Just in time for final weeks of the holiday shopping season, Patagonia opened its first Pittsburgh store on Walnut Street in Shadyside, in the space formerly occupied by American Apparel.
The Ventura, California-based outdoor clothing and sports gear retailer has invited eight Pittsburgh food and beverage companies to help customers celebrate its opening week starting Saturday, December 9. (Note: this article has been updated to reflect the new opening date.)
“Swing by to say hi and check out our new space in Shadyside,” says a Patagonia event posting on Facebook that promises in-store coffee and treats from The Coffee Tree Roasters, Arriviste Coffee Bar, The Commonplace Coffee Co., Prantl’s Bakery, Threefiftyº and Relish. Patagonia Provisions goodies prepared by The Vandal will be available during afternoons.
Other retailers in the region carry Patagonia products but the store at 5509 Walnut St. will be its first location here, open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
On opening day and the first weekend afternoons, East End Brewing Company will pour beer in exclusive Patagonia Pittsburgh pint glasses for a $5 donation to Three Rivers Waterkeeper, a nonprofit organization that patrols the rivers, monitors for pollution and informs the public about threats to waterways.
And there’s more for fans of Patagonia and Pittsburgh.
Each morning the store will have a limited supply of exclusive bandanas and patches designed by Pittsburgh designer Daniel Gurwin and signed and numbered Pittsburgh watershed maps by Pittsburgh illustrator Lucy Engelman.
Patagonia doesn’t manufacture its products, but designs, tests, markets and sells its gear. The company is known for its corporate responsibility and activism, including paid time off for employees for environmental internships.
This week, its website carries a bold black-and-white message, “The president stole your land,” in response to President Trump’s decision to reduce the size of two national monuments in Utah, the Bears Ears National Monument and The Grand Staircase National Monument. The company invited people to take action.
Patagonia has been fighting with the Trump administration to preserve the boundaries of protected land, and CEO Rose Marcario says the company is prepared to sue to try to reverse Trump’s “unlawful actions.”
“Americans have overwhelmingly spoken out against the Trump Administration’s unprecedented attempt to shut down our national monuments,” Marcario says in a statement. “We’ve fought to protect these places since we were founded and now we’ll continue that fight in the courts.”
A company spokesperson could not be reached for additional comment but we’ll update this story if that changes.
