In January 1918, the bankrupt estate of a Sao Paulo bank was bought by the Portuguese entrepreneur Antonio Pereira Ignacio. Among the properties acquired, there was Fábrica de Tecidos Votorantim, which was the largest textile factory in the interior of São Paulo.

It was in the looms of this factory, in the cotton bales and by the tireless hands of workers and workers that the company’s history began. In 1918, Brazil was a country to be built, only three decades ago it had abolished slavery and proclaimed the Republic, and longed for a future that would place it among the important nations of the world. It took courage to risk business, and this was a mark of Antonio Pereira Ignacio.

In 1925, Votorantim started to count on the work of the young Pernambuco José Ermírio de Moraes, from a family dedicated to sugar mills, but who took new courses, studied in the United States and settled in São Paulo.

He had married Helena Pereira Ignacio, the daughter of Antonio and Lucinda, the same year.

The 1920s were booming under the leadership of Antonio Pereira Ignacio and José Ermírio de Moraes, the newest managing director of the fabric factory.

In a scenario of economic and political changes, Votorantim responds to the needs of Brazil, diversifying its portfolio and expanding its operations in the Southeast of the country. In the 1930s, the Nitro Química Brasileira Company was inaugurated in São Paulo; the Siderúrgica Barra Mansa, in Rio de Janeiro; and a large cement factory in the interior of São Paulo, the Santa Helena Cement Factory, which would bring to Brazil a brand still alive in the memory of the Brazilian: Cement Votoran.

All this in a context of global economic crisis after the fall of the New York Stock Exchange in 1929, causing the Brazilian economy to suffer a major shock in its main export product, coffee. As a result, there is a need to internally produce everything that we previously had an easy way of importing – one of the axes of the buoyancy of Brazilian industrialization in the 1930s.

In addition, the so-called Revolution of 1930 puts an end to the Old Republic, and puts Getulio Vargas in power.

In the 1940s, Votorantim started the movement that would make it a company with a significant presence in Brazil. Despite the economic difficulties generated by the Second World War (1939-1945), the company continued its expansion and inaugurated important factories in the country. The Poty Cement Factory, in Paulista, Pernambuco, in 1942, marked the entry of the company into the Brazilian Northeast.

In a continuation of the expansion movement of the previous decade, Votorantim now arrives in the South of the Country, inaugurating in 1954 what would be known as the largest cement factory in Latin America, Portland Cement Company Rio Branco, in Paraná.
In 1955, the inauguration of Companhia Brasileira de Alumínio (CBA), born as the largest Brazilian factory at the time, was a major milestone for Votorantim and Brazil.

To make CBA’s project viable, Votorantim would need to start a project that has proved to be sustainable over the years – the construction of hydroelectric power plants to be energetically independent. With this begins another important story.

Amid the economic and political turmoil of the Military Dictatorship, this is a decade in which the company seeks to strengthen the national industry. It was in 1969, Votorantim inaugurated Cia Mineira de Metais, the Group’s first zinc industry.

The 1970s were marked by the oil crisis, which greatly boosted the value of barrel prices.
Indústrias Votorantim, thanks to its investments in energy self-sufficiency, can face the period and gain competitive advantage.

In 1977, Votorantim took control of the Itaú Portland Cement Company, with factories in five states: MG, MS, RJ, PR and BA.

At the end of the decade of the 70, instability in the national territory grew and the dissatisfaction of the population with the military regime, including the business class. In 1978, Votorantim’s leaders signed the “Document of Eight”, signed by eight big businessmen asking for the country’s political opening

The 1980s show Votorantim’s investment to diversify its business once again. The company entered the pulp and paper sector in 1988 with the inauguration of VCP and, a year later, in the orange juice branch, with Citrovita.

Also in the 1980s we saw the first steps towards the company’s internationalization, with the inauguration of the first maritime posts outside the country.

Banco Votorantim, created in 1988 as a Distributor of Securities, opened in 1991 its operations for the external public with investment and capital financing actions.

Votorantim Metais (VM) and Votorantim Energia (VE) were born in Votorantim (Votorantim Metais) and Votorantim Energia (VE), the most important holding company in the 1990s. 1996; Votorantim Cement in 1998.

The year 2001 is marked by the entry of the 3rd generation of the Ermírio de Moraes Family in charge of business. In a now globalized economy, the internationalization of business becomes an important goal, which has been achieved, leading Votorantim to maintain operations in 24 countries around the world today.

The initial mark of internationalization is the acquisition of the Saint Marys cement plant in Canada. In the 2000s new business areas were also created: Votorantim Siderurgia in 2008; the merger of Aracruz Celulose with VCP gave birth to Fibria in 2009; and in 2012 Citrosuco is born, a joint venture between Citrovita and Citrosuco, until then belonging to the Fischer Group.

In 2002, another key action marks this decade: the creation of the Votorantim Institute, with the objective of aligning, strengthening and qualifying the social actions of Votorantim.

From the protocol signed in 2012 between the Government of the State of São Paulo and Votorantim, the Legacy of Waters is born – Votorantim Reserve, the largest private Atlantic Forest reserve in the country. The project shows the pioneering nature of Votorantim, when already in the 1950s, when the understanding of environmental issues was still insipid, it already saw the need for conservation of water resources and protection areas.

Votorantim is preparing to celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2018. And to mark its centenary, right now, it has chosen the cause Education to leave an even greater legacy for Brazil. Investments in the Votorantim Partnership for Education Program of the Votorantim Institute have been expanded and have shown a positive impact in the municipalities in which it operates.

Today, as portfolio manager, the company maintains 42,000 employees and operations in 23 countries.

The future, always under construction, remains in the innovation and opening of new businesses.

Votorantim has taken an important step towards the diversification of its energy matrix and the generation of another source of clean energy, with cutting-edge and innovative technology. At the beginning of May 2017, the first Votorantim wind turbine in Piauí was set up. This milestone is part of the company’s entry into wind power generation, with an estimated investment of R $ 1.13 billion in the construction of seven wind farms in the Northeast of Brazil.

Also in 2017, Votorantim and Arcelor Mittal Brasil signed an agreement involving their long steel operations in Brazil. Votorantim Siderurgia becomes a subsidiary of ArcelorMittal Brasil and Votorantim holds a minority interest in the capital of ArcelorMittal Brasil.