By Nick Samson, Associate Publisher & Co-Owner, Optical Prism.
I experienced my second Vision Expo in Las Vegas in September 2023. The sheer size of the show and the scope of exhibitors, brands, and innovations can be overwhelming, but once you wrap your head around a bit of a strategy, you get a sense of what you want to experience and share.
One such experience is the new collection of premium sunglasses and opticals resulting from the partnership between Swarovski and EssilorLuxottica.
I was fortunate enough to be introduced to this stunning collection by Alessandro Mariani, VP of Marketing at Luxottica – a dapper gentleman with a great Italian accent.
The reasons these two brands came together is not dissimilar to the reasons other strong brands partner to generate amazing products – a shared culture, an iconic history, and amazing reputations. Swarovski’s elegance and creativity combined with EssilorLuxottica’s innovation and expertise in quality craftsmanship make for a successful partnership.
The collection itself is luxurious, elegant, and sophisticated, yet available at an accessible price point.
Aside from the eyewear styles, placement of crystals, and brilliant colours of the stones, each eyewear piece captures the joyful elegance of Swarovski with an innovative hinge design, where multi-faceted, full-cut crystals exclusive to Swarovski bend apart at the temples as a tribute to the tradition of Swarovski’s first diamond-cut style.
The elegance doesn’t stop at the point of purchase, as each piece is supported with an opening kit containing an octagonal tray and a display for two pieces from the collections.
“We’re very happy with the collection,” says Mariani – and from the crowd around the displays, I’d say the interest in the collection is feverish.
Daniel Swarovski’s vision was to create “a diamond for everyone,” and from my perspective, Swarovski and EssilorLuxottica have over-delivered on Daniel’s vision.