Optical and sunglasses follow the seasonal rhythms and creative meanderings of fashion and design to inspire aesthetic trends and original style. Eyewear manufacturers, designers and brands are addressing three meaningful themes that will impact the aesthetics of frames:

PLAY COLOUR

Shades that add some pep to the eye are always in style. A kaleidoscope of intense colour is always in trend, with bright palettes of fuchsia, orange, peach, coral and yellow that contrast with bottle green, khaki green, black and brown.

THINK BIG

Maximalism is fashionable! Eyewear takes on exuberant, vibrant and unique silhouettes with stunning curves. Curves evoke a sense of movement and dynamism, while revealing a strong and ergonomic style. Designed for the eyewear wearers of the 21st century, the vintage spirit has been reinvented and modernised.

BE MIX-AND-MATCH

The art of mixing, composing and recomposing materials and shapes – These glasses display a creative hybridisation of alloys of materials, effects of associated surfaces, complex and/or daring structures, and succeed in combining the classics and fantasy.

Marcolin, a worldwide leading company in the eyewear industry, was a major presence at Vision Expo East, the main event in the US for ophthalmic professionals, where eyecare meets eyewear and education, fashion and innovation mingle, held at the Jacob Javits Center.

Marcolin’s booth represented the company with a completely renewed look, in line with its corporate identity. The new interior furnishings and construction details had a contemporary appearance while the exterior of the booth has a stylistic reference to the Italian design of the 60s and 70s. The front of the booth displayed the company’s most prominent brands and had a special dedicated space to Harley-Davidson, with whom the partnership has been recently extended through 2027.

The booth showcased the new eyewear collections of the main licensed brands in Marcolin’s portfolio. Highlights include TOM FORD Eyewear, which features elevated designs and signature details with an elegant mix of materials for Spring/Summer 2023. The collection offers a compelling breadth of designs from modern to classic, incorporating the iconic ‘T’ logo and ‘infinity cross’ front. Silhouettes in varying thicknesses and distinguished details including beveled edges and various spoilers.

GUESS Eyewear revealed a new iconic detail for women, the “G Cube” logo pattern.  The pattern immerses the sunglasses silhouette adding iconic texture-like fronts while on the optical styles, the G Cube pattern adorns the metal endpiece in a more subtle way for everyday wear.  For men, GUESS introduces conventional yet stylish eyewear in key colorways that are suitable for both a younger and more mature guys. Max Mara Eyewear featured architectural details, interesting yet wearable shapes and colors, and clean and classic styling offering something for every woman, while adidas Sport Eyewear showcased a new half-rim wraparound frame with a more compact design and innovative curvature, equipped with aerodynamic and anti-fog holes, adjustable nose pads and side hinges built with a safety lock system to always guarantee safety and performance at the highest level.

Harley-Davidson Eyewear collection continued to deliver a product that is functional first with a focus on innovation and technology.   With this season’s release of Premium Aluminum frames, Carbon Fiber Designs, Custom Air Flow Venting, and 180 Degree Flex Hinges, Harley-Davidson eyewear is the ideal accessory for every rider on the go.

In 2023, WEB EYEWEAR, a house brand of Marcolin, made its US Debut at Vision Expo East. WEB EYEWEAR brings a diverse array of bold shapes and colors stateside. Modern designs & premium materials elevate iconic Italian heritage styling to create a unique offering of sun and ophthalmic eyewear for both men and women.

Emanuele Cappellano, Marcolin USA Chairman and President pointed out: “This Vision Expo East was a great success. Our newly designed booth provided us with the ideal platform to easily connect with customers and showcase our full portfolio of brands. Vision Expo East has always been a highly successful show for Marcolin, and we look forward to the next Vision Expo.”

In 2022, Marcolin continued to strengthen its licensed brand portfolio as well as its commitment to sustainability and ESG issues. In fact, the Company received the ISO 13485 certification regulating, at the international level, quality management systems regarding medical devices, and implemented a traceability project ensuring the continuous monitoring of the supply chain with respect to all the frames placed on the market.

Starting with “HOW TO?”, a series that addresses the practical everyday activities that occur in optical shops: realistic content on different topics, like style consultation, point of sale renovation, marketing and communication, events as a means of communication, etc at MIDO next week. Each meeting (four are planned, to date) will be held in the OTTICLUB space in pavilion 3 and will feature prominent speakers from the most diverse sectors, some of them even from outside the eyewear industry. Dates and times are online at www.mido.com.

Another innovation is Book@MIDO, the presentation of six books with stories just waiting to be told at MIDO 2023. Here’s a sneak preview of the titles that will follow one another on the OTTICLUB stage:

Innovazione nell’eyewear design – Elisabetta Benelli and Benedetta Terenzi

Alessandro Spiezia. L’ottico che ha visto la storia – Luisa Carla Redaelli

Il centro ottico carismatico. Pensiero, strategia, azione per l’ottica che vuole un futuro – Alessandra Salimbene

Amazing Eyewear – Maarten Weidema

Il Design della montatura, ovvero la complessità oltre l’apparenza – Mario Casini

Le tre porte del Public Speaking – Miranda Sorgente, Silva Castellani and Max Galli

Dates and times on line at www.mido.com

Even more, two special projects: Saturday, February 4th at 10.30 – presentation of Empowering Optical Women Leadership which supports women on a leadership career path in the eyewear industry, in Italy and internationally. Historically, the eyewear industry has experienced high levels of female employment (60%) which, however, is not sufficiently reflected in the presence of women in managerial roles (female managers 22%). ANFAO has decided to make an active contribution, working alongside local and international associations, to build awareness, promote an inclusive corporate culture, encourage continuing education, and foster networking. A discussion will also take place around the Observatory on gender equality in leadership in the eyewear industry that will lay out the guidelines for a pilot project for female empowerment education and promotion of an inclusive corporate culture.

Sunday, February 5th  at 11 MIDO will host Fondazione Campagna Amica which will present “I cibi della vista e del benessere” [Food for sight and wellbeing]. Promoted by Coldiretti [the Italian Confederation of Farmers], Campagna Amica was established in 2008 to develop initiatives that fully express the value and dignity of Italian agriculture, shining a light on its crucial role in safeguarding the environment, land, traditions, culture and health. Public health, like environmental resources, is a common good, even recognized in the Constitution as an inalienable right and the duty of every citizen.

Nutrition is clearly the first component of widespread health. The overwhelming majority of diseases that threaten western societies, at this specific moment in time, are due to overfeeding, which fatigues and places most of the body’s organs and systems at risk. Excessive calories, vitamin deficiencies and lack of mineral salts create severe imbalances of various types, including vision-related.

At MIDO, Fondazione Campagna Amica will present the early stages of a document, produced in collaboration with high-profile representatives of the medical field, on various topics that range from cancer prevention to eye care. Chapters focused on different organs and systems highlight the links between nutrition, physiology, and the well-being of the body in its various functions. This collaborative effort will be formalized with the establishment of a medical-scientific committee on the subject. The committee will meet semi-annually to publish, design, and share best-practices pathways. During the meeting, the focus will be on vision and on the foods that can promote and, why not, even improve vision.

Eye health begins with good nutrition.

MIDO will take place at Fieramilano (Strada Statale del Sempione 28 – Rho), Saturday February 4th, and Sunday February 5th February from 9 am to 7 pm, and Monday, February 6th from 9 am to 6 pm.