Leonisa

Leonisa
Private
Industry Apparel and Fashion
Founded November 20th, 1956
Founder Joaquin Eduardo Urrea and Julio Ernesto Urrea
Headquarters Colombia
Area served
Worldwide
Products women's inner-wear, swimwear, men's underwear, shapewear, bras, panties, sports underwear, post-surgical compression garments
Website http://www.leonisa.com/

Leonisa is a global company that specializes in the manufacturing and commercialization of women's lingerie, shapewear, swimwear and men’s underwear.[1]

History

Leonisa was established on November 20th, 1956 by the Urrea brothers, Joaquin Eduardo and Julio Ernesto, who focused their interest on specializing in women’s innerwear.[2] After establishing the first manufacturing plant, they created the “The Diamond Point Bra”, product which made them pioneers of South America’s intimate apparel.[3][4]

The retail sales channel was created in 1956 and consists of Leonisa Stores, Duty Free stores, Outlets, Hypermarkets, Department Stores and Specialized stores. As of today, there are retail stores in the United States, Spain, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal and Puerto Rico.[5]

In 1965, Leonisa built a manufacturing plant in Costa Rica to meet the demands of Central American markets.[6] In 1989, Leonisa entered the European market targeting Spain first and later expanding to the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Italy.[7]

In 1993, Leonisa launched the “Magic Up” bra using Push Up technology.[8] The same year, they created catalog sales channel to sell Leonisa garments directly to customers on a monthly basis. As of today, the catalog sales channel is in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Spain, Colombia, Peru, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Chile, Guatemala and Puerto Rico.[9]

Through its swimwear category, Leonisa has sponsored Miss Colombia since 2007. In addition, Leonisa sponsored Miss Panama in 2009 and 2010. Each year Leonisa develops swimwear campaigns that are focused on Miss Colombia.[10]

In June 2009, Leonisa introduced their Online Store initially intended for the U.S. and Canadian markets. Currently, the Webstore has presence with local distribution in over 12 countries and sells to over 120 countries.[11]

Products

Women’s Intimate Apparel

Since the establishment, Leonisa has focused on women’s innerwear and currently has product lines for shapewear, bras and panties. Within each category of women’s innerwear are different collections that offer benefits to meet specific needs, like postpartum and post-surgical shapewear, push up bras, sports underwear, etc.

In 2009, Leonisa introduced a brand that targets girls and women between the ages of 14 and 25, offering versatile designs and colors which differ from the adult collection.[12]

In 2012, the company launched a new line of smart fabric Shapewear and Post-Surgical Compression Garments.[13]

Swimwear

Launched in the 90’s, the swimwear line offers different options and benefits for each type of consumer: basic swimwear, one-piece swimsuits, control and slimming swimwear, push up swimsuit tops and cover ups, etc.[14]

Men’s Underwear

Leonisa launched its first men underwear collection in 1975 under the Airell brand. In the 1980’s, this men’s line was re-branded as LEO.

Campaigns

Since 2005, Leonisa has partnered with leading health companies in a campaign against breast cancer that seeks to raise awareness among women about the importance of early detection.[15]

As a part of this campaign, they have developed educational brigades in schools, universities, shopping centers, etc. They have conducted 6 forums, every October for the last 6 years, aimed at the community and primary care physicians. Leonisa developed an app “Leonisa Takes Care of You” to remind women of the right time to do their breast self-exam.[16]

Awards & Publications

Throughout its history, Leonisa has been awarded with several distinguished awards as a recognition for the steps undertaken in business, social commitment and manufacturing.

Awards

2001 - Lyon Mode City, Best new design[17]

2006 - Antioquia's Shield, Gold Category[18]

2007 - Cromos Fashion Awards - Best Brand Runway[19]

2010 - Colombia Spain Award - Best Company of the Year[20]

Press

2010 - WWD Magazine – Celebrities Energize Shapewear Market[21]

2012 - The Doctors TV Show – Leonisa Shapewear

2014 - Sports Illustrated - Nina Agdal models the latest swimwear styles for Leonisa[22]

Models

Some of Leonisa´s supermodels:

Top Model Nationality
Isabeli Fontana Brazil
Natasha Barnard South Africa
Nina Agdal Denmark
Tamara Lazic Serbia
Leticia Zuloaga Spain
Lauren Mellor South Africa
Sylvia Geersen Holland

References

  1. 100empresarios (2009-02-18), Joaquin Eduardo Urrea Urrea - 100 Empresarios 100 Historias, retrieved 2016-11-24
  2. "Leonisa. Los visionarios". www.dinero.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  3. 100empresarios (2009-05-12), Julio Ernesto Urrea Urrea - 100 Empresarios 100 Historias, retrieved 2016-11-24
  4. "Con solo 15 pesos se creó Leonisa". www.elcolombiano.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  5. Mathews, Juan Carlos (2012-08-14). "LEONISA: de Colombia para el mundo | Escala Global". Escala Global. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  6. Ramírez, Carlos Enrique (2006-03-31). "INTERNACIONALIZACION DE LEONISA: UNA EMPRESA COLOMBIANA DE ROPA INTERIOR". Estudios Gerenciales (in Spanish). 0 (98): 25–56. ISSN 0123-5923.
  7. "La colombiana Leonisa mantiene el tipo en España: crece un 7% y alcanza los seis millones de euros". Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  8. "LEONISA 60 AÑOS: la historia del brassier en Colombia - Fashion Radicals". Fashion Radicals (in Spanish). 2016-08-02. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  9. "De Leona a Leonisa en 60 años". ElEspectador. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  10. "Concurso Nacional de Belleza ® - La Srta. Colombia® presente en Colombiamoda". www.srtacolombia.org. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  11. Litman, FashionNetwork.com, Tamara Gonzalez. "Prendas de control colombianas se imponen en la moda mundial". FashionNetwork.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  12. "TQM by Leonisa desfiló en ColombiaModa Perú 2010". Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  13. "Suck in Your Gut!". The Doctors. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  14. Ramírez, Carlos Enrique (2006-03-31). "INTERNACIONALIZACION DE LEONISA: UNA EMPRESA COLOMBIANA DE ROPA INTERIOR". Estudios Gerenciales (in Spanish). 0 (98): 25–56. ISSN 0123-5923.
  15. "La moda se une para luchar contra el cáncer de seno - Modo Rosa". Modo Rosa (in Spanish). 2014-08-13. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  16. "- Modo Rosa". Modo Rosa (in Spanish). 2014-08-13. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  17. "LEONISA CON PREMIO: - Archivo Digital de Noticias de Colombia y el Mundo desde 1.990 - eltiempo.com". eltiempo.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  18. www.elmundo.com. "Leonisa cumplió 50 años". www.elmundo.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  19. Prensa, Inexmoda. "Hoy se entregarán en Bogotá los Premios Cromos de la Moda". www.inexmoda.org.co. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  20. Tiempo, Casa Editorial El. "Primera edición de los Premios Colombia-España ya tiene ganadores". Portafolio.co (in Spanish). Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  21. Monget, Karyn (2010-04-19). "Celebrities Energize Shapewear Market". WWD. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
  22. Shore, Rebecca. "Nina Agdal models the latest swimwear styles for Leonisa and there are pictures of it". SI.com. Retrieved 2016-11-24.
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