At 20/20 we’ve been playing around with this “young and young-at-heart” iWear category since the flip to a new millennium over eight years ago. And although we love having fun with the fact that we came up with the name iWear long before the iPod and iPhone (and we’ve been forever wondering when someone is going to finally seal the deal on licensed iWear from Apple) the real “issue” of defining and earmarking this viable segment of the frame market is the most important aspect for optical dispensers.

And that’s this: Eyewear is stepping up to the plate as far more than just a medical device, readily handy and faceable for corrective vision issues. It is, of course that... and more. And the “more” message is best delivered when the eyewear is appealing to a broad range
of consumer tastes and concerns in terms of branding, demographics, style and quality.

But that big, lazy dream about all those Baby Boomers waking up presbyopic and stumbling into an optical store demanding the latest, greatest eyewear just ain’t happening quite as fast as initially envisioned by many opti-optimists. That first wave of WWII-vet offspring seems to be piled up in headachy heaps underneath kiosks of cheap ready-made readers, intent on self-diagnosing which size of type they can read with junky spectacles while the security devise dangles on top of their noses directly in front of their hardening corneas.

The only factor that’s going to influence this bumbling swarm of Boomers (being one, I can say that) is their seeing a blur of younger generation eyeglass wearers looking terrific in great glasses... eyewear ever energized by new shapes, stylish colors, the brightest brands.
And, most importantly, glasses that set the scene by being SEEN.

That is what iWear is all about. It is eyewear that makes a statement about the wearer. When those Boomers see that all of those Gen X, Gen Y and Gen “I” wearers are on trend, you can be sure ALL generations of proud eyeglass wearers will be bolstering YOUR optical mission.