Morel Cottet is charting new territories with the NOMAD collection, using it to replace the Marius Morel line. NOMAD is trendy, colorful and distinctly European in styling and is all about attitude. Twenty ophthalmic styles are available, ranging from fully rimmed to semi-rimless to rimless designs in metal (including stainless steel), plastic and metal/plastic combinations. Shapes are primarily unisex with some gender specific designs and vary from extreme geometrics to subdued, modified forms—appealing to a wide range of style and prescription needs, including multi-focal lenses. Colors are bold with such options as peacock blue, terra cotta, grape and metallic tones. Most frames features flex spring hinges.

PHILOSOPHY: “We are extremely excited to partner with the Trump Organization. The timing is perfect. With Donald Trump’s long standing success as a prominent businessman and his recent accolades with his top ranked reality TV show, it’s clear that his popularity has reached enormous heights. He is the very definition of the American success story,” says Andrea Gluck, Eyewear Designs co-president. “Eyewear Designs has all of the qualities I look for in a business partner… drive, integrity, vision and an entrepreneurial spirit,” adds Donald Trump. “Eyewear Designs’ commitment to excellence is the reason we have forged this relationship.”

MARKETING: Merchandising materials include three-one place displays constructed of solid, contrasting colored wood, two countercards and a poster. Each frame comes with a brown leather case with an orange felt interior.

PRICE POINT: $$. For additional information, contact Marchon Eyewear, (800) 645-1300; web site: www.marchon.com

Luxottica Group introduces its first memory metal collection. Dubbed Memorize, each frame is made from an alloy of nickel and titanium. Memorize is tough enough to withstand even the most active wearers—each frame returns to its original shape despite bending and twisting, according to the company. The seven initial designs offer classic styling with a modern twist and range from vintage ovals to striking, modern rectangles in fully rimmed and rimless designs. The color palette includes eggplant, ruby, violet and camel. The second release scheduled for January 2006 is a scaled down version of ovals and geometrics designed for children and tweens, available in such colors as pink, blue, violet, bronze and gunmetal.

PHILOSOPHY: “Luxottica’s leading edge manufacturing technologies, master craftsmanship and design ingenuity, together with our commitment to customer care, enables us to take memory metal into a whole new realm of excellence,” says Pierre Fay, Luxottica senior vice president. “The creative imagery featured in our trade advertising and merchandising materials all emphasize our commitment to making Luxottica Memorize stand apart from other memory metal eyewear,” adds Vittorio Verdun, Luxottica director of marketing.

MARKETING: Merchandising materials include one- and six-place displays, countercard and take-one brochures.

PRICE POINT: $$. For additional information, contact Luxottica Group, (800) 422-2020; web site: www.luxottica.com

L’Amy takes a new spin on the Japanese art of paper folding in its Origa collection. Part of L’Amy’s Metro line, Origa is a tech-driven series created for modern, active men 40 years and older. The frames are cut from a single sheet of stainless steel and folded. Even the bridge, endpieces and screws are made using this process. The folding technology of Origa eliminates any possible breaking points especially during refitting. The result is a super-lightweight frame with no visible screws, giving the glasses a “light as air” feel. The flexible stainless-steel temples, fitted with rectilinear, ultra-thin earpieces, enhance the minimalism of the eyeglasses while making them more durable and comfortable. The lenses are also easy to assemble since they require no notching. To achieve this, the glasses use a system with eight holes of the same diameter and four screws. The two-in-one nut has a built-in nylon washer that makes assembly even quicker and also serves as a threadlocker, ensuring the eyeglasses hold up better over time.

PHILOSOPHY: “This is the exciting launch of a new brand. We totally rebuilt the collection to make the most of the Lunettes L’Amy brand. We emphasize design and technology overall,” says Agnes Bonnaventure, managing director of the L’Amy operational unit.

MARKETING:Merchandising materials include one-and two-place displays, countercards and posters. Each frame comes with a compact black rectangular case.

PRICE POINT: $$$. For additional information, contact
(800) USA-LAMY; web site: www.lamyamerica.com

Marchon Eyewear launches Power Rangers. Targeted to boys from three to 10, the initial collection contains two full-rimmed rectangular metals in the following colors—black hole, blue storm, crater and galaxy gunmetal. Elements from the cartoon such as the Power Rangers shield, sword and dinotransformer are incorporated into the frame designs. Each frame is equipped with spring hinges. Eye sizes are 43mm and 45mm with a 16mm bridge and temple lengths of 120mm and 125mm.

PHILOSOPHY:“Disney is one of the most recognized names in the world. The individual brands each have strong consumer reach. Following our incredible success with Disney Princess eyewear, Marchon is thrilled to launch the Disney Power Rangers eyewear line, which is Disney consumer products’ number-one selling boys’ property, across all lines of business,” says Jeff Stern, vice president/managing director Marchon brands. “Awareness of this brand is very high as a result of broad television programming and strong toy placement in all major entertainment retail businesses.”

MARKETING: A colorful, animated, three-panel Power Rangers countercard is available. Each frame comes with a blue case.

PRICE POINT: $$. For additional information, contact Marchon Eyewear, (800) 645-1300; web site: www.marchon.com