First of all, Grendene is one of the largest footwear manufacturers in the world. In other words, the company has exclusive technology for large-scale production aimed at all consumer audiences.
In this sense, the footwear giant owns major brands. Additionally, Grendene is responsible for licensing brands and names associated with celebrities and children's characters, incorporating such details into its own products.
Overall, the company's operations have several competitive advantages, including:
Vertical integration and proprietary, exclusive technology.
Economies of scale, efficiency, and versatility in production.
Aggressive marketing and globalization of strong brands.
Innovation and differentiated product development.
Potential increase in installed capacity with non-relevant investment.
Competitive costs and strong distribution logistics.
Solid capital structure and governance.
Company's business
The company's businesses and operations extend both in the Brazilian domestic market and abroad, exporting to over 100 countries. Through its products, the company reaches female, male, children's, and mass consumption audiences (classes A to E).
Male
Grendene's operations in the male segment are carried out through proprietary brands and representations. In the men's market, the company's brands are:
Grendene's male segment products are widely marketed in the national market. Rider flip-flops are considered one of the top 5 brands in the casual footwear segment.
In addition, the company's representations ensure the production and marketing of items such as:
Football Teams
Pop culture characters
Going beyond representation and mass operations in the Brazilian consumer market, through the Cartago brand, the company covers a segment different from the conventional. Cartago footwear has over 10 years of market presence, being used across various age groups.
Female
The line of female products extends similarly to the company's other operations. Through its original brands and licenses, the company operates with the following products:
Children's
In addition to operating by gender, that is, male and female, the company is one of the largest in the children's footwear segment. Grendene's prominence in this segment is of extreme relevance, being the largest in this field of operation.
To give an idea, the company's children's line is of extreme relevance, owning the following brands and representations:
Grendene's brand licensing grants the right to image for the commercial exploitation of products. Through a contract, the company acquires the image rights to establish and create attractive prints for consumption.
In the Brazilian market, this strategy is not exclusive to Grendene, but certainly, the company does it spectacularly. The creation and development of products using images held by other companies ensure a huge market reach.
In summary, its products have wide penetration in the children's market, evidenced by the popularity of the company's products. Many people do not even know exactly who they are buying products from, whether it's a sandal, a papete, or any other footwear segment, but nonetheless, the footwear is part of the Brazilian imagination regardless of class.
You probably had a Grendene product in your childhood. If you have children, you have already consumed a product from the company. Or if you have gifted a child in the family, it was certainly from Grendene (if it was a footwear). Based on these aspects, we can imagine the company's relevance in the footwear scenario in Brazil.
Melissa
As if all these factors were not enough, the company also has the Melissa brand, one of the largest and most established in the Brazilian market. Melissa is a reference among the company's products and holds licenses from J.Maskrey, Jason Wu, and Vivienne Westwood, among others.
Additionally, the sub-product of Grendene (i.e., Melissa) operates expansively through the franchise model Clube Melissa and the Melissa Showroom in Milan.
However, beyond all these factors, the brand has 4 concept stores:
Galeria Melissa in three locations:
A Casa Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro.
Mass Consumption and Ipanema
Clearly, the Ipanema brand is the main sales reference in mass consumption, that is, for all social classes.
In addition to the brands and representations, the company owns Ipanema, which has a huge penetration and consistency in the national consumer market.
Ipanema items are renowned and referenced in Brazil. Ipanema sells a concept behind its operations, with eye-catching images focused on audiences B and A.
Ipanema products are extremely innovative, featuring lines and segments that ensure an enviable brand value. The brand's launches focus on differentiation with cultural incentive programs featuring exclusive and limited collections.
Likewise, the company also has exclusive licenses for LOL, Avengers Assemble, Max Steel, among others.
Communication and Marketing
One of the company's strengths is its intensive Marketing strategy. Grendene always seeks to invest heavily in promoting its brands and products through advertisements and important fashion events.
Its operations include both cable and open TV channels, as well as online platforms like Spotify and YouTube. To bring fame and differentiation to the company's advertisements, Grendene establishes various partnerships with prominent names in the female imagination to stimulate consumption and the intention behind each advertising campaign.
Structure and logistics body
Grendene has 11 shoe factories located as follows in Brazil:
9 in the state of Ceará: 6 in the city of Sobral, 2 in Fortaleza, and 1 in Crato;
1 in Rio Grande do Sul in Farroupilha;
1 in Bahia in Teixeira de Freitas.
More than that, it also has a PVC Factory and a Distribution Center in Sobral-CE and a mold shop in Farroupilha-RS.
The installed production capacity is 250 million pairs/year, and in 2019 the production numbers were 1,408 new models.
This giant in the footwear sector sells its products through commercial representatives, distributors, direct exports, and through its subsidiary Grendene USA, Inc. (USA), reaching about 20,000 points of sale abroad and 65,000 in the Brazilian market.
The history of Grendene begins in 1971, when brothers Pedro and Alexandre Grendene founded Plásticos Grendene Ltda. in Farroupilha-RS. At that time, production was focused on wine jug screens.
Five years later, the company expanded its business to plastic parts aimed at the agricultural machinery and implements sector. It then began operations focused on footwear, pioneering the use of polyamide as raw material.
Interestingly, in 1979, the brothers revolutionized the company and fashion with the creation of the Melissa Aranha model, based on the strap sandals of fishermen from the French Riviera. As a result, the 1980s were marked by significant growth, with the creation of the Melissinha and the sandals Rider.
In 1990, the first manufacturing unit in Ceará was inaugurated in the city of Fortaleza. Soon after, it opened another factory in Ceará, now in Sobral, and in 1994, launched another brand: Grendha.
In 1997, manufacturing operations began in Crato-CE, totaling 3 units at the time. Already in the 21st century, Grendene fully entered the beach line with the launch of the Ipanema brand.
Seeking to enhance its visibility, the company partnered with model Gisele Bündchen, featuring the Melissa brand at the São Paulo Fashion Week event.
In 2005, Galeria Melissa was created on Oscar Freire street in São Paulo, and after two years, the company opened another industrial unit in Teixeira de Freitas-BA.
In 2008, the Company once again consolidated its trajectory through a partnership with British fashion icon Vivienne Westwood and Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid. More than that, it also launched the Ipanema G2B line in Berlin and created the Zaxy brand.
Subsequently, another unit was opened in Sobral in 2013, expanding production capacity. At the same time, the Melissa + Karl Lagerfeld collection was launched in New York. Grendene continues to enhance its visibility and consolidate its brands, creating Casa Ipanema in Rio de Janeiro and Galeria Melissa in London in 2014.
More recently, in 2016, Clube Melissa achieved the Franchising Excellence Seal from ABF for the fourth time with a high performance index.
