Just want to buy a pair of Havaianas right now? Havaianas.
When you’re longing for the feel of the islands, there are several things you can use to evoke the tropical vibe: wear a flowery sarong or board shorts, tuck a flower behind your ear, pour yourself an icy pina colada with one of those little paper umbrellas, throw off your shoes and put some flip-flops on your feet and feel the warm sun and the balmy breeze on your face. Aaah.
Whether you call them sandals, slippers, thongs, slip-slops, slippers, or jandals, nothing says “surf and sun” like a pair of flip-flops. And in the world’s summer capital, Brazil, the ‘jandals’ of choice are Havaianas (pronounced ah-vai-YAH-nus). They are so popular in that country that any sort of thongs are called Havainas.
Kim Kardashian out strolling in her Havaianas
An homage to the tropical mecca called Hawaii (Havaianas means Hawaiians in Portuguese), each sandal is actually a limited edition piece. Every design is in production for one season only so each printed pair is actually something quite rare and a collector’s item from the land of carnaval, capoeira, and caipirinha.
Havaianas are one of the oldest brands of flip-flops in the world, having been manufactured in Brazil by Sao Paulo Alpargatas S.A. since 1962. Inspired by zori, the traditional Japanese sandals made with rice straw soles and fabric straps, the soles were imprinted with a textured rice pattern. And of course, since they’re made in Brazil, they’re manufactured of pure rubber based on a secret and patented formula that turns the sandals marshmallowy-soft, bouncy, ultra-flexible, and superbly durable. One year after they started, Havaianas was making nine pairs of sandals a second. Their success spawned a whole collection of spin-offs and that resulted in an ad campaign launched in 1970 claiming that Havaianas are “The Real Ones” because they don’t lose their shape, they don’t smell, and the straps don’t get loose.
Fashion Princess Ashley Olsen takes the day off in her Havaianas
By 1990, almost everyone wears Havaianas. The Havaianas bring an upbeat mood to everyone’s step and they’re seen on the feet of many prominent Brazilians like Malu Mader, Bebero, Hortencia, and Luana Piovani, which made them ultra-cool in Brazil. The 1990s were the decade of development for the flip-flops. The Havaianas Top, with the colored part up, created sandals of completely one color. Then different prints started pouring out of the factory and little kids were able to get onto the ‘Havies’ bandwagon, too. By 1998, the iconic Brazilian World Cup model with the small Brazilian flag was introduced and the world invasion begins.
In 2003, Havaianas were part of the Oscar giveaway bag and many celebrities were introduced to the joys of the butter-soft sandals. Their place on the glitterati roadmap of Rodeo Drive was ensured when J. Stern created a special edition sandal with an 18 karat gold finish, encrusted with diamonds. Talk about beachcomber chic!
Alpargatas now offers the jandals in a wide range of colors, styles, and levels of thicknesses. Havaianas are seen on fashion runways worldwide in both its classic, simple, unadorned styles or in their trendy girly-glam Swarovski-encrusted creations. The sandals are made in very classic, simple, and low styles for men, in funky and pretty prints and colors for women in varying heights from low, mid, and high, wedge-like heels that could swing either way from the mall or the beach, and bright, fun design combos for children.
Havaianas are Sophia Bush's flip-flops of choice
Seen on almost every celebrity casual foot from Jessica Simpson, Dakota Fanning, to the “Queer Eye” guys, ‘Havies’ have taken the US by storm so the rest of the world should be a roaring success. As one distributor says, “We just say to people, ‘Try them on and I promise you’ll walk off in them.’ That’s been our drive: get them into their first pair and you’ll have a customer for life.”
In 2009, the first Havaianas concept store in the world, the 3,220-square-foot Espaco Havaianas opens in Sao Paolo on Rua Oscar Freire in the Jardins. The only store in the world that offers the most complete line of sandals and an exclusive new collection of bags, towels, key rings, pins, and socks. it offers a rainbow selection of the 350 models and boasts a place where you can personalize your flip-flops as you please, with soccer balls or other popular icons. The super cool ‘Hawaiian stalls’ where the customization is done with your choice of soles, straps and pins that are applied on the straps make a truly original collector’s item.
The Brazilian factory produces about 190 million pairs a year, with 150 million sold in Brazil alone. That’s a lot of scrumptious, butter-soft rubber for the feet!
Havaianas can be purchased online at www.havaianas.com and in the United States at us.havaianas.com and also through specialized Havaianas stores worldwide.
Purchase your own pair of Havaianas right now!
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