HAWTHORN, Australia —Luxottica Group opened a new concept store in this Melbourne suburb on July 21, with interactive features company officials said may also be used in the U.S. and other global markets.

The new location, called OPSM Eye Hub, opened as part of Luxottica’s OPSM Australian retail segment. The 6,000-square-foot store showcases more than 2,000 “unique” SKUs of ophthalmic frames and sunwear, according to Luxottica. It includes an Oakley Air Simulation machine so customers can check various sunglass styles’ wind resistance; 41 touch screens that serve as both mirrors and cameras, allowing consumers to photograph themselves wearing different eyewear styles for posting on social media sites; and a machine that can replicate sun glare on snow or water to check the power of sun lenses.

A Luxottica announcement describes the new store as “a retail outlet where every customer dictates and personalizes his or her own shopping experience.”


The Eye Hub features the largest product range of any Luxottica store in the world, according to the company, including the largest selection of premium eyewear as well as the largest choice of Ray-Ban and Vogue branded merchandise, and “the largest range of children’s glasses in [the] Southern Hemisphere, if not the world.”

The store, designed in the shape of an eye, includes an in-store lab.

Andrea Guerra, Luxottica’s chief executive officer, said the company’s long-term goal is for the Eye Hub concept to be adapted globally; plans call for more stores using the format to open in Australia in the next two to three years, with additional locations possible in the future in key markets such as the U.S., China and the U.K.

A Luxottica spokesman told VM the company expects to open up to 15 stores outside Australia over the next two to three years, although there are no formal plans for the U.S. at present. He added that Luxottica is also likely to roll out some elements of the new retail concept to its existing store formats in the U.S. and other markets.

Said Guerra, “With the features the new store concept has to offer consumers, quite simply it sets new standards for international retailing. Naturally, we also believe this will be the next step in eyewear retailing in particular, and look forward to bringing this concept to consumers around the world.”