By Chris Osborne
On November 30th, SEI welcomed special guest speaker Davis Smith, founder and CEO of Cotopaxi. The event was a big success, with over 200 students showing up to hear Davis tell his story. Davis was an enthralling speaker, artfully weaving the points and themes of his speech into an emotional story about his life. He spoke of the businesses he started and told some funny stories about his successes as an entrepreneur, but where Davis was truly captivating was in illustrating the events in his life that pushed him towards serving others. Davis’s desire to pursue social change came from a relationship he fostered with a young Ecuadorian boy. This boy, Edgar, inspired a realization within Davis that he had an obligation to serve others in his life. This story culminated in a powerful moment, where Davis became emotional and challenged the room to realize they too had an obligation to serve others with their life.
Davis’s personal effort to serve others and promote social change is evident in his efforts in founding Cotopaxi. Cotopaxi is certified B Corp that sells innovative outdoor equipment and uses their organization to positively impact as many lives as they can. In his speech, Davis stated “we strive to be the next Patagonia… but better.” Cotopaxi prides itself on its environmental consciousness, which they pursue throughout their entire production operation; the company ensures ethically sourced resources and sustainable production practices. Further, Cotopaxi strives to give the workers within its production operation a safe and desirable work environment, opportunity to advance, chance to express creativity, and wages far above industry standards. The profits from their products are used to fund socially driven organizations in three pillars of change they deem the most important in alleviating poverty. They partner and fund organizations that are committed to and successful in the promotion of health, education, and creation of livelihoods. Cotopaxi rigorously vets and measures their partners and programs to ensure each one is truly making an impact.
The vision behind Cotopaxi and extent to which it pursues the enhancement of the lives of everyone they touch is commendable. Davis Smith has an ambitious view for social business and the success behind Cotopaxi is a testament to his vision. Davis’s passionate drive to benefit the world is exemplary and serves as an inspiration to many aspiring social entrepreneurs. Can someone say co-op?
