Why Melissa’s Possession Sandal Could Be the Key to Grendene’s Overall Sustainability Goals

Melissa and its parent company Grendene are doubling down on their sustainability efforts.

In fact, the Brazilian footwear brand, which is entirely vegan, has unveiled plans to further invest in its sustainable practices across its product offering, especially its best-selling Possession sandal.

Carlos Andre Carvalho, sustainability manager at Grendene, told FN in an interview that these plans include aiming to include more recycled, post-consumer materials and improve the percentage of biomaterials, such as rice and coconut waste, in its production across all of Melissa’s product range.

“In 2022, we launched 32 new styles with sustainable production elements, even incorporating new materials like algae in the production of some,” Carvalho said. “Melissa has sent zero industrial waste to landfills since 2016 and reuse 100 percent of our water waste in our production cycle.”

As for the Possession sandal, which reached a pop culture high in the 1990s, Grendene has continued to evolve the style to meet its overall sustainability goals. In 2020, the label improved upon the style’s sustainable attributes by using 25 percent renewable materials and plant-based raw material, certified by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Since then, Melissa has achieved its goal of producing the Possession sandal with 100 percent recycled, post-consumer materials. And in 2022, Melissa also scored a 30 percent reduction in CO2eq emissions for its iconic sandal, officially making the Possession carbon neutral, and had the style certified “Climate Pledge Friendly” by Amazon.

Looking at production, Grendene said all of Melissa’s shoes are made in its 11 factories, which generate more than 16,000 jobs locally in Brazil. These factories rely on the company’s certified 100 percent clean and renewable electrical energy, including a solar energy system powering the Sobral, Ceará facilities. Grendene’s factory in Farroupilha also recently installed 208 photovoltaic modules, the company added.

What’s more, in 2022, Grendene noted it began planning for a new factory in Crato, which will include a solar plant to self-generate approximately 34 percent of the energy consumed on-site, while also providing better thermal comfort for employees. Carvalho added that the company’s goal is to finish the build out of this new factory and the photovoltaic system by September.

Looking ahead, Carvalho said the company is focused on meeting its short term (one year) benchmark KPIs, which includes reducing carbon emissions. “Each pair of Melissa shoes have a low carbon emission of 300 grams per pair; our lowest number yet,” Carvalho added. “Last year, we reduced our carbon emission by 20 percent compared to 2021. Ultimately, Grendene and Melissa are committed to our sustainability journey and intend to continue to put our plans into action and make a real difference.”