CHAIN REACTION
Luxury London-based eyewear chain company Frame Chain has teamed up with @theopticalpoet Tarrence Lackran, director of partnerships and programming at The Vision Council (TVC), for his first industry collab—a special charitable chain.
All profits from sales of the “Time for Change” chain will go directly to the Open Your Eyes Scholarship program, recently launched by TVC’s Better Vision Institute, which supports high school students throughout the U.S. who are interested in pursuing a career in the optical industry.
“[Frame Chain’s] design model, that draws inspiration from vintage jewelry and uses unique materials, is something I have always appreciated about fashion accessories,” says Lackran. “However, what really made this collaboration perfect is their passion for diversity and regular support for philanthropic causes that align with my values.”
The sleek optical retainer features a double strand design with black Czech shiny glass beads plus matte black figaro links.
“We met the Optical Poet back in the old days when events were possible,” says Frame Chain co-founder Vanessa Harrington. “We were immediately struck by his energy, expertise, and, of course, banging style! When he told us about this new initiative, we knew immediately we had to be involved.”
Interested in wholesale orders? Contact Heidi Wutkke at heidi@lovehtown.com.
ON OUR RADAR
THE GREEN EDITION
SUSTAINABILITY SELLS.
“To remain relevant and profitable, as demand for sustainable products increases…[companies] are finding new ways to engage, communicate, and educate more ethical consumers,” says Maria Coronado Robles of market research company Euromonitor in a recent 2021 consumer trends presentation.
Plus, according to a 2020 IBM consumer trends study in association with the National Retail Federation, nearly 80% of consumers indicate sustainability is important for them. And, for respondents who designated this as very/extremely important, more than 70% would pay a premium of 35%, on average, for brands that are sustainable and environmentally responsible.
So, is your eyecare business offering products that are kind to Mother Earth—and in line with consumer cravings?
Here, we pinpoint more than a dozen eco-conscious frame offerings for the optical (plus a few contact lenses, too) to share with your patients on Earth Day (April 22) and beyond. In addition to this sampling, follow along on EB’s Facebook and Instagram throughout Earth Month for more products that put the “I care” in eye care.
FRAME OF MIND
The Levi’s eyewear collection from Safilo has introduced a bio-based assortment of sunglasses constructed of materials derived from sustainable castor oil. The “Responsibly-Made” styles feature that claim on the inner temple and a plant-based sticker on the lens. Levi’s also offers a range of frames made from environmentally friendly Hexetate, a patented acrylic resin that’s durable and lighter than traditional acetate. Here, the Responsibly-Made Levi’s LV 1009/S is a chic, unisex rounded silhouette.
mysafilo.com
TRANSPARENT MEASURES
“Responsibility means being transparent,” says Caroline Scheufele, co-president and artistic director at Chopard. “The final destination may still be far ahead, but each action is one step closer to achieving a better future for the people of today and the generations to come.”
In 2010, the luxury brand became a certified member of the Responsible Jewellery Council, which works with members across the globe to promote sustainable supply chains.
The brand’s new responsible eyewear segment from De Rigo REM is produced in Italy and uses plant-based materials like bio-based acetate and bio-based lenses.
Here, the Chopard VCH297 pairs metal details with bio-acetate obtained from wood and cotton.
derigo.usSUSTAINABLE CLS
CooperVision recently partnered with Plastic Bank, making its clariti 1 day family the first net plastic-neutral contact lenses. For every box of clarity 1 day distributed in the U.S., CooperVision funds the collection, processing, and reuse of general plastic waste equal to the weight of the plastic contained in clarity 1 day lenses/packaging.
“Making clarity 1 day net plastic-neutral is the next step in CooperVision’s sustainability journey—and provides a unique opportunity for eyecare professionals to offer even more value to their patients,” says CooperVision’s Melissa Kiewe.
coopervision.comBausch + Lomb’s partnership with TerraCycle for its long-running and much-lauded ONE by ONE Recycling Program invites patients to return to registered practices to drop off their CL waste or ship it directly with a free prepaid shipping label.
bauschrecycles.comSUSTAINABLE SMARTS
Nearly 60% of consumers are willing to change their purchasing habits to help reduce negative environmental impact, according to the recent IBM study. To deliver on this front, we round up nine key industry products and initiatives.
—COMPILED BY KERRI ANN RAIMO
1 Silhouette, part of the Austrian Climate Alliance and a member of the Austrian Business Council for Sustainable Development, shares that just 5% waste occurs with its SPX+ frame material, compared with 80% to 90% waste with traditional acetate.
2 Every frame in the Dragon Upcycled collection from Marchon Eyewear is constructed from the waste of five plastic bottles. Here, style meets sustainability with the new Wilder model.
3 In 2019, web searches for “sustainable fashion” increased by more than three times compared with 2016, shares The Business Research Company.
4 The Timberland Earthkeepers collection from Marcolin features frames consisting of at least 35% bio-based plastic material. Here, the new TB1722 serves up sleek sustainable style in a contemporary silhouette.
5 Kenmark Eyewear has partnered with the National Forest Foundation (NFF) for a second year, working with the foundation to help restore thousands of acres of wildlife habitat through the NFF’s “50 Million for Our Forests” tree-planting campaign.
6 The latest Arnette Bio-Acetate collection from Luxottica boasts materials from renewable sources via optimized processes to reduce emissions. Plus, the bio sun lenses, a polyamide with 39% of base molecules from castor oil, retain properties of traditional lenses. Pictured is the AN7190 Kokoro.
7 According to a study from NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business analyzing consumer packaged goods growth from 2013 to 2019, products that were marketed as “sustainable” grew 5.6 times faster than those that were not.
8 “Sustainability has become a business imperative,” says Carlo Roni, R&D Director of Thélios. “We have chosen to team up with the best-in-class players—Mazzucchelli for acetate transformation and Eastman for molecular recycling—to work jointly on the development of new sustainable materials, which we hope will drive change in our industry.”
9 The new Polaroid Sustainable Collection from Safilo (including PLD D424, pictured) features frames constructed from eco-polyamide, eco-acetate, and recycled metal, plus dedicated packaging made from recycled paper. Safilo recently announced the incorporation of Eastman’s Tritan Renew and Acetate Renew sustainable materials in its eyewear collections, with Tritan Renew debuting in the Polaroid brand in January 2022.
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