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Patagonia to Open Second Chicago Location

The 1957 building on the corner of East Walton and North Rush Streets located in the historic Magnificent Mile shopping area, boasts two massive walls of windows that entice passersby to browse the store and offer exceptional natural lighting to align with the store's environmentally friendly operations and highlight its outdoor apparel.

"We've seen a tremendous response to our products and our brand at our Lincoln Park location," said Vickie Achee, head of marketing with Patagonia Retail. "This new store will not only make it more convenient for outdoor enthusiasts in the area to shop with us but will also give us the opportunity to engage with new audiences and introduce new customers to our brand."

At its newest Chicago location, Patagonia will offer a wide selection of its own line of technical garments including the new line for skiing and snowboarding, casual wear, footwear and children's apparel. Patagonia focuses on quality, durability and functionality in its product offerings and demands the same level of reliability from its suppliers.

With a long history of celebrating the adventurous spirit and outdoor lifestyle, Patagonia is also a staunch supporter of environmental causes. Since 1985, Patagonia has pledged 1% of sales to the preservation and restoration of the natural environment. The company has set the standard for environmentalism in manufacturing. Over 17 years ago, Patagonia converted to 100% organically grown cotton in the entire clothing line. Patagonia is well-known for its progressive outlook on recycling, including the first of its kind Common Threads garment recycling program accepting worn-out fleece, organic cotton and Capilene baselayers.

Since 2003, the existing Lincoln Park Patagonia store has already granted over $100,000 in donations to local grassroots environmental groups working on solutions to numerous issues in the community. Recent donations include a $10,000 grant for the Alliance for the Great Lakes (www.greatlakes.org) and a hoop house for The Resource Center's City Farm (http://www.resourcecenterchicago.org/70thfarm.html). Patagonia retail stores also sponsor events where employees and community members come together for environmental and locally focused events.

The Patagonia Magnificent Mile store is currently accepting applications for all positions. For information regarding employment, log onto the job link at www.patagonia.com for an application.

About Patagonia

Patagonia, Inc., based in Ventura, California, is a leading designer of core outdoor, surf and sport-related apparel, equipment, footwear and accessories. With sales last year of $414M, the company is noted internationally for its commitment to authentic product quality and environmental activism. Incorporating environmental responsibility into product development, the company has, since 1996, used only organically grown cotton in its clothing line. Committed to making its products landfill-free, the company's entire product line is recyclable thorough it's Common Threads Initiative. The company also advocates corporate transparency through its interactive website, The Footprint Chronicles, which outlines the environmental and social footprint of individual products. Patagonia was featured as The Coolest Company on the Planet on Fortune Magazine's April 2007 cover.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
SS|PR
Kristin Miller, 719-634-8292
kmiller@sspr.com
or
Patagonia, Inc.
Vickie Achee, 805-667-4630
vickie_achee@patagonia.com