Safilo's grand designs

Eyewear design is something that many practitioners can take for granted, but for Italian eyewear behemoth Safilo, it’s an incredibly detailed process which is at the very core of its business.

The company’s creative department comprises 120 designers who conceptualise and develop ideas ahead of manufacturing in what is a multi-layered design process.

Before pen is put to paper or stylus put to tablet, close attention is paid to how each of the brand’s previous collections has sold around the world.

In dedicated brand showrooms, sales data provides vital background information and frames are grouped together by how they have performed. ‘The sales data is a measuring point of the influence you have in the market and how designs perform in different territories. Even in Europe tastes are very different,’ says artistic director of Safilo proprietary brands Nicola Bonaventura.