Innovating the future of supply-chain sustainability

Cotopaxi is building a mission-driven outdoor brand that integrates sustainability across product design, sourcing, and operations. With Double Impact’s support, the company is scaling commercially while advancing circularity, responsible materials, and supply chain transparency. Its approach demonstrates how environmental responsibility can drive brand strength, operational resilience, and long-term value creation.

Impact thesis

The apparel industry is under increasing pressure to evolve. It is resource-intensive, carbon-heavy, and dependent on complex global supply chains. Within the outdoor gear and apparel segments specifically, consumers expect brands to reflect their environmental values, while regulators are heightening scrutiny around chemical usage, traceability, and carbon disclosure.

We believe this dynamic creates a compelling opportunity to scale companies that embed sustainability, circularity, and ethical sourcing directly into their operating models. Double Impact believes that responsibly sourced materials, transparent supply chains, and stakeholder engagement are not trade-offs to profitability—they can be drivers of long-term brand equity and resilience.

Opportunity and investment

Cotopaxi was founded in 2014 with a mission to fight extreme poverty through sustainably designed outdoor products and apparel. The company takes an integrated approach to sustainability, spanning product design, global manufacturing, fair labor practices, and employee engagement. As both a B Corporation and Public Benefit Corporation, Cotopaxi embeds stakeholder governance into its structure.¹Source: Cotopaxi re-certified as a B Corp in March 2023. B Corp certification is provided by the nonprofit B Lab. Companies are required to re-certify every three years. Companies pay an annual certification fee, which is based on their total revenues. Cotopaxi registered as a Public Benefit Corporation in October 2013. A Public Benefit Corporation is a for-profit business structure that requires companies to to define and report their social and environmental impact to stakeholders. We observed the company’s integrated approach to have created a differentiated platform for value creation; one where sustainability is not ancillary, but core to product innovation, supply chain resilience, and brand positioning.

“Our partnership has focused on scaling the brand’s commercial reach while deepening its commitments to sustainable materials, circularity, and supply chain accountability—demonstrating that environmental responsibility and strong financial performance are not competing priorities, but powerful drivers of long-term value.”

Cecilia Chao / Partner / Bain Capital

Double Impact invested in Cotopaxi in 2021 to partner with a founder-led brand that had already established strong mission alignment and product-market fit, and, in our view, was well-positioned to scale operations and expand its commercial reach. We saw a strong alignment between our experience supporting mission-driven consumer companies and Cotopaxi’s priorities during this phase of growth.

Value creation

During our partnership, Cotopaxi has achieved measurable sustainability goals and achieved important operational milestones. By 2024, 100% of the company’s product families had incorporated recycled, repurposed, or certified responsible materials. The company eliminated intentionally added PFAS across its portfolio the same year and is implementing a Sustainable Materials Roadmap to phase out high-impact inputs.¹Source: Cotopaxi reported in the company’s 2024 Impact Report (page 39) that with Cotopaxi’s Fall-Winter 2024 product collection every Cotopaxi product now incorporates at least one of these sustainable material categories - recycled, repurposed, or certified responsible materials. Data as of April 2025.

The company remains committed to net-zero emissions by 2045 and adopted sciencebased reduction targets, prioritizing Scope 3 supplier decarbonization, which represents most of its footprint. Collaboration with the Outdoor Industry Association’s Co-Lab and renewable energy initiatives at key suppliers are central to this strategy.

Cotopaxi also continues to strengthen its circularity strategy through repair and resale programs. In 2025, the company launched a partnership with ThredUp to enable customers to buy and sell pre-loved products and extend product life cycles.

“I believe that together we have an opportunity to make Cotopaxi not just a brand people know, but one that sits at the center of culture and will drive lasting relevance and meaningful change in the world.”¹ These endorsements are provided by certain CEOs and or founders of investments held by certain investment vehicles advised by Bain Capital affiliate investment advisers. None of these CEOs and or founders were directly compensated for providing these endorsements, however, the funds have made investments into such CEOs and or founders’ companies. As a result of this investment, a conflict of interest exists because the CEOs and or founders have an incentive to make positive statements about Bain Capital and their experiences with Bain Capital to maintain the goodwill with Bain Capital.

Lindsay Shumlas / CEO / Cotopaxi

Operationally, we believe Bain Capital has played an instrumental role in Cotopaxi’s recent successes. We helped Cotopaxi negotiate distribution agreements to increase market reach, ideate national marketing campaigns, and execute strategic collaborations with like-minded companies. One example is a partnership for shared retail space with Bain Capital portfolio company Snow Peak to amplify brand presence.

In our view, these initiatives collectively demonstrate how Cotopaxi has deepened its environmental leadership while scaling commercially—creating durable value for customers, communities, and investors.