NEW YORK—Next week’s International Vision Expo East will feature a free 2008 Fashion Panel on Friday, April 11 from 1 to 3 p.m.

The panel is geared for ECPs and retailers looking to gain insider insights into the trends that drive eyewear product development and sales. Attendees can learn key tips to position and sell eyewear as a fashion purchase and discover what the must have eyewear styles are for 2008 and what’s in the pipeline for 2009, according to an announcement from International Vision Expo.

The panel facilitator will be Rene Soltis, director of training and education for The Vision Council. Other panelists will include: David Duralde, designer and VP of creative development for Kenmark; Dr. Tim Fox, owner of Fox Optical, a high-end optical boutique in Pennsylvania; Karen Giberson: Accessories Council president; Charla Krupp, fashion and beauty editor, stylist, and author of How Not To Look Old, and Sam Morgenstern, optician and multi location manager of the Optical Shoppe of the Princeton Eye Group, a practice in Princeton N.J.