Yes, it costs more for Patagonia. But the way they treat me as a customer makes me happy to pay a premium…as my latest experience shows.
I had a pair of Patagonia gortex pants from way-back-when. Worked fine, though my duct tape patch job ruined the clean lines – I’d accidentally stuck my ice axe through the pants and into my left leg, instead of the glacier, during a glissade off Rainier.
And then this past snowboarding season some seam sealing tape started coming off, so things began to get a bit wet at times. I sent the pants to Patagonia, with a note explaining that I’d also be happy to pay for a real repair job of my ice axe mishap.
Yesterday I got a Patagonia gift card in the mail, for $238.44. No idea how they calculated that amount, but I’m looking forward to buying a replacement pair of pants. And they’ve reaffirmed my belief that paying for quality gear winds up being cheaper in the end.
Ken's Techno Tidbits 