In order to help you better understand every in and out of eyewear, 20/20 strives to inform our readers of the significance of eyewear for men, women, Millennials and GenEYE. A deep understanding of eyewear offers the opportunity to provide ideal selling tips for opticians, keeping them up to date with the latest trends in eyewear, all compiled into our unique Seller’s Guide. This year, we reached out to some credible eyewear experts to find out what it takes to master eyewear in some of the most popular niche categories. From designers to executives, these eyewear professionals open up about some of the most important aspects within eyewear, allowing us to visualize the process that takes place behind the lenses.
To know eyewear is to love it. When you start to acknowledge the intricate yet subtle details, shapes, colors and styles, you see that it is so much more than just creating a basic, functional frame. You begin to admire designers for their attention to detail and consideration for the variety of customers they aim to please. “Fashion in general is iterative,” says eyewear designer Blake Kuwahara. “It’s about the subtle nuances, craftsmanship, quality, attention to little details, exclusivity and providing something unexpected.” Kuwahara is a firm believer in meticulously creating a spectacular product, as he also designs all of the packaging, cases, displays and accessories for his self-named eyewear collection. Presentation clearly goes far beyond the frame.
One of the key factors in the fashion industry is staying up to date, and that doesn’t stop at eyewear. Although there are some styles that withstand the ever-changing trends, there is always something new to look for. Before you even consider creating a frame, you must know exactly what your customers want. “Today’s luxury consumers are very demanding,” states Eric Domege of Christian Roth. “They are unique individuals and expect trend-setting eyewear combined with attention to detail and craftsmanship.” Christian Roth has always created frames that are a beautiful addition to what’s in style, all while keeping in mind the importance of quality. Their upcoming Haute Maroquinerie Collection features frames covered in a variety of skins, all hand-tooled in France.
As the unique production of eyewear evolves, the industry itself becomes more interesting. The concept of supply and demand is in full force as designers are eager to create the next best thing for customers who insist on having it. Eyewear finds amazing ways to reveal a customer’s individuality; therefore, having just a single pair seems unheard of. “What’s fun about the eyewear industry is the fact that consumers are discovering the fact that they can—like footwear and clothing—have multiple pairs of eyewear that are occasion-specific,” says David Maddocks, CMO and GM of Business Development at Cole Haan. Although it is easy to lust over a beautiful frame with unique color, texture and shape, we must always give special recognition to the frames that do their job well, that is, improving a patient’s vision. Considering again the evolution of eyewear production, designers have gone above and beyond to create the most durable, long-lasting, clear, quality lenses for both ophthalmic and sun frames. Vuarnet, a sunwear company based in France, specializes in mineral lenses for their variety of different frames that come in multiple shapes and tints. The mineral lens offers a significantly high resolution and level of protection, while also improving depth perception, contrast and color definition. “There is no question that the best lenses are mineral glass, twice as high performance than polycarbonate, CR39, nylon Trivex or other plastic lenses,” says U.S. CEO of Vuarnet, Lucio Lozza, “Mineral glass with the right AR treatment and color makes a huge difference in clarity of vision, performance and durability.” Vuarnet’s new Blue Polarized, for example, blocks 90 percent of infrared light to better protect the eyes.
Although it may be hard to believe, there was a point where the only reason to wear eyewear was to improve your vision. Thankfully, those days are dead and gone. Eyewear is as much of a fashion statement as any pair of shoes or handbag. As Rem Eyewear creative director Nicolas Roseillier puts it, “Eyewear started off as a medical device, and now it’s also an in-demand fashion accessory. I love the versatility of eyewear and how its purpose has evolved over the years.” Rem Eyewear is the leader in this global collaboration that has created SPINE Optics, an incomparable collection that brings a new level of functional technology to eyewear. SPINE is described as “eyewear with a backbone,” fitting any face shape or head size and automatically retracts when removed from the face due to its dual springs and spun wire cable.
Eyewear is universal. Much of its production takes place overseas, and the appreciation for a pair of quality frames is shared worldwide. Designers such as Cynthia Shapiro, vice president and founder of Cinzia Designs, are moving toward new ventures and working to create more factories right here in the United States. “Having a factory here in the U.S. is going to allow us to show opticians all over the country what goes into making a quality pair of acetate frames,” says Shapiro. “To me, that means opticians will be better prepared to explain the benefits of quality eyewear to their patients, and even explain the costs that go into quality manufacturing.” Cinzia Designs, a division of Europa International, strives to create high-quality designer eyewear, which all stemmed from Shapiro’s dream to find a more stylish alternative to the reading glasses found at local drugstores. With our September 15 Seller’s Guide issue rapidly approaching, we hope our readers gain an even better understanding of the various issues discussed AND in our always informative monthly Seller’s Guide features throughout 2016. With the strength and knowledge right here at 20/20, fueled by the insight from expert voices, we hope to influence a prosperous and powerful future in optical for all of our readers.
