Veja (brand)
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Footwear, accessories |
| Founded | 2004 |
| Founder | Sébastien Kopp, François-Ghislain Morillion |
| Headquarters | Paris , France |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Sébastien Kopp, François-Ghislain Morillion |
| Products | Footwear, accessories |
Number of employees | 180–190 (2020) |
| Website | www |
Veja—which means look in Portuguese—is a French brand specializing in footwear and accessories, established in 2004. The company’s products incorporate materials such as organic cotton, natural rubber, leather, and recycled plastic bottles.
History
Founded by Sébastien Kopp and François-Ghislain Morillion in 2004, Veja built its sustainable supply chain by collaborating directly with organic cotton producers and rubber harvesters in Brazil.
The brand made its debut in February 2005 at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, launching alongside a partnership with French designer Agnès b. By 2006, Veja had introduced its inaugural collection featuring vegetable-tanned leather and began organizing the Novo Mundo(S) photography exhibition in Paris.
In 2007, Veja teamed up with French fashion label Comptoir des Cotonniers to create the Veja + Christine Phung line, showcased at the Pompidou Centre Design Shop. That same year, the brand expanded its offerings to include children's sneakers under the name Veja small.
The opening of Veja’s London studio in 2008 marked a significant step in its global growth. Over subsequent years, the company diversified its product range and established collaborations with multiple partners.
In 2013, Veja unveiled a capsule collection inspired by aerial imagery of tropical forests, developed in collaboration with Professor Greg Asner. This launch coincided with the release of Luc Jacquet’s documentary film Once upon a Forest.
During an official visit to Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji in October 2018, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, was seen wearing Veja sneakers. By that time, the brand was distributing footwear to 1,800 retailers across 45 countries, having sold 550,000 pairs and achieved $21 million in revenue for 2017.
By 2020, Veja’s workforce numbered around 180 to 190 employees.
In March 2022, Veja partnered with Marni to release a collaborative sneaker collection.
Materials
Veja’s shoes and accessories are crafted using organic cotton, wild-harvested rubber from the Amazon, vegetable-tanned leather, and recycled plastic bottles.
The brand works closely with a cooperative of organic cotton farmers located in Northeast Brazil, supporting more than 320 families engaged in agroecological practices with guidance from the local NGO ESPLAR.
Since 2006, Veja has adopted vegetable tanning for its leather goods, substituting traditional chrome tanning—which is highly polluting—with natural tannins derived from acacia extracts.
The soles of Veja trainers feature waterproof mesh produced from recycled plastic bottles; each pair incorporates fibers made from three bottles collected off the streets of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and then processed accordingly.
Social responsibility
Veja is committed to environmentally sustainable and fair trade initiatives, collaborating with cooperatives and social organizations in both Brazil and France. Despite these efforts, the company has yet to release up-to-date social audit findings or secure certifications verifying its fair-trade claims.
The facility manufacturing Veja sneakers in southern Brazil complies with labor standards set by the International Labour Organization.
Finished footwear and accessories are transported from Brazil to Le Havre in France, then shipped by sea to Paris. The logistics operations are overseen by Ateliers Sans Frontières, a French social enterprise that supports workforce reintegration by offering training programs for unemployed individuals.
Awards and honours
Veja has been recognized with The Guardian Sustainable Business Award for excellence in supply chain management and received The Observer Ethical Award in the fashion category, presented in partnership with Vogue UK.