See more at Silmo

Chris Bennett arrives back from a busy weekend in
Paris with a round up of the latest developments
from this year's Silmo exhibitionNever have so many rimless, high index, brightly-coloured acetate and tinted eyewear products been gathered together before than on Metro Line 12 heading for this year's Silmo Exhibition at the Porte de Versailles.
However the eye-care professionals, sales people and designers sporting this high-value eyewear heading for the show had other things on their mind this year.
Wearable was the word du jour in Paris as the buyers and designers took a turn towards the practical.
It was not entirely clear if this new-found realism was a fallout from the poor showing at Italian exhibition Mido in the spring or whether it was a reflection of eyewear-buying trends, but words like service and quality nestled among the more common words of essence and feel.
Many of the decades from the last millennium were being raided for style ideas, notably the 1930s, 1950s, 1960s and 1970s for sunglasses.
Upswept eye shapes were very much the order of the day, as were supras, and often the two were combined. The angular acetate brow could be seen and many used the off lens brow as a design cue.
While the Village area still played host to a large number of brightly coloured and whacky designs, the main hall had a much more businesslike feel.
That was echoed by the exhibitors who hailed the first day as one of the best at a trade fair they had experienced.
The British contingent was out in force. If their product offering was slightly less desirable than their overseas competitors', their growing reputation for quality, reliability and service continued apace.
Children's eyewear specialist Brulimar was finding strong interest in its brands such as Pepsi, for which it holds the European licence. Group sales director Alexander Harris said that buying patterns between England and the rest of Europe were totally different as European opticians were free from the domination of the NHS voucher scheme.
As well as A-list brand names Harris said interest in more mainstream high quality products such as the Top Secret range was also good. It presented a low price option to buyers but still retained features such as a bendy metal bridge and stainless steel temples.
Another exhibitor who wished to remain nameless said overseas visitors liked the British approach. 'People like to deal with us because we are a British company. We will sell singles, 50s, 100 Ð you do not have to buy 500 all in one colour. Everything on the stand is in stock, there is a big service element to it and we are honourable.'
He pointed to a number of fairly traditional designs that were doing well at the event, including some supra models. He went on to stress that the international flavour of the event meant you could not always gauge success by orders taken at the show.
Continental Eyewear also sees the event as a showcase for its products. With so many people flying in from around the world, they are at the show to do business, not just to window shop. From the Eastern block there are buyers looking for budget, good-value product and from the Middle East and North Africa buyers are looking for top-end frames. Sales and marketing manager Neal Grimason said the company did not use gimmicks, it was about having the range of products people wanted and delivering. He attends the show both as a buyer and seller and indicated that he had found a brand at the show he would be bringing to the UK. 'It will be very different but it will fill a niche,' he said.
John Tomic of Sigma Optical, another British company at the show, said he was looking to provide style that used the latest technological materials but at an affordable price and in designs that people would readily wear. 'We want to design our frames not to follow trends but to lead trends.'
Tomic selects the material, designs the frames and then works with contract manufacturers to produce the product. This was a formula that worked well in Europe but, he insisted, the company would not abandon the UK despite its price-led ethos. 'I am not in the business of discounting. I don't want to work for everybody but myself.'
Having design and quality was important at Silmo, said Tomic, as there were plenty of companies selling on price. It was also important to be able to offer the small companies products that the big chains could not offer.
Tomic is evangelical about his materials, claiming that the Japanese memory colbalt-rich titanium in his rimless range was the best in the world. His Technoflex range includes rimless pieces with bridges in different materials to help stability and treatment of the temple ends to help adjustments.
As a designer, Tomic said he had not seen anything at the show that was going to knock 'Silhouette into touch'.
Design at the show was about nuance. 'Last year if you had anything swept up you could throw it in the bin but angles are coming back.'
Displaying one of the greatest diversities of eye shapes on offer was British frame supplier Inspecs. Chris Borton, marketing director, said the Friday of the show had been Inspecs' best ever day at a trade fair. As a mass-market supplier but with some off-the-wall brands, Inspecs had wondered whether it should be in the main hall but opted to stay in the Village with the other 'new trends' exhibitors. This, he said, was true to the name of Inspecs.
Leading the way for the French Connection range were some brightly-coloured styles in red and purple. Although not indicative of the brand, they set the trend. The brand was not trying to compete with Versace, said Borton but its buyers wanted style and sophistication at a reasonable price. The understated look continues in the range and once again supra styles were brought to the fore. Borton said that in many ways they were becoming more minimalist than many rimless frames because they did not need the bolts and drilling. Practices also liked them because they did not need to be sent away. Inspecs was 'happy to let Silhouette do what they do best,' he said.
A new brand on the stand was CAT, described by Borton as unlike any other. The brand, which boasts merchandising licences worth $900m on a range of products, has a rugged feel and an ageless appeal. The range has an 'engineered' feel with yellow tips and rubber coatings. 'It has been one of the surprises of Silmo,' said Borton.
Also new for Inspecs was the Speedo range. This was a true mass-market range, said Borton, with the brand known in 172 countries. The eyewear range is equally eclectic, with 270 variants, including everything from the highly fashionable to the everyday.
While the range majors on sunwear, Borton said the ophthalmics range was generating interest from overseas visitors. Elsewhere in the line up, Nicole Farhi saw the addition of memory metals, while Austin Reed saw a number of 'Geeky chic' frames appearing among the more classic lines.
Borton was not wrong in his earlier prediction about Silhouette. The Austrian minimalist frame maker was living up to its name. It heralded the opening of Silmo with a spectacular range launch and show around a swimming pool in the Ritz Hotel.
The range and the show worked around a theme of Tropical Sun and four hues of Papaya, Lychee, Kiwi and Aqua. Silhouette laid on entertainment by the Cirque Du Soleil and a mass of brightly coloured frames in a mass of shapes and styles were display.
Silhouette promotional material talks of joie de vivre and tropical freshness and the range does not disappoint. The tropical colours merge with shapes from the Minimal Art, Minimal X and the full-rim versions of SPX modern art to form a noticeable and massive style choice.
Styles standing out included the Titan Minimal Art rimless models 8067, 8561, 8562, 8583 and 8584 is the kind of style that will become a high street favourite, while the more elegant but wearable double bridge models (8569, 8585) are still very wearable.
Shields continue to find a space in the collection (model 8075) for those looking to make a statement. Classic shapes with a modern twist can be seen in models 3174, 3175, 4049 and 4050. Confident fashion victims will be wearing the SPX modern art shield (model 3178) with its mix of retro, aviator, colour and titanium.
Another buzzword at the show was polarised, and Silhouette returned to a more classic look with its Titan Metallic models 8076, 8581 and 8586 which mix this lens technology with classic lines.
Ageless chic was also much in evidence on the Kenneth Cole Eyewear stand. Karen Jane Polley, field sales manager of Norville Eyewear, which distributes the product in the UK, said the Kenneth Cole Signature and Reaction variants made the point that styling was not all about age.
Kenneth Cole now has a Reactions range, for the younger wearer, and a Signature line for an even more classic feel. She described the Reactions range as fresh, but not extreme. The Signature range saw mergers of metal and acetate, while elsewhere in the range Jackie Onassis-styles met fuschia colours and graduated lenses. The whole range had its fair share of colour which, Polley said, opticians liked to brighten up their diplays with bright colours which gave the range an added depth.
This view was echoed by Michael Jawett, national sales manager at Marcolin. He said colour was a pan-fashion trend at the moment, not just in eyewear. However, while many people were talking about colourful plastic and extreme shapes, it would be the more wearable styles that would sell. 'I think what people will wear on their arms and legs is different form what they will wear on their face.'
Continuing to headline Marcolin's 16-brand line up is Dolce & Gabbana with its mixture of glamour and sophistication. Andy Griffiths of marketing company Halpern said he expected the brand to be 'phenomenal' again this year. Styles such as 418 were 'flying out of the shops' and the 'Victoria Beckham effect' has worked its magic on big chunky plastics. Elsewhere in the range the use of leather trim and bold logos was in evidence. Fluidity was the description for many shapes with rounded aviator and shield styling. The mixture of metals and acetate was also a feature and lenses were also being used for colour and ghosted logo display.
Costume National, was using detail as its hallmark. D&G on the other hand was a riot of textures and colours with imagery taken from punk and hip hop to cement its non-conformist look. The use of mesh was much in evidence.
A new name for Marcolin was North Face which offered three options for those looking for a sporty, street look, a snow sports feel and day-to-day use.
Nicoletta Chinello from the Safilo communications department said it was working hard to create personality for each of its brands. Across the range she said the company had big shapes, small shapes plastics and metal. She said design signatures were being used across the collections, such as flowers and leather trim.
On the vast Luxottica stand Versace Versus was looking to autumnal colours and patterned acetates to provide the design personality. Natalia Cassel pointed to the heavy branding and use of plastics.
The range included an array of colour and marbling and a techno-horn look were used to good effect. This gave the feeling of bone, hide or skin, some with a reptilian look. Colours come in solid form or as streaks, flecks or detail.
Also in the range were styles which pushed the boundaries more in shape and form. Model 4014 used a near 90-degree turn in lens and frame to create a kind of boxed off side which created an interesting style while retaining usable vision and comfort.
The ophthalmic range uses black and brown but also acetates, either clear or with a hit of colour (model 3013).
In the Versace range, combining classic and new was the big Diva shape with diamant