The first pieces of glass were brought to Brazil by Pedro Alvares Cabral in 1500, who gave necklaces and rosaries to the Indians. Then, in 1549, Tomé de Souza practiced the barter with the natives: he traded a shipment of mirrors for Brazilwood.

Between 1624 and 1635, the Dutch invaders entered Pernambuco and four craftsmen started the first glass workshop in the country, manufacturing cups, bottles and windows. However, when the Dutchmen left the country, the workshop was closed.

Since then, much time has passed so that the glass started to be produced in Brazil again. The arrival of the Portuguese Royal Family in 1808 triggered the production of many things previously unknown in the country or imported. In 1810, Francisco Ignácio da Siqueira Nobre received a letter of authorization from regent D. João and was able to start the first glass producer company in Brazil, the Real Fábrica de Vidros da Bahia, in Salvador, which lasted until 1825.

In 1861, during the 1st National Exhibition of Natural and Industrial Products, glass appeared in the form of bottles, jars and globes for lamps. Shortly thereafter, in 1882, the second Brazilian glass industry, the Fábrica Esbérald – Companhia Fábrica de Vidros e Crystaes, was created, as a producer of packaging. In 1885, São Paulo received the Companhia Vidraria Santa Marina. Both factories begun the process for the complete success of glass.

After 57 years, a Portuguese businessman founded the Companhia Vidreira Nacional, Covibra. At the same time, Santa Marina created the Companhia Paulista de Vidro Plano (CPVP), which later became a partner of Covibra in order to reduce competition. Later, the merger of the two companies resulted in the creation of Indústrias Reunidas Vidrobrás in the early 1950s.

In the early 1950s, the first major glass companies began to emerge in Brazil, such as the Sebastian Pais de Almeida company, which controlled about 60% of the national distribution. The 1950s marked the great demand for glass in the furniture and construction industries.

In 1951, a small company named Santa Lúcia Cristais came into operation. Ten years later, the factory inaugurated the Vidros Blindex branch. In 1962, Santa Lúcia started operating in Caçapava, São Paulo, with the Companhia Produtora de Vidro (Providro).

In the early 1960s, there were three major glass manufacturers: Providro, Santa Marina and the UBV (Brazilian Glass Union), a company from São Paulo company established in 1957. These companies dominated the industry until the mid-1980s.