Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman

Yvon Chouinard is the founder of the defunct company Chouinard Equipment and the main founder of Patagonia. Let My People Go Surfing is a history and philosophy of Patagonia and of Chouinard himself. While he never shows true interest in the business side of things, preferring to work with his hands in the early days of Chouinard Equipment on product development or at Patagonia field-testing gear, he is the visionary behind the Patagonia brand.

Chouinard sees his company as an extension of himself. More than that, as this book recounts, in Patagonia he creates the world he wants to live in, the sense of belonging he lost in childhood when his family moved to Burbank. He finds a new, if lonely, home in the outdoors as a child, and the experiences he has in nature from childhood into his teens shape his naturalist outlook and interest in risk sports that later define Patagonia. He and the company grow like romantic partners, expanding each other’s thinking and reflecting conflict.

Let My People Go Surfing serves equally as an autobiography, business guide, and advertisement. Because for Chouinard the personal informs the corporate and vice versa, it’s no surprise this trifecta mirrors the signature marriage of outdoor experience, education, and product promotion that Patagonia developed in its catalog.