michelabella
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Brazil's Newest Billionaire Has Gisele To Thank As He Joins Forbes List Of The World's Richest
For many Brazilians, the name Grendene means footwear. Brazil’s largest shoemaker was named after its founders, twin brothers Alexandre and Pedro Grendene Bartelle, who set up the company in 1971 in the southern Brazilian city of Farroupilha, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Today publicly-traded Grendene S.A. is known for its shoes made of PVC and EVA and endorsed by the likes of supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who in 2002 partnered with the company to launch her own line of affordable flip-flops, Ipanema Gisele Bundchen, a success both in Brazil and abroad. Her flip-flops compete with the well known Havaianas brand, also from Brazil.
Bundchen’s jelly sandals sell as much as 25 million pairs annually and accounted for more than 60% of Grendene’s annual exports of about $250 million last year. As Brazil’s growing middle class experienced plenty of access to credit over the last decade, the country’s shoemakers already control the vast domestic market. Selling its products overseas was just a natural choice for many companies, including Grendene.
forbes
For many Brazilians, the name Grendene means footwear. Brazil’s largest shoemaker was named after its founders, twin brothers Alexandre and Pedro Grendene Bartelle, who set up the company in 1971 in the southern Brazilian city of Farroupilha, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Today publicly-traded Grendene S.A. is known for its shoes made of PVC and EVA and endorsed by the likes of supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who in 2002 partnered with the company to launch her own line of affordable flip-flops, Ipanema Gisele Bundchen, a success both in Brazil and abroad. Her flip-flops compete with the well known Havaianas brand, also from Brazil.
Bundchen’s jelly sandals sell as much as 25 million pairs annually and accounted for more than 60% of Grendene’s annual exports of about $250 million last year. As Brazil’s growing middle class experienced plenty of access to credit over the last decade, the country’s shoemakers already control the vast domestic market. Selling its products overseas was just a natural choice for many companies, including Grendene.
forbes
