2020 has been full of big changes and challenges—experienced in uniquely different ways by everyone.   

The ‘uncertainty’ was a magnifying glass that helped us put a laser focus on what we care about. 

As a brand, as co-workers, as community members, we came together to drive change for the future of the outdoor industry—acting on our longstanding goal of protecting the places we love and working to make them more accessible for all people. Because we believe the outdoors should be a place of comfort and revival for everyone.

This year...

Healthcare professionals gave us everything. Even though we donated 25,000 pairs of socks to health care professionals around the nation, we can’t ever begin to pay back the sacrifices they have made. They are true heroes. 

Firefighters continued to battle the increasingly persistent, seasonal fires. We donated 1,000 pairs of socks to firefighters working to keep us safe in our home state. We are forever grateful.   

Our advocacy partners continued to bring joy and access to new communities and new areas. We donated more than $250,000 to support their missions, created new sock collabs, and used our platform to bring awareness to the invaluable, drastically necessary work they do. 

- We continued supporting long-standing, partners like Big City Mountaineers, The Conservation Alliance, The Nature Conservancy, Protect Our Winters, and SOS Outreach.  

- And, we forged new partnerships with Environmental Learning for Kids and Outdoor Afro to support the work they are doing to make the outdoors more inclusive for underserved urban youth and Black communities.   

The Outdoor Industry through the In Solidarity Project stood together to reject racism and seek true inclusion. We denounced racism as a company and committed to further aligning our purpose and values to help introduce the next and more diverse generation of adventurers to the outdoor community and we signed the Outdoor Industry CEO Diversity Pledge and donated $25,000 to SOS Outreach’s Alumni Program to advance the representation of people of color across the industry including in front of and behind the camera within our own brand. 

We saw the desire to get everyone outside grow, and it was inspiring. We donated $20,000 to eight non-profits via LQBTQ+ and environmental advocate Pattie Gonia in support of her Giving Tuesday campaign to help connect women, LGBTQ+, and BIPOC groups to nature while protecting the places we play. 

The fight to preserve beautiful wild places and create a more sustainable future endured. We remained steadfast in our commitment to sustainability – signing the 'We Are Still In' letter to support the Paris Agreement and joining the Responsible Packaging Movement and the OIA Climate Action Corps.  

This year has truly been ‘unprecedented’. May it continue to inspire unprecedented change for good. 

Graciously,   

Jen McLaren

Smartwool President