting-Edge Innovation: The M10 Collection
Over the course of the day I learned about, saw, felt and tested dozens of prototypes across a swath of categories, all under a non-disclosure agreement. To stay ahead of competitors, nearly all of the work done in the Forge is truly top secret—some concepts and designs aren’t even shared with family members.
However, I was given permission to share one development before the world sees it: the new M10 alpine collection. It is emblematic of the overlap between innovation and sustainability.
The original M10 jacket launched in 2009 and later expanded to include a full line of alpine climbing products. For nearly a decade, the M10 was the tip of the spear, a shining example of the brand’s best products for the most extreme environments. But in 2018, Patagonia, using new materials developed in the Forge, committed to fully recycled products; the M10 line, despite its popularity, didn’t survive the transition.
Unable to solve for the M10 initially, Patagonia pulled it from shelves. But the hiatus gave designers an opportunity to revisit the drawing board, to push beyond the quality the M10 was previously known for while staying true to sustainability. It took five years and thousands of hours to get there, but the folks at Patagonia were happy to share the collection will relaunch this fall.
Even though developing a single jacket took half a decade, the Forge threw resources at it anyway. After all, the lessons they learn along the way trickle down to many other Patagonia products, some of which occupy space in your closet. The materials team began exploring the future of sourcing; Designers started working on new shapes and concepts; Engineers created tests for new constructions and ways to combine materials. The Forge, as I would learn, is a massive web of people working to solve problems together, in absence of time.
To my surprise, the final product breaks all the rules of an alpine climbing kit. The M10 pants have all the volume in the seat, elastic cuffs and very few features. This simplicity allows for versatility with various boots and harnesses, and improves mobility for the climber. The best alpine climbers in the world love how they perform, while the new materials emphasize Patagonia’s commitment to sustainability.
A machine in the testing lab simulates years of wear.
Sustainability At Its Core
Instead of accepting a lesser product, Patagonia opted to sacrifice years of sales to develop something better for both the environment and you, the consumer. The new membrane in the M10 kit is more durable than previous versions, meaning it’ll last longer. It also breathes better, so climbers won’t overheat as fast on the mountain. Both of these have been proven in the field and backed by hard data in the lab. And, without forever chemicals, the revised M10 collection is better for the planet, too.
However, the M10 won’t move the needle by itself. It’s a niche product designed for a very specific end user, making it a small fraction of Patagonia’s sales, let alone the industry’s entire footprint. But some of the Forge’s other work has made a large impact as new materials ripple across the industry. For example, by pioneering recycled nylon, which reduces the brand’s reliance on petroleum, Patagonia catalyzed widespread use of the sustainable material, helping it scale quickly. The same can be said for organic cotton, traceable down and Yulex Natural Rubber, which Patagonia uses in its wetsuits.
Born in the Forge, these material advancements illustrate the larger paradigm of Patagonia. Their R&D isn’t designing products just to be the best. They’re designing products to show other brands an entirely different path. Yes, Patagonia designs and produces some of the best products on the market, but their end game isn’t to squash the competition—it’s to get others to follow suit.
The M10 was shepherded by Linden Mallory, Global Product Line Director, and tested by Walker Ferguson, Patagonia’s Field Testing Manager, along with his team of testers around the world. Mallory was responsible for maintaining the fine balance between performance and sustainability, soliciting feedback from athletes and data from materials scientists and designers to make the product more sustainable over time. After many years and countless iterations, it is finally coming to market, a tangible representation of the blood, sweat and tears that make planet-friendly products possible.
Designers and engineers come together to develop products from the ground up. Even a pair of shorts … [+]
The Future Of Outdoor Gear
The M10 isn’t the only example of Patagonia’s commitment to the planet. In fact, the brand has long served as a pioneer for sustainably-driven innovations, and many brands have cloned its best designs. The DAS series became so popular that it was replicated by many other brands. The R1 Fleece Pullover found similar widespread appeal, and almost every outdoor brand now makes a similar, versatile midlayer of their very own. Not to mention the new materials Patagonia co-developed with GORE, which are rolling out across the industry.
If history is any reference, the Forge will continue to shape the future of materials, too. After integrating recycled polyester and recycled nylon into their products, other outdoor brands followed suit. After rolling out organic cotton and fair trade certifications, they became mainstream. None of these innovations would have been possible without the Forge and the team of designers and engineers that works there.
The Forge is much more than a place or just a collection of people. It’s a process and an ethos that Patagonia lives by. It’s iterative, messy and collaborative. It is critical for Patagonia’s mission, but rarely the star of the show. It’s where relentless drive for innovation and dedication to the planet come together, embodying the heart of a brand that has long led the way in doing good. And it’s responsible for just about every piece of Patagonia gear you own.
Our Favorite Patagonia Gear
To that end, there are hundreds if not thousands of Patagonia styles in circulation around the world. Some are new, and others are recirculated by the brand’s Worn Wear initiative. Whether you’re looking to add another piece of Patagonia gear to your wardrobe or get your hands on some threads for the first time, here are five of our favorite Patagonia pieces.