Patagonia trademark suit against Pattie Gonia tests its progressive image

Patagonia’s trademark fight with drag performer and environmental activist Pattie Gonia has turned into a reputational test for a company known for progressive causes. The dispute matters because it pits the outdoor brand’s need to protect its name and logo against the public image it has built with environmental and LGBTQ-aligned audiences.

Fortune reported that Patagonia filed the lawsuit in January after Pattie Gonia, the stage name of Wyn Wiley, sought trademarks last year connected to apparel. Patagonia says the proposed clothing use overlaps with its own trademarks and could mislead consumers.

The company also says the filings violated a 2022 agreement between the two sides. According to Fortune, that agreement allowed Pattie Gonia to keep performing and doing activism under the persona, while barring apparel under that name.

Online backlash follows Instagram statement

The case drew wider attention this month after Pattie Gonia addressed the lawsuit on Instagram, following comments by Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert at a conference in late May. In the post, Pattie Gonia accused Patagonia of trying to “erase an activist,” Fortune reported.

The performer has a large online audience, with 1.8 million Instagram followers and 900,000 TikTok followers, according to Fortune. Many commenters criticized Patagonia, while Fortune noted that some users said they had come to agree with the company after reviewing the dispute.

Pattie Gonia also questioned the timing of the case, saying it came as many companies have pulled back from diversity, equity and inclusion programs and support for LGBTQ communities. Representatives for Pattie Gonia declined to comment to Fortune, citing the pending litigation.

Patagonia says trademark law leaves little room

Patagonia is seeking $1 in damages plus legal fees, Fortune reported. The company says the case is about trademark protection rather than an attempt to financially damage the performer.

Corley Kenna, Patagonia’s chief communications and impact officer, told Fortune that executives think “Every day” about the risk to the company’s reputation. She rejected the idea that Patagonia has retreated from its stated commitments to people, justice or the planet.

Kenna said Patagonia must respond consistently when it believes others are using marks too close to its own. She told Fortune the company has previously acted against uses such as “Petrogonia” and an altered logo made to resemble a semi-automatic rifle.

“We can’t pick and choose,” Kenna told Fortune. “We can’t just go after the organizations and individuals who are not values-aligned. We have to go after all, because that’s how trademark law works.”

A clash between shared causes and brand control

Pattie Gonia emerged in 2018 after Wiley wore high heels on a backpacking trip, Fortune reported. The performer has used the persona to advocate for LGBTQ people and people of color in the outdoors, as well as environmental protection.

Patagonia has long presented itself as a values-driven company. Fortune noted its strong ratings from the Human Rights Campaign, its public stance against additional funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and its 2017 lawsuit over Bears Ears national monument protections.

The company’s founder, Yvon Chouinard, announced in 2022 that he was giving the company to the Holdfast Collective, a nonprofit focused on climate issues, according to Fortune. Patagonia says profits not reinvested in the business support environmental defense.

Kenna told Fortune the company sees its commercial success as tied to that mission. “We are a for-profit company and we’re in business to save the planet,” she said. “That makes this place complicated.”

This story draws on original reporting from Fortune.