Italian renaissance

Italy's premier optical event was beset by problems in 2003, not least a domestic market in freefall and an outbreak of the SARS virus which put the mockers on its vital Far Eastern contingent. But this year, with the show condensed into three days instead of four Ð with longer opening times to compensate Ð Milan's international eyewear event Mido was back on track.
In terms of visitor figures, the recovery was palpable Ð 37,134 visitors, up 46 per cent on 2003's total over four days of 25,500, with six out of 10 visitors from abroad.
The trends at the show continued to highlight individual styled eyewear, and though there were retrospective nods across the ranges, the event showcased very 21st century power brands such as the first collection of sunglasses and prescription eyewear under the Timberland label in the Marcolin stable, new Hugo Boss eyewear at the Charmant stand and De Rigo's Mini eyewear.
Mido organisers claimed the fair was the first optical exhibition to produce a special area devoted to the boundaries of sports eyewear. Backed by a live dance troupe which appeared on the first two days of the show, this was a popular display, where skiing goggles and golfing eyewear with light equalising filters were exhibited next to motocross 'masks' complete with a special roll-off system where a transparent film removes mud and dirt from the surface.
In another specialist area 128 exhibitors crammed into the 'Trend' hall devoted to the more artistic and 'bizarre' eyewear, which included UK exhibitors Andrew Actman and Kirk Originals, the latter highlighting its fluorescent Wild Collection. There were also specialist halls for technology and equipment, Far Eastern exhibitors and 'Mido Education' which ran 60 CET courses.
In all, the giant fair included 1,203 exhibitors, with roughly two out of three arriving from outside Italy, across a foot-numbing six halls, four of which were on two levels. So there were launches and 'happenings' aplenty.

New progressive
Hoya chose Mido to show off its new 'Hoyalux ID' progressive lens in a worldwide launch at Milan's swanky NOY restaurant bar on the opening evening of the event. Hoya claimed it had launched the first integrated double surface progressive design. It is similar in capability to Johnson & Johnson's Definity product, which is yet to be unveiled in Europe (see last week's VisionExpo report).
By using two surfaces of a progressive lens Hoya's new product 'dramatically reduces the amount of distortion in front of the eye and creates the largest distortion-free zone available today'.
Another company boasting a 'revolutionary' product was Parma-based supplier to the sunglass industry, Intercast Europe, promoting its NXT optical polymer. On its stand it was showing prototypes highlighting 'the uniqueness of the NXT material' as president of the company Paolo Baiocchi described it.
He commented that the unique practical qualities of NXT's properties Ð unbreakable, lightweight, easily drilled and processed without cracking Ð had already been well developed for brand names such as Fendi, Ray-Ban and Givenchy. Intercast was giving designers the chance to work on the displayed prototype models.
Last year, in association with the Research Centre of the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan, Intercast aimed to demonstrate to sunglass manufacturers how NXT could engineer cost-savings on sunglasses and improve durability.
'This year we are working with the institute to show manufacturers how to be innovatory with style rather than concentrating on engineering practicalities,' said Baiocchi.

Highest index
Carl Zeiss also chose Mido to launch new developments, including its plastic Claret 1.74 lens. It has the highest refractive index currently available for spectacle lenses, reducing the edge thickness by up to 40 per cent compared to other competing lenses, the Oberkochen-based company claimed. A spokesman said: 'The market for high-index lenses combining optimum vision with an optimum appearance is growing. Claret 1.74 AS offers opticians the possibility of directly addressing the special requirements of discerning patients in this target group.'
In the more glitzy area of the show, Natalia Cassel, Versace's spokeswoman at Luxottica's stand, said Mido was a preparation for the publicity the Cannes film festival would bring to the fashion brand.
Trends, she said, included more outsized sunglasses, vivid colours and 'hero imagery' in eyewear marketing, this summer ushered in by the Brad Pitt Hollywood blockbuster Troy.
Elsewhere, several British exhibitors made their presence felt in a number of sectors. Clearlab UK, the Plymouth-based company and subsidiary of the US retail lens giant 1-800 Contacts, launched its clear range of contact lenses on the European market at Mido. It was also promoting the offer to optical chains and distributors of own labelling to boost patient loyalty.
Boasting 170 years of contact lens experience Ð most of its team have previous experience with Hydron, Biocompatibles or Igel on their respective CVs Ð the company offered a lens which 'utilises a new proprietary method developed for quality daily use' with others manufactured from its trademark True Form cast moulding to ensure quality.
President of Clearlab International, Graham Mullis, predicted significant changes in the contact lens sector in the next five years, and claimed: 'We have a rich pipeline of new products in development, all designed to grow the sector.'
Neal Grimason, sales and marketing director at Continental Eyewear, took global orders Ð from Estonia to South Africa Ð and reported a 'very successful' show for the Prescot company.
Continental chose Milan to launch its fashion X-Eyes collection, which is now available in Britain backed by point-of-sale material to maximise window and in-store displays. He said the global nature of Mido was valuable to the company, via meeting the contacts 'you don't see from exhibition to exhibition'.
Pentax's national sales manager Richard Hollings also said Mido was a valued meeting place and a good platform to explore new markets across Europe, and meeting its distributors on the continent.
'Our international sales manager David Nicholl has a full schedule of meetings with our distributors,' he said. 'You can do a lot by email and other means but because Mido is such a global event it's a good place to meet, and display for new customers.'
The company presented its AS 1.67 UV AR Transitions, available in grey and brown, range +10.00 to -15.00D with cyls to 6.00D, and darkens to approximately 60 per cent absorption in 30 seconds.
In addition, Contamac, the Saffron Walden provider of contact and intraocular lens materials announced that it had acquired the Dutch precision machinery group Opteq (News, May 14).
Contamac managing director John McGregor told a reception to mark the news that it was an important occasion for the company. 'We believe that this acquisition will contribute to the further development of the contact and intraocular lens markets, reinforcing our tradition of close collaboration with lens producers and designers.'
Looking to break into the British market, Denmark's design-led eyewear brand Fleye revealed it had established links to a London-based office.
Speaking at the Fleye stand in the 'Trends' hall Mads Obresen, principal of Putney-based White Vision, told optician he was looking after Fleye's entry. He added that the company was looking for agents in Britain 'who have the right mix of clients'.
'We are looking to sell the brand through fashionable independents,' he said. 'The Fleye ophthalmic look is very fashion-driven, very-materials based, with a lot of detail throughout the collection.'
Fleye, established in 2002, designs in titanium and acetate, and Obresen said he hoped to sell the brand on its fashionable Scandinavian image, and as a niche product exclusively to independents.
'It's interesting that we're going into the UK market now, as independents are having to find specialist niche product, rather than the licensed fashion collections the multiples can get and sell at a lower price,' he said. 'The only way [for them] to compete is by not competing on price but by specialising on different products that the multiples can't get to.'
As well as new launches and company news the show provides all manner of opportunities for groups and associations to hold events.
The European Sunglass Association held a press conference on its burgeoning interests at the show, and on the second night hosted the 8th Sunglass Industry Dinner for 150 guests at the Glitzy Socrea Palazzo Visconti.

New market opportunities
ESA managing director Petra Eckhardt-Kostler said the EU expansion earlier this month had created huge new selling opportunities for sunglass suppliers and retailers, and welcomed new ESA members, such as Poland and the Czech Republic. 'The EU expansion into 10 new countries has large possibilities, with 75 million potential sunglass customers,' she said.
'We have launched a new marketing strategy, and just before the show unveiled a communications platform which will support information for ESA members and all interested sunglass industry people.'
She revealed that the statistical unit of the ESA was currently working on in-depth predictions for the sector up until the year 2010, and these figures will be published at the ESA annual meeting on October 21, prior to Silmo. Before then the ESA will host its annual conference where 2005's fashion trends in the sector will be reviewed, as well as growth strategies with one of the significant themes being 'Development and chances in the new European countries'.
Nevertheless, there were problems in the European industry of illegal sunglass sales, ESA president Antonio Olivetta admitted, with 'street sellers' hawking eight million 'low quality' pairs in Spain alone.
Illegal trading was a theme picked up by Mido president Cirillo Marcolin who said counterfeit eyewear was doing a huge amount of damage to the Italian domestic market, with 74,000 pairs confiscated in the two-week period in the run up to Mido alone. He revealed that worldwide the problem cost Italy's profession around e75m a year. Also, counterfeiting had become so bad, particularly regarding the Far East, that Italy's profession was asking 'for a focus on new bilateral relations' and 'calling for the Chinese government to put a stop to counterfeiting in its country'.
Next year Mido will take place on the weekend of May 6-8.Italy's premier optical event was beset by problems in 2003, not least a domestic market in freefall and an outbreak of the SARS virus which put the mockers on its vital Far Eastern contingent. But this year, with the show condensed into three days instead of four Ð with longer opening times to compensate Ð Milan's international eyewear event Mido was back on track.
In terms of visitor figures, the recovery was palpable Ð 37,134 visitors, up 46 per cent on 2003's total over four days of 25,500, with six out of 10 visitors from abroad.
The trends at the show continued to highlight individual styled eyewear, and though there were retrospective nods across the ranges, the event showcased very 21st century power brands such as the first collection of sunglasses and prescription eyewear under the Timberland label in the Marcolin stable, new Hugo Boss eyewear at the Charmant stand and De Rigo's Mini eyewear.
Mido organisers claimed the fair was the first optical exhibition to produce a special area devoted to the boundaries of sports eyewear. Backed by a live dance troupe which appeared on the first two days of the show, this was a popular display, where skiing goggles and golfing eyewear with light equalising filters were exhibited next to motocross 'masks' complete with a special roll-off system where a transparent film removes mud and dirt from the surface.
In another specialist area 128 exhibitors crammed into the 'Trend' hall devoted to the more artistic and 'bizarre' eyewear, which included UK exhibitors Andrew Actman and Kirk Originals, the latter highlighting its fluorescent Wild Collection. There were also specialist halls for technology and equipment, Far Eastern exhibitors and 'Mido Education' which ran 60 CET courses.
In all, the giant fair included 1,203 exhibitors, with roughly two out of three arriving from outside Italy, across a foot-numbing six halls, four of which were on two levels. So there were launches and 'happenings' aplenty.

New progressive
Hoya chose Mido to show off its new 'Hoyalux ID' progressive lens in a worldwide launch at Milan's swanky NOY restaurant bar on the opening evening of the event. Hoya claimed it had launched the first integrated double surface progressive design. It is similar in capability to Johnson & Johnson's Definity product, which is yet to be unveiled in Europe (see last week's VisionExpo report).
By using two surfaces of a progressive lens Hoya's new product 'dramatically reduces the amount of distortion in front of the eye and creates the largest distortion-free zone available today'.
Another company boasting a 'revolutionary' product was Parma-based supplier to the sunglass industry, Intercast Europe, promoting its NXT optical polymer. On its stand it was showing prototypes highlighting 'the uniqueness of the NXT material' as president of the company Paolo Baiocchi described it.
He commented that the unique practical qualities of NXT's properties Ð unbreakable, lightweight, easily drilled and processed without cracking Ð had already been well developed for brand names such as Fendi, Ray-Ban and Givenchy. Intercast was giving designers the chance to work on the displayed prototype models.
Last year, in association with the Research Centre of the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan, Intercast aimed to demonstrate to sunglass manufacturers how NXT could engineer cost-savings on sunglasses and improve durability.
'This year we are working with the institute to show manufacturers how to be innovatory with style rather than concentrating on engineering practicalities,' said Baiocchi.

Highest index
Carl Zeiss also chose Mido to launch new developments, including its plastic Claret 1.74 lens. It has the highest refractive index currently available for spectacle lenses, reducing the edge thickness by up to 40 per cent compared to other competing lenses, the Oberkochen-based company claimed. A spokesman said: 'The market for high-index lenses combining optimum vision with an optimum appearance is growing. Claret 1.74 AS offers opticians the possibility of directly addressing the special requirements of discerning patients in this target group.'
In the more glitzy area of the show, Natalia Cassel, Versace's spokeswoman at Luxottica's stand, said Mido was a preparation for the publicity the Cannes film festival would bring to the fashion brand.
Trends, she said, included more outsized sunglasses, vivid colours and 'hero imagery' in eyewear marketing, this summer ushered in by the Brad Pitt Hollywood blockbuster Troy.
Elsewhere, several British exhibitors made their presence felt in a number of sectors. Clearlab UK, the Plymouth-based company and subsidiary of the US retail lens giant 1-800 Contacts, launched its clear range of contact lenses on the European market at Mido. It was also promoting the offer to optical chains and distributors of own labelling to boost patient loyalty.
Boasting 170 years of contact lens experience Ð most of its team have previous experience with Hydron, Biocompatibles or Igel on their respective CVs Ð the company offered a lens which 'utilises a new proprietary method developed for quality daily use' with others manufactured from its trademark True Form cast moulding to ensure quality.
President of Clearlab International, Graham Mullis, predicted significant changes in the contact lens sector in the next five years, and claimed: 'We have a rich pipeline of new products in development, all designed to grow the sector.'
Neal Grimason, sales and marketing director at Continental Eyewear, took global orders Ð from Estonia to South Africa Ð and reported a 'very successful' show for the Prescot company.
Continental chose Milan to launch its fashion X-Eyes collection, which is now available in Britain backed by point-of-sale material to maximise window and in-store displays. He said the global nature of Mido was valuable to the company, via meeting the contacts 'you don't see from exhibition to exhibition'.
Pentax's national sales manager Richard Hollings also said Mido was a valued meeting place and a good platform to explore new markets across Europe, and meeting its distributors on the continent.
'Our international sales manager David Nicholl has a full schedule of meetings with our distributors,' he said. 'You can do a lot by email and other means but because Mido is such a global event it's a good place to meet, and display for new customers.'
The company presented its AS 1.67 UV AR Transitions, available in grey and brown, range +10.00 to -15.00D with cyls to 6.00D, and darkens to approximately 60 per cent absorption in 30 seconds.
In addition, Contamac, the Saffron Walden provider of contact and intraocular lens materials announced that it had acquired the Dutch precision machinery group Opteq (News, May 14).
Contamac managing director John McGregor told a reception to mark the news that it was an important occasion for the company. 'We believe that this acquisition will contribute to the further development of the contact and intraocular lens markets, reinforcing our tradition of close collaboration with lens producers and designers.'
Looking to break into the British market, Denmark's design-led eyewear brand Fleye revealed it had established links to a London-based office.
Speaking at the Fleye stand in the 'Trends' hall Mads Obresen, principal of Putney-based White Vision, told optician he was looking after Fleye's entry. He added that the company was looking for agents in Britain 'who have the right mix of clients'.
'We are looking to sell the brand through fashionable independents,' he said. 'The Fleye ophthalmic look is very fashion-driven, very-materials based, with a lot of detail throughout the collection.'
Fleye, established in 2002, designs in titanium and acetate, and Obresen said he hoped to sell the brand on its fashionable Scandinavian image, and as a niche product exclusively to independents.
'It's interesting that we're going into the UK market now, as independents are having to find specialist niche product, rather than the licensed fashion collections the multiples can get and sell at a lower price,' he said. 'The only way [for them] to compete is by not competing on price but by specialising on different products that the multiples can't get to.'
As well as new launches and company news the show provides all manner of opportunities for groups and associations to hold events.
The European Sunglass Association held a press conference on its burgeoning interests at the show, and on the second night hosted the 8th Sunglass Industry Dinner for 150 guests at the Glitzy Socrea Palazzo Visconti.

New market opportunities
ESA managing director Petra Eckhardt-Kostler said the EU expansion earlier this month had created huge new selling opportunities for sunglass suppliers and retailers, and welcomed new ESA members, such as Poland and the Czech Republic. 'The EU expansion into 10 new countries has large possibilities, with 75 million potential sunglass customers,' she said.
'We have launched a new marketing strategy, and just before the show unveiled a communications platform which will support information for ESA members and all interested sunglass industry people.'
She revealed that the statistical unit of the ESA was currently working on in-depth predictions for the sector up until the year 2010, and these figures will be published at the ESA annual meeting on October 21, prior to Silmo. Before then the ESA will host its annual conference where 2005's fashion trends in the sector will be reviewed, as well as growth strategies with one of the significant themes being 'Development and chances in the new European countries'.
Nevertheless, there were problems in the European industry of illegal sunglass sales, ESA president Antonio Olivetta admitted, with 'street sellers' hawking eight million 'low quality' pairs in Spain alone.
Illegal trading was a theme picked up by Mido president Cirillo Marcolin who said counterfeit eyewear was doing a huge amount of damage to the Italian domestic market, with 74,000 pairs confiscated in the two-week period in the run up to Mido alone. He revealed that worldwide the problem cost Italy's profession around e75m a year. Also, counterfeiting had become so bad, particularly regarding the Far East, that Italy's profession was asking 'for a focus on new bilateral relations' and 'calling for the Chinese government to put a stop to counterfeiting in its country'.
Next year Mido will take place on the weekend of May 6-8.