Veja (means look in Portuguese) is a French footwear and accessories brand founded in 2004. Veja's products are made with organic cotton, natural rubber, leather and recycled plastic bottles.
History
The business began expanding into the children's trainer scene, with the launch of Veja small.[2]
In 2008, the company began its expansion to London, opening its studio there.[3] Through time, the company has released a wide variety of different products and styles, .[4][5][6][7][8]
, 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.[9] With the launch of the film Once upon a Forest, by French director Luc Jacquet, Veja commemorated its launch by releasing a custom trainer.
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.[10] As of October 2018, Veja supplied its shoes to 1,800 retailers in 45 countries. They sold 550,000 pairs of shoes, generating US$21 million in revenue in 2017.[11] In 2020, Veja employed between 180 and 190 people.[12]
Marni and Veja collaborated on sneakers released in March 2022.[13]
Materials
Veja trainers and accessories are made of organic cotton, wild rubber from the Amazon,[14] vegetable-tanned leather, and recycled plastic bottles.
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.[11]
Social responsibility
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.[15]
Veja footwear and accessories are transported by ship from Brazil to Le Havre in France, where they are then taken to Paris by boat.[16]
Awards and honours
Veja won The Guardian Sustainable Business Award in the supply chain category,[17] and The Observer in association with Vogue UK Ethical Award in the fashion category.[18]
External links
References
- VEJA is growing VEJA, retrieved 17 July 2023^
- Veja Trainers 23 September 2011^
- Thread - Features Veja BBC, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- Veja Spring/Summer 2009 SPMA Collection Highsnobiety.com, 1 February 2009, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- Kate Carter. Buy of the day | Life and style | guardian.co.uk Guardian, 31 August 2010, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- Serian. Veja for Merci Canvas Sneakers Selectism.com, 7 January 2010, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- Veja Shoes Launches Chrome-Free Suede and Wild Rubber Shoes for Winter (Photos) TreeHugger, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- Centre Commercial by Veja - Frame Magazine - The Great Indoors Framemag.com, 15 February 2011, retrieved 20 March 2011^
- The Guardian Green Crush The Guardian, 31 March 2013^
- Alex Warner. We Found Meghan Markle's Insanely Comfortable Sneakers — Here's Where to Buy Them People, 29 October 2018^
- Andrea Lo. Would you pay more for sustainable sneakers? CNN, 29 October 2018^
- Veja's Sébastien Kopp Calls for Transparency and Ecological Balance in Fashion Hypebeast, 1 June 2020, retrieved 27 August 2020^
- Jean Palmieri. Veja Pairs Up With Marni; Tommy Hilfiger Enters The Metaverse; Nicki Minaj Fronts Marc Jacobs Campaign; Stanley Korshak Opens Cesare Attolini Shop Women’s Wear Daily, March 4, 2022^
- Lucy Siegle. Bia Saldanha's innovation: natural rubber The Guardian, 8 August 2010^
- VEJA - Sustainability Rating - Good on You^
- Mad Men Style The Daily Telegraph, 4 February 2011^
- Veja Ethical Passion for Footwear The Guardian, 31 May 2012^
- The Observer Ethical Awards Vogue.co.uk, 31 May 2012^