Yahoo Movies Eyewear’s Biggest Players Feeling Optimistic at Vision Expo West
At this year’s Vision Expo West — held at the Sands Expo Convention Center and the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino — the mood was optimistic among eyewear’s biggest players for the road ahead.
The show was bigger than ever, counting more than 380 exhibitors, and in spite of an uncertain economy, eyewear manufacturers are steadfast, evolving their sustainability programs, developing the latest in innovation and continuing to launch new brands.
More from WWD
EssilorLuxottica
“We have seen strong sales across North America,” said Ludo Ladreyt, chief commercial officer of EssilorLuxottica Wholesale NA. The COO reported that the luxury category has been a particularly strong performer this year, “underlining a robust consumer appetite for high-end eyewear. We also significantly grew our market share in the fast-fashion category after making substantial investments in our brands within the segment, including Vogue Eyewear and Arnette.”
Historically, the West show tends to tilt more optical and eye care rather than sun, and many executives saw big strides in the market. “Optical frames account for the most significant portion of our sales, which are beating pre-COVID-19,” Ladreyt said, adding, “Although our primary business is driven by optical resilience, our sun category remains very strong,” with demand currently at a 60 percent optical, 40 percent sun split, which “is aligned with previous periods.”
In terms of trends, eyewear is making a statement, much like fashion is.
“Overall, frames are bigger and bolder this season,” said Sherianne James, chief marketing officer of EssilorLuxottica Wholesale NA, pointing to a strong trend seen throughout the show floor. She highlighted several specific trends within the EssilorLuxottica stable including: Virtual Inspiration, Futurism, Refreshed Icons, Outdoor and Athleisure Lifestyle, Sustainability and Craftsmanship and Reinventing Archives.
“While there is continued interest in innovation, consumers also have a strong appreciation of iconic, timeless designs with a modern twist,“ James said, citing the Ray-Ban Mega Wayfarer and Clubmaster Slim as examples. “The Refreshed Icons and Reinventing Archives trends seen throughout our collections prove that time-honored concepts related to design, fashion, culture and society are still important to today’s consumer. A new generation of creatives are reinventing and reinterpreting legacy designs from heritage brands with a modern approach, making them relevant for younger Millennial and Gen Z customers, who make up more than half the market.”
Companies, of course, are mixing tradition with innovation as they work out the best product mix.
“We are in constant contact with our wholesale customers and share their feedback with our global brand and product development teams as they refine product collections,” James explained. Their product development journey for each collection takes about two years, starting with the design and market research team, which James said “closely follows global trends and draws inspiration from everything in the current environment, including social media, art, music, fashion, and architecture.”
Last year, EssilorLuxottica introduced Eyes on the Planet, which highlighted sustainability efforts around carbon neutrality, circularity and world sight, among others.
“Sustainability has grown from being a pillar of our organization to become a critical component that is woven into every aspect of our business strategy,” James said.
Updates to the program include reaching carbon neutrality in two of EssilorLuxottica’s home countries, Italy and France. In 2021, 75 percent of the electricity used by their sites in France, and 95 percent in Italy, came from renewable energy. The residual emissions of the company’s activities in Italy and France are compensated for by two reforestation projects in Agordo, Italy, and in the rural Le’an region of China, according to the company. “These projects are fostering biodiversity and socioeconomic development as well,” James said.
To tackle waste, EssilorLuxottica — the world’s largest eyewear manufacturer — has adopted a 4Rs approach, which includes researching, reducing the volume of materials in manufacturing and distribution processes, reusing and recycling raw materials and packaging.
“From a product perspective, we’ve introduced innovative bio-based materials into the portfolio of raw materials for all types of products, enabling the launch of specific sustainable collections for several of our brands, including Costa, Arnette, Armani, Burberry and Starck Eyes,” James said. And looking ahead, “more and more of our value chain will become sustainable. We are in it for the long haul and believe sustainability is something that can fit in at every level of the industry,” she said.
Safilo
Over at Safilo, which is celebrating 60 years in North America, the optical category has grown significantly.
“Women’s optical brands such as Kate Spade New York, Emozioni, [an owned brand of Safilo distributed exclusively in the U.S.] are some of the strongest performers year-to-date in North America,“ explained Francesco Rinaldi Ceroni, president and chief commercial officer of Safilo Group North America. “Carrera and Chesterfield [both owned brands, the latter distributed exclusively in North America] are resonating strongest with men.”
The company’s brands are its strongest assets, Ceroni said, citing record strong double-digit growth rates for Carrera and Polaroid. He also pointed to “the outstanding performance of Smith’s portfolio of sport and outdoor focused products,’ as well as licensed brands Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Kate Spade New York, David Beckham and Under Armour.
“We are particularly proud of the strong demand for our new launch of Carolina Herrera, supporting our strategy for a more diversified and balanced licensed portfolio,” he said, explaining that the Italian company is continuously “rebalancing” its brand portfolio.
Safilo signed Dsquared2 and Carolina Herrera in 2021 “which allowed us, starting from January 2022, to immediately strengthen our women’s proposition,“ Ceroni said of the Herrera band. Another new addition, a deal with one massive influencer Chiara Ferragni. “We wanted to create a new, leading and digitally boosted fashion eyewear brand that directly speaks to new generations. It represents a perfect fit in our brand portfolio and a significant opportunity for us to grow in the contemporary segment.”
To mark the milestone in North America, a massive campaign made its debut at the show celebrating “People, Product and Planet.” It stars several Safilo USA employees and sales team members. In line with the corporate purpose-led strategy, the new North American campaign is a “twist” on presenting definitions for important keywords like “Vision, Connect, Product, Service, and People,” commensurate with the company’s values and promise.”
Ceroni pointed out that Safilo’s digital transformation has reshaped its business. “Digitalization for us means not only adopting new technological tools but aiming toward the strategic innovation of our business model. Safilo is constantly updating its business model through a more decisive shift toward a digital transformation strategy, which will support and allow a significant improvement in customer-centric activities thanks to the adoption of innovative solutions, as well as pushing toward a more significant growth of direct-to-consumer e-commerce activities,” he said.
On the sustainability front, Safilo debuted Eastman Acetate Renew and Eastman Tritan™ Renew, within its collections last year.
“Through this commitment, Safilo became the first player in the market to use all Eastman Renew materials for eyewear in our portfolio,” Ceroni said. In July the company joined The Fashion Pact, a global coalition of companies in the fashion and textile industry, including their suppliers and distributors, “all committed to a common core of key environmental goals in three areas: stopping global warming, restoring biodiversity and protecting the oceans,” he said.
Heading into the close of 2022, talk of an economic downturn is looming, but the executive cautioned that “based on the results recorded in the first half of 2022 and the current visibility into the third quarter, Safilo management is confident about already reaching, in 2022, the economic targets set out in the 2024 business plan,” he said adding that these forecasts are assuming for the rest of the year a reasonably stable economic and business environment compared to the current situation in relation to macro-economic and geo-political drivers.
Marchon
After sitting out last year’s Vision Expo West due to the global pandemic Marchon — part of Vision Service Plan, the U.S.’s largest eye care benefits provider — returned to the show floor.
“I am proud to say 2021 was the strongest year in the history of Marchon,” Thomas Burkhardt, who was recently elevated to president of Marchon Eyewear, said. “Looking ahead, I want to build on all of what got us to our current position of success and focusing on the opportunities ahead.”
Burkhardt said key brands, including Nike Vision, Ferragamo, Calvin Klein, Longchamp and Lacoste, as well as proprietary brands, including Dragon, performed exceptionally, and Marchon plans to sustain the momentum this year “as people continue to need prescription eyewear and look to their eyecare providers.”
The company recently announced licensing agreements with Paul Smith and Shinola, with the first Shinola Built by Flexon collection debuting in October. “Fusing Shinola’s purpose to produce well-made and built-to-last products and Flexon’s promise to deliver durable, well-designed eyewear, the new eyewear collection introduces modern and reinvented classics,” he said. The collection retails from $99 to $168 and begins with five sun styles and six optical styles, using notable design details expected to resonate with fans of the Shinola brand.
Burkhardt said due to the pandemic, the company significantly accelerated its digitalization efforts, particularly in the areas of product design and development, merchandising, forecasting and marketing.
“Our teams are now working very differently than just three, four years ago, with better systems and support and fewer administrative tasks, creating time and space for more creativity and focus on our customers’ needs,“ he said.
Beginning in January, Marchon will use Eastman’s Tenite Renew sustainable materials made from bio-based and recycled content, a step toward offering “customers sustainable options in eyewear.” He added that Eyes on Tomorrow, Marchon’s Corporate Social Responsibility platform, has grown over the last year. “It’s a program we’re incredibly proud of. We are leveraging to use sustainable materials wherever possible and available and simplifying and eliminating waste by improving our recycling efforts,” he said.
“VSP Vision is focused on delivering continued value to our clients, members, and doctors,” Burkhardt said, speaking on the current economic conditions. “We understand that saving money is a top priority for clients and members, and we’re supporting them with opportunities to maximize their vision benefits. With low out-of-pocket costs, Exclusive Member Extras on eyewear and eye care, and special savings at Premier Program Practices, we’re ensuring cost-conscious members can still prioritize their health and stay on budget.“
Marcolin
While the show floor has a wide range of product, luxury eyewear strongly resonates with the end customer.
“We’ve seen a strong performance within our luxury portfolio,” said Marcolin’s North America chief executive officer and Group mergers and acquisitions director, Emanuele Cappellano, adding that Tom Ford has experienced consistent growth in both men’s and women’s, while Moncler and Max Mara have had double-digit growth in the past six months.
“We always stayed true to the heritage of our brands, but we’re seeing success through product and marketing innovation that aligns with the current luxury landscape of today,” Cappellano said. “While a core collection of basics is essential, we’re expanding our niche differentiated product assortment with Moncler and Max Mara. For instance, we’ve seen immense retail success in North America with our Moncler goggle collection and have introduced an entirely new goggle style for fall 2022.”
He continued, “with Max Mara, customers have resonated with our avant-garde styling, and we see this extending to Moncler as well. Across our luxury portfolio, bolder logo usage combined with modern interpretations of classic styling has been relevant in our top sellers.”
The entire Tom Ford collection has incorporated blue block functionality, helping to drive Marcolin’s optical business as well.
“Business has remained strong and consistent with Guess as a leading diffusion brand in our portfolio. Max Mara has emerged as key brand in the optical market, offering a strong product with a fresh perspective in the luxury category,” Cappellano said.
Gearing up for the close of the year Cappellano cautioned that Marcolin expects “volatility, not necessarily a full economic downturn. Our actions are concentrated around: rigorous stock management, cost control, and a strong focus on our core businesses.” It is more important now than ever, he said, to enhance communication with the customer and continue to ensure their needs are met.
To his point, Marcolin is investing in new a customer experience platform which will launch in the second half of 2023. “We are also continuing to evolve our marketing strategy to elevate our events, programs and communications,” he said.
Thélios
Up in the suites at the Venetian, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton‘s Thélios is marking five years in the category, with U.S. representing a high-growth market, said chief executive officer Alessandro Zanardo.
He went on to say that Dior, Celine and Fendi “are having a momentum in the U.S. market, being very successful in all channels of distribution.” Givenchy’s performance is also particularly strong in the U.S. “due to its Californian creative director, Matthew Williams, which resonates with the American market. Meanwhile, Loewe is finding a very clear positioning, as its edgy design approach works particularly well in the U.S.’s trend-setting cities.” Stella McCartney, he added, “has developed a solid presence in U.S. department stores, thanks to the designer’s pioneering approach in sustainable fashion, which also reflects in the eyewear category.”
Zanardo pointed out that the ophthalmic category is a strategic category for Thélios.
“By nature, our maisons as they are fashion houses, are more drawn to sunglasses. However, optical frames are becoming more and more visible, gradually turning into a fashionable accessory. It is one of the drivers of our growth in the luxury eyewear segment,” he said.
The recently launched Giv-Cut has been Thélios’ first 3D-printed product to be sold to the final consumer. Part of a joint project with Givenchy, the frames employ 3D printing. First seen on singer Rosalia during the Met Gala and at the men’s fashion show in Paris, the futuristic style hit stores just two weeks after its presentation.
“Before that, 3D printing was used only to develop prototypes, as it was not perceived as qualitative enough to make to be considered for luxury eyewear,” Zanardo said. “The technology has clearly improved, the greatest advantages of this technique being the reduced time to market and the possibility to create very special shapes, that would have been impossible for classic acetate of injected frames.“
The Thélios CEO is confident the growth will continue, “as our maisons are in really high demand. However, our focus is to keep growing sustainably, respecting our strategic pillar of selective distribution. We are not willing to compromise on that. We work only with few retail partners, selecting only the best in the world, to guarantee our maisons the best possible representation and assuring our partners the best possible service.”
Silhouette
Also up in the suites, independent Austrian eyewear brand Silhouette — known for its minimalistic lightweight glasses — has streamlined distribution in the U.S. by nearly 40 percent.
”We are focusing our U.S. efforts on strengthening our partnerships with independent-minded eye care professionals, who share in our values and goal of offering consumers the best eyewear in the world with unparalleled comfort and perfect vision,” said Hartmut Kraft, president of Silhouette U.S. “This allows us to provide an incomparable level of service, commitment and support to our dedicated eye care partners that share our vision for successful, long-term partnerships, as well as providing their consumers with a unique and extraordinary experience.”
Silhouette revealed that through a combination of reduction initiatives, including producing its own green electricity, it has achieved its aim of reaching net zero CO2 emissions.
“The use of fossil fuels within the eyewear industry and their contribution to global warming and the release of greenhouse gases, such as CO2, are truly staggering,” Kraft said. “To reduce our carbon footprint, we’ve selected a combination of CO2-free sustainable sources, including solar, wind, hydro, biomass and biogas to provide electricity to our company headquarters in Linz, Austria, which is where we meticulously produce our handcrafted eyewear.”
Kraft also pointed out that materials and production methods can make a major difference in reducing a company’s carbon footprint. “For example, our proprietary SPX®+ material is injection molded, which produces very little waste and is much more sustainable compared to other traditional materials used, such as acetate,” he said.
