“Casa do Guilherme”

This article examines the case of the Guillaume family and their involvement in the development of a global fashion circuit between Paris and Rio de Janeiro in the nineteenth century. Their operation between the 1820s and the 1870s enhanced the fashion materialization connected to modern values. Contrary to the traditional framework for a nineteenth-century fashion circuit, where aesthetics and goods from Europe were highly valued by former Latin American colonies, the Guillaumes adapted their production process and their culture to Brazilian customs and demands and even adapted their last name, thus becoming “Guilherme.” Their connection to a former colonizer was not unilateral and led to the creation of a hybrid perspective after living in a host country for several years. This pioneering version of a “groundless fashion” was later explored by other shoe companies in Latin America and the Caribbean, such as Clarks and Bata.