After a postponement in 2020 and a brief sojourn to Florida in 2021, Manhattan’s Javits Center was once again the venue for Vision Expo East. Like virtually all trade fairs during the past two years of the coronavirus pandemic, Vision Expo has dealt with uncertainty over variants, venues being turned into emergency hospitals and government restrictions on public events.
With the emergence of the omicron variant in late 2021, trade shows in the first quarter of the year once again looked precarious. Opti Munich, scheduled for January 2022, was the first to reschedule to an unfamiliar May slot, while others like 100% Optical in January and Mido in February, also hastily rearranged their dates.
Vision Expo East’s slightly later dates of March 31 to April 3 gave organisers, The Vision Council and RX, a little more leeway to see how the new variant would spread, but they still had to hold their nerve. A comprehensive set of infection control measures, including mandatory vaccinations and face masks, had been put in place before the event, but as the coronavirus situation improved globally, the mandates were lifted two weeks before the show.
Good to be back
‘It was incredible to bring the vision care community together again in New York City for the first time since 2019,’ said Fran Pennella, vice president for Vision Expo at RX. ‘The show floor was buzzing with activity and the energy, especially on day one, was palpable as motivated attendees and exhibitors reconnected with their peers, conducted business and engaged with the education offerings.’
‘Of course, none of this would have been possible without the support and commitment of all our attendees, exhibitors and partners. We are truly grateful to each and every one who participated in this year’s exciting event.’
The sentiment was shared by exhibitors too. ‘We were thrilled to be back in person at Vision Expo East, with a renewed vigour and strength, and with an expansive and engaging new show presence,’ said Safilo’s USA president and chief commercial officer Steve Wright. ‘There was an exciting energy at our booth which was driven by attention-grabbing brand experiences, including a Kate Spade new york pop-up boutique, an Under Armour mini-golf, a Carolina Herrera shop-in-shop and Carrera/Ducati and Boss selfie-stations.’
‘We were beyond ecstatic to be back in New York, in person and maskless, with all of our customers and industry colleagues. The show was truly successful in many facets and we look forward to continuing with the Vision Expo East momentum in 2022,’ added Kelly Piotti, senior director of sales strategy and planning, at Hilco Vision.
Post-pandemic landscape
The global optical profession has seen rapid and sometimes unpredictable growth during the coronavirus pandemic, but only now is the dust beginning to settle to allow a better picture to emerge as to what changes may or may not stick around.
The spin-off Vision Monday Leadership Summit looked to address the issue by drafting in a series of CEOs and retail thought leaders from in and outside of the optical profession, to offer insights on disruption and consumer trends. Delegates heard about how consumers viewed stores and practices, how brands were built and how technology giants had vision care on their radars.
In a session titled, Vision-Tech Convergence, Fast Company magazine reporter Ruth Reader spoke about how companies such as Amazon, Google and Apple were approaching healthcare both through consumer products and services, as well as through platforms for enterprise customers. The talk covered wearable technology for health and wellness, remote patient monitoring and digital therapeutics. Reader said there were promising early developments and companies were making interesting moves by improving access to eye healthcare, but it was too early to talk about long term success.
Manhattan’s Javits Center
For ‘Retail is the New Media Channel’ session, which featured John Carroll, head of Advisory for Coresight Research, North America, and Sydney Stinson Ferguson, VP of marketing at Sunglass Hut, North America, content was key. Carroll shared insight on Coresight’s research on social commerce and live streaming. In 2019, the ecommerce market in the US was worth $3bn, but Coresight predicted that would be $17bn in 2022. Carroll urged optical retailers to get on board the live streaming bandwagon as soon as possible in order to benefit from viewers that then visit websites for more information.
Content was also crucial for Sunglass Hut during the pandemic, said Stinson Ferguson. She explained how the company used its social media channels at the start of the pandemic in 2020 to showcase things that ‘brought joy to consumers during a time that was really really tough for people.’ The retailer also increased its support of healthy activities like live yoga sessions and meditation classes, as well as roller skating events in Los Angeles and New York, allowing it to connect on a new level.
The pandemic and its knock-on effects aren’t only driving consumer and professional behaviour, it’s starting to influence the products coming to market.
Shamir showcases Glacier Expression
Shamir’s latest anti-reflective coating, Glacier Expression, has looked to address some of the communication issues, often non-verbal, caused by the significant increase of computer use and video calls over the past two years.
Shamir’s USA vice president of marketing Phil Pasit pointed towards Princetown University research which determined that people form an impression of an individual in less than one-tenth of a second after looking at their face – and it’s the eyes which are looked at most during this process, he said. Shamir’s Insight CEO Raanan Naftalovich added: ‘When people can see our eyes and our expression, they feel more connected.’
The company hypothesised that lens reflections that have been so prevalent during pandemic video calls, could be creating a barrier in making personal connections and building trust. It commissioned online research of nearly 1,300 consumers wearing Glacier Expression to another premier AR coating. Pasit told the press briefing 93% of respondents said they felt a connection to Glacier Expression wearers, and an additional 81% said they felt Glacier Expression wearers were more ‘trustworthy’ than participants wearing other coatings. Seeing the eyes of the Glacier Expression wearers allowed the respondents to emotionally connect with them,’ he said.
Shamir described the effect of screen-based light reflections as ‘screenflections,’ and said the new coating employed newly developed ‘visual noise reduction technology’ that minimised the level of ambient light entering the eye as well as cutting visible reflections.
‘By manipulating those light rays, we help you look better, see better and feel better,’ said Pasit. Glacier Expression will be available in the UK later in 2022.
It’s good to talk
This year’s event once again featured the Eye2Eye series of talks, events and presentations. One of the most engaging talks of the weekend was the ‘Next Generation of Eyewear’ session, chaired by Tarrence Lackran, vice president for community relations – diversity and inclusion, at Luxury Optical Holdings. The talk featured three millennial optical entrepreneurs – eyewear stylist Autianna Wilson, Christos Karabelas, owner of Soma Optical in Boston, and Riya Mehta, senior designer at Robert Marc NYC.
The Next Generation Eyewear panel discussion
All three panellists shared their experiences of fledgling careers so far, but it was Karabelas experiences of starting a practice that perhaps resonated with the audience the most. He said his past experience of making ‘not very good’ frames, made him truly appreciate the skill and craft that went into independent eyewear, so he and his wife opened Soma Optical to celebrate ‘those who have made glasses their craft.’ The practice’s different approach to buying was also touched upon. ‘People often tell you to stock a small selection of brands, but go deep with each range,’ said Karabelas. ‘I stock 42 different brands in our store and the weird stuff draws people in. People buy off enthusiasm and I’m enthusiastic about every brand we carry,’ he added.
Wilson outlined the story of how she went from optical assistant to eyewear influencer, to qualified dispensing optician and eyewear stylist, with a couple of bumps in between. It was while working as optical assistant and influencer that she was reported to a local regulator for exceeding what she was allowed to do in practice. Rather than seeing this as a setback, she began towards the journey being a qualified dispensing optician. Now fully qualified, she has recreated herself as a roving eyewear stylist with an online retail extension and said she has focused solely on giving her customers ‘an experience’ and service that they’ll remember.
American Optical’s pop up museum traced the company’s roots back to 1833
Pandemic pivots
Gai Gherardi, co-founder of l.a. Eyeworks, was one of the members of the audience at the Next Generation of Eyewear talk, so Optician caught up with her and director of communications Brent Zerger afterwards to see how the brand had coped during the pandemic.
Cowgirl 616 by l.a. Eyeworks
Vincent 737 by I.a. Eyeworks
The pandemic has also crept into the sphere of influence for Gherardi’s designs too, said Zerger. Vincent, a chunky yet thin HD acetate style has been introduced to appeal to new Zoom users that might need new glasses, but want those glasses to be noticed. Cowgirl treads a similar bold path, with its cat’s eye shape sporting straight lines and sharp edges that give a retro silhouette a modern look.
Puppy Parties exhibit proved to be a popular feature at the event
