By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, September 21, 2023 8:30 AM
BANGKOK—Approaching sustainability in-office is a task that requires coming at it from all angles. From small, family-owned and operated, independent ECPs to large, multi-national eyewear and eyecare corporations, all members of the optical community who are dedicated to sustainability will understand that their efforts must span different areas and departments in order to be truly holistic. For large companies like
Hoya Vision Care, a full, dedicated platform helps make this overarching goal more achievable.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Wednesday, September 20, 2023 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—For sports lovers, Fall is an exciting time. Many sport seasons restart in the Fall, both professional and amateur—which also makes this season the perfect time to talk to patients about keeping their eyes safe while getting active. This Sports Eye Safety Month, Prevent Blindness shared new data that shows more than 32,000 sports-related eye injuries were treated in the U.S. last year—an
increase of nearly 20 percent from the previous year.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, September 14, 2023 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—Jennifer Tsai, OD, founder and owner of
Line of Sight in New York City, created her practice to be a unique environment with a boutique, concierge feel, blending eyecare and wellness in a holistic way. As she explained to
VM, “We have an exceptional team that works hard to keep the practice running smoothly to help patients with vision care and promote eye health. I specialize in specialty contact lens and offer an array of other services including dry eye treatments, vision therapies, ocular aesthetics and myopia control solutions.”
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Friday, September 8, 2023 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—September is Healthy Aging Month, 30 days dedicated to promoting healthy habits as people age. Staying healthy as you get older is an all hands on deck activity, of course, involving healthy eating, regular exercise, visits to the doctor, and keeping your eye health at the forefront of your mind. Older adults are at higher risk for a number of eye diseases including AMD, glaucoma and cataract, but, as the National Eye Institute (NEI) said, “getting older does not have to mean losing your vision.” As members of the eyecare community it is part of our duties this month to make that reminder clear—and to ensure older adults have all the resources they need to keep their eyes healthy as they age.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, September 7, 2023 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—For many of us, the COVID lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 provided some time to slow down, to reassess and to try to get some rest—but for Idriss and Federica Nestor, the opposite was true. Instead, the married couple used that time to develop
OPR Eyewear, their home-grown, family-owned eyewear business in New York City. Idriss told
The Independent Eye, “My wife and I have always been very passionate about glasses until one day, during COVID, we decided to finally invest in our dream and create our own brand. I had a consulting company while Federica had a legal background—very different worlds that, nevertheless, prepared us for what we were about to create.”
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 1:00 AM
NEW YORK—If there’s one constant in a post-2020 world, it’s change. The economy, labor market, retail landscape and overall world we live in has been in constant flux since March 2020, teaching us all how to be adaptive and inventive in everything we do. For many consumers, products labeled as “Made in the USA” have long been preferable—from giving back to the local economy to lowering your carbon footprint, there are plenty of reasons that Americans want to buy homegrown products. That has not changed—though inflation has put a slight damper on what Americans are willing to spend.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:59 AM
Art-Craft Optical has been a staple of the American eyewear landscape for over 100 years. Established in Rochester, New York, in 1918, the company is currently led by the third generation of the Eagle family, carrying on a long legacy of American eyewear production.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:58 AM
Hilco Vision’s OnGuard American-made industrial safety eyewear launched in 2019. The entire collection is designed, developed, tested and manufactured in the U.S., made of domestically sourced materials from material and manufacturing partners that span the country. Last year, Debbie Fitzgibbons, director of marketing communications at Hilco Vision, told VM that the OnGuard collection consistently ranks among Hilco customers’ top-selling styles, and that demand continues to exceed expectations.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:57 AM
In 2022, L’Amy America debuted Seven.Five, its first American-made collection. The collection is designed in Connecticut at L’Amy’s headquarters, and then manufactured out of global components in New Jersey, as part of an exclusive manufacturing agreement with Wayne, New Jersey-based Scene Eyewear. L’Amy’s director of lifestyle brands Connie Reiss explained to VM upon the launch last year, “The brand name 75 symbolizes the beginning—the start—the impetus of a movement. In 1775 the first, and perhaps most pivotal battle of the Revolutionary War was fought.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:56 AM
For The McGee Group, American manufacturing just made sense. Executive vice president Matt McGee tells VM, “The McGee Group has long been proud to be an American-owned company that generates designs for the American consumer. Growing our manufacturing capabilities enable us to complete the American story.”
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:54 AM
This year, Randolph Eyewear celebrated its 50th anniversary, marking five decades as a company dedicated to American-made eyewear. In 1973, former Royal Air Force navigator Jan Waszkiewicz and machinist Stanley Zaleski founded Randolph, after immigrating to the U.S. Today, the bustling business is located in Randolph, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston, and still uses machines that the Randolph engineers designed and built in the ‘70s. Being American-made is the core tenant of everything Randolph does—and everything the brand is celebrating this year.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:53 AM
This year, American Optical is introducing the AO RX Collection—the brand’s first optical frame collection in decades, according to State Optical Co. executive Scott Shapiro. He explained to VM, “Since we acquired AO Eyewear in 2019, we’ve only produced and sold sunglasses under the brand. At Vision Expo West we’ll be launching the first optical styles with AO branding that haven’t been available in decades… we’ve been working on this launch for over a year to incorporate many of the unique AO details veteran ECPs will remember. We can’t wait to share it with our optical partners.”
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Sunday, September 3, 2023 12:52 AM
Thema Eyewear’s Miami factory has long been a place of innovation, customization and sustainable mindset. As explained by Giulia Valmassoi, CEO of Thema North America, “Having a Made in USA collection is integral to our company’s ethos. It symbolizes our dedication to supporting local artisans, fostering job creation, and upholding rigorous quality standards.”