 | |
| Industry | Footwear |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2004 |
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
| Products | Trainers, bags, small leather goods |
| Revenue | US$21 million (2017) [1] |
Number of employees | c. 500 (2023) [2] |
| Website | www |
Veja (known as Vert in Brazil) is a French footwear and accessories brand founded in 2004. Veja's products are made with organic cotton, natural rubber and recycled plastic bottles.
Veja was founded in 2004. Veja's founders Sébastien Kopp and François-Ghislain Morillion met with organic cotton farmers in North Brazil and wild rubber tappers in the Amazon (Seringueiros) to establish the production chain behind Veja in Brazil.
In February 2005, the company made its first official launch at the Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Growing its influence, the company collaborated with French fashion designer Agnès b. In 2006, the company developed their first collection using vegetable-tanned leather, and has since began curating the photography exhibition Novo Mundo(S) at Wanted Gallery, Paris.
In 2007, the company began its collaboration with French label Comptoir des Cotonniers, launching its first collaborated product Veja + Christine Phung collection at the Pompidou Centre Design Shop in Paris. The business began expanding into the children's trainer scene, with the launch of Veja small. [3]
In 2008, the company began its expansion to London, opening its studio there. [4] Through time, the company has released a wide variety of different products and styles, ensuing talks of collaborations with third party organisations. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
Seeing record moves of progress, the company began its new wave of collaborations, beginning with Regina Dabdab. In 2013, the company released a capsule collection of printed trainers, inspired by professor Greg Asner's aerial maps recording forest cover and biodiversity in tropical forest ecosystems. [10] With the launch of the film Once upon a Forest, by French director Luc Jacquet, Veja commemorated its launch by releasing a custom trainer. [11]
In October 2018, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wore a pair of Veja sneakers to watch an Invictus Games sailing event during the official tour she took through Australia, New Zealand and Fiji with her spouse Prince Harry. [12] As of October 2018, Veja supplied its shoes to 1,800 retailers in 45 countries. They sold 550,000 pairs of shoes, generating $21 million in revenues in 2017. [1] In 2020, Veja employed between 180 and 190 people. [13]
Marni and Veja collaborated on sneakers released in March 2022. [14]
Veja trainers and accessories are made of organic cotton, wild rubber from the Amazon, [15] vegetable-tanned leather, and recycled plastic bottles.
Veja works in Northeast Brazil with a co-operative of organic cotton farmers. Over 320 families have adopted the agro-ecology farming model with the technical support of the local NGO, ESPLAR.
Since 2006 Veja has used vegetable-tanned leather. Vegetable-tanned leather is a chrome-free leather tanned with organic compounds only. Leather is usually tanned using heavy metals, like chrome, which generate high levels of pollution in the waters close to tanneries. Veja has replaced heavy metals with acacia extracts, a natural tannin.
Veja uses waterproof bottle mesh on the soles of sneakers. It takes three recycled plastic bottles to make a pair of shoes. Bottles are collected from the streets of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and are later crushed and transformed into fiber. [1]
Veja claims ecological and fair trade conditions and to work with cooperatives of small producers and social associations in Brazil and France. However, Veja has not published any results of social audits for many years nor are there any certificates for the company's self-acclaimed fair-trade standards available. [16] The factory where Veja trainers are made in South Brazil follows the standards of work established by the International Labour Organization.
Veja footwear and accessories are transported by ship from Brazil to Le Havre in France, where they are then taken to Paris by boat. [17] Logistics are managed by Ateliers Sans Frontières, a French social association which enables people who have been unemployed to return to the workforce through training.
Veja won The Guardian Sustainable Business Award in the supply chain category, [18] and The Observer in association with Vogue UK Ethical Award in the fashion category. [19]
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but over time, shoes also became fashion items. Some shoes are worn as safety equipment, such as steel-toe boots, which are required footwear at industrial worksites.
Converse is an American lifestyle brand that markets, distributes, and licenses footwear, apparel, and accessories. Founded by Marquis Mills Converse in 1908 as the Converse Rubber Shoe Company in Malden, Massachusetts, it has been acquired by several companies before becoming a subsidiary of Nike, Inc. in 2003.
Adidas AG is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the world, after Nike. It is the holding company for the Adidas Group, which also owns an 8.33% stake of the football club Bayern München, and Runtastic, an Austrian fitness technology company. Adidas's revenue for 2018 was listed at €21.915 billion.
Dr. Martens also known as Doc Martens, Docs, or DMs, is a footwear and clothing brand, headquartered in Wollaston, Northamptonshire. Although famous for its footwear, the company also makes a range of accessories including clothing and bags. The footwear is distinguished by its air-cushioned sole, upper shape, welted construction, and yellow stitching. The Dr Martens' design studio is in Camden Town, London England. The company manufactures in the UK, China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
Sneakers (US) or trainers (UK), also known by a wide variety of other names, are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise but which are also widely used for everyday casual wear.
Puma SE is a German multinational corporation that designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel, and accessories, headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. Puma is the third largest sportswear manufacturer in the world. The company was founded in 1948 by Rudolf Dassler (1898–1974). In 1924, Rudolf and his brother Adolf "Adi" Dassler had jointly formed the company Gebrüder Dassler Schuhfabrik. The relationship between the two brothers deteriorated until they agreed to split in 1948, forming two separate entities, Adidas and Puma. Following the split, Rudolf originally registered the newly established company as Ruda, but later changed the name to Puma. Puma's earliest logo consisted of a square and beast jumping through a D, which was registered, along with the company's name, in 1948. Puma's shoe and clothing designs feature the Puma logo and the distinctive "Formstrip" which was introduced in 1958.
Jungle boots are a type of combat boot designed for use in jungle warfare or in hot, wet, and humid environments where a standard leather combat boot would be uncomfortable or unsuitable to wear. Jungle boots have vent holes in the instep and sometimes a canvas upper to aid in ventilation and drainage of moisture.
Chuck Taylor All-Stars or Converse All Stars is a sneaker manufactured by Converse. Initially developed as a basketball shoe in the early 20th century, its design has remained largely unchanged since its introduction. The shoe consists of a stitched upper portion, and a toe cap and outsole usually made of rubber. Although Chuck Taylors are made of various materials such as leather or suede, the original and most widely known version is made from cotton canvas. The innovative detail of the original shoe was the "loose lining" of soft canvas that was intended to provide flexibility and prevent blisters.
Skechers USA, Inc. is an American multinational footwear and apparel company. Headquartered in Manhattan Beach, California, it was founded in 1992 and is the third largest footwear brand in the United States.
Keds is an American brand known for its canvas shoes with rubber soles. Founded in 1916 by U.S. Rubber, its original shoe design was the first mass-marketed canvas-top sneaker. The brand was sold to Stride Rite in 1979, which was acquired by Wolverine World Wide in 2012. Since February 2023, Keds has been owned and operated by Designer Brands.
Sperry or Sperry Top-Sider is an American brand of boat shoe designed in 1935 by Paul A. Sperry. Sperrys, or Top-Siders, were the first boat shoes introduced into the boating and footwear markets. Until January 2024, the Sperry brand was owned by Wolverine World Wide and is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. It is currently owned by Authentic Brands Group, with the North America operations licensed to Aldo group.
Nike Grind is Nike's collection of recycled materials that is composed of pre-consumer manufacturing scraps, recycled post-consumer shoes from the Reuse-A-Shoe program, and unsellable footwear. The purpose of Nike Grind is to eliminate waste in line with the tenets of sustainable fashion practices and close the loop on Nike's product lifecycle. Materials recycled include rubber, foam, fiber, leather and textile blends, which are separated and ground into granules.
Veldskoene ("FELT-skoona") or colloquially vellies ("FELL-ys") are South African walking shoes made from vegetable-tanned leather or soft rawhide uppers attached to a leather footbed and rubber sole by a method known as stitchdown construction, done without tacks or nails.
Costume National is an Italian fashion house, founded in 1986 by Ennio Capasa, creative director, and his brother Carlo Capasa, CEO. Costume National's head office is located in Milan, Italy. The company produces clothing under the brands Costume National, Costume National Homme and C’N’C as well as scents including The Trilogy, Scent Gloss, Scent Cool Gloss, Intense, 21, and Homme.
Hidesign is a leather goods manufacturer based in Pondicherry, India. In 2018, the company had operations in 24 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Kenya, United Arab Emirates, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand and Sri Lanka. The leather goods segment of Hidesign contributes to 160 crore of revenue.
Feiyue is a Chinese shoe brand founded in Shanghai owned by Dafu Rubber Co., Ltd. The brand was acquired by Feiyue International, a subsidiary of BBC International LLC in 2014.
FEIT is an Australian shoe and accessories brand based in New York City. Founded in 2005. Feit is owned and operated by brothers Tull and Josh Price. FEIT products are handmade using natural materials.
Adidas Parley is a collection of clothing and footwear originated from the collaboration of German multinational company Adidas and Parley for the Oceans, an organization that addresses environmental threats towards the oceans, through plastic pollution.
Rothy's is an American direct-to-consumer company which designs and sells shoes and accessories. Rothy's was initially founded in 2012 and launched in 2016 by Stephen Hawthornthwaite and Roth Martin as a women's shoe company in San Francisco. It has since expanded with handbags and a men's line.
Cariuma is a Brazilian footwear brand founded in 2018. The company's shoes are marketed as being produced in a sustainable manner using organic products like bamboo and cotton to make environmentally friendly footwear.