Davis Smith, founder of Cotopaxi, an outdoor brand dedicated to social justice, discusses the transformative power of business. He shares his journey of integrating purpose into a brand, highlighting lessons on team dynamics and the significance of gut feelings in entrepreneurship. Smith reveals the innovative 'Lobatical' program that enhances employee loyalty and explains his bold decision to step down as CEO to foster new leadership. With a vision of compassionate capitalism, he inspires listeners to embrace both adventure and social responsibility.

Davis Smith, Founder and former CEO of Cotopaxi, shares his remarkable journey from selling pool tables to scaling a $150M outdoor apparel brand. He reveals how overcoming 100 investor rejections shaped Cotopaxi's trajectory. Davis delves into the impact of his childhood experiences on his entrepreneurial mindset, the challenges of aligning values with business missions, and the importance of purpose in entrepreneurship. He emphasizes the need for new financial products to support long-term goals and the balance between integrity and impact in business.

Davis Smith has spent the last nine years building the outdoor gear and clothing brand, Cotopaxi. The company’s slogan, Gear for Good, encapsulates everything about the way they do business, from using recycled and remnant materials to donating a portion of their revenue to nonprofits that fight poverty. It’s a story that Davis told when he was first on How I Built This in 2020.This week on How I Built This Lab, Davis returns to give Guy an update on how Cotopaxi weathered the COVID-19 pandemic and transitioned to a remote-first workplace. Plus, why Davis is stepping down from his role as CEO to pursue another passion: serving his church for three years as a mission leader in Brazil. This episode was produced by Chris Maccini and edited by John Isabella, with music by Ramtin Arablouei. Our audio engineer was Katherine Silva.You can follow HIBT on Twitter & Instagram, and email us at hibt@id.wondery.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Davis Smith, serial e-commerce entrepreneur and CEO of Cotopaxi, discusses risk-taking, building a brand, prioritizing people, and finding purpose in entrepreneurship. He shares his journey, the power of storytelling in building a brand, efforts to fight poverty through outdoor products, and empowering workers and inspiring innovation. The podcast also explores the need to reconstruct capitalism and do good in business.

By his mid-30's, Davis Smith had co-founded two businesses. The first ended well, but the second was such a disappointment that he wondered if he should even bother trying again. But he did. In 2014, he launched Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear company with two fluffy llamas as mascots and an expressed mission to do good in the world. The brand is now making tens of millions of dollars a year, and Davis hopes that the current pandemic will not slow its ambitions to grow and to give back generously. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.