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Alain Mikli | |
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| Born | Alain Miklitarian April 1, 1955 |
| Occupation(s) | Optician, designer |
Alain Mikli (born Alain Miklitarian; 1 April 1955) is a French-Armenian designer of high-end handmade eyeglasses and accessories. [1] Mikli's line features unique colors and shapes, and are a favorite among European celebrities and avant-garde Americans. Mikli claims his use of color is inspired by his Lebanese Armenian heritage.
In 1978, Mikli opened his design studio in Paris. By 1983, celebrities like Elton John helped bring the line recognition by wearing and touting Mikli products. Kanye West wore Alain Mikli sunglasses in his music video, Stronger, which he specifically requested from the designer. This style of sunglasses has become a wide phenomenon, usually being referred to as "shutter shades". As of 2000, Mikli's firm employed 220 people with sales of approx. FF220 million. Around 500,000 pairs of Mikli glasses have been sold worldwide.[ citation needed ]
On 23 January 2013, Alain Mikli International was bought by Italian eyewear giant Luxottica for around 90 million euros. [2]
Sunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that are colored, polarized or darkened. In the early 20th century, they were also known as sun cheaters.
Oakley, Inc., based in Lake Forest, California, is an American company operating as an independent subsidiary of EssilorLuxottica. The company designs, develops and manufactures sports performance equipment and lifestyle pieces including sunglasses, safety glasses, eyeglasses, sports visors, ski/snowboard goggles, watches, apparel, backpacks, shoes, optical frames, and other accessories. Most items are designed in house at their head office, but some countries hold exclusive designs relevant to their market. Oakley currently holds more than 600 patents for eyewear, materials, and performance gear.
Luxottica Group S.p.A. is an Italian eyewear conglomerate and the world's largest company in the eyewear industry. It is based in Milan, Italy. Its best known brands are Costa, Ray-Ban, Persol, Oliver Peoples and Oakley.
Ray-Ban is an American-Italian brand of luxury sunglasses and eyeglasses created in 1936 by Bausch & Lomb. The brand is known for its Wayfarer and Aviator lines of sunglasses. In 1999, Bausch & Lomb sold the brand to Italian eyewear conglomerate Luxottica Group for a reported $640 million.
LensCrafters is an international retailer of prescription eyewear and prescription sunglasses. Its stores usually host independent optometrists on-site or in an adjacent store. The company has its corporate headquarters in Mason, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati in the US.
Sunglass Hut is an international retailer of sunglasses and sunglass accessories founded in Miami, Florida, United States, in 1971. Sunglass Hut is part of the Italian-based Luxottica Group, the world’s largest eyewear company.
James Jannard is an American designer, businessman and founder of Oakley, Inc., an eyewear and apparel company; and Red Digital Cinema Camera Company.
Persol is an Italian eyewear brand specializing in the manufacturing of sunglasses and optical frames. It is one of the oldest eyewear companies in the world and is owned by the Luxottica group. The name is derived from the Italian per il sole, meaning "for the sun". Formed in 1917 by Giuseppe Ratti, Persol originally catered to pilots and sports drivers. Presently, the company markets durable sports sunglasses. The company trademark is a silver arrow.
Essilor International is a French-based international ophthalmic optics company that designs, manufactures and markets lenses to correct or protect eyesight. Its headquarters is in Charenton-le-Pont, France.
Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses have been manufactured by Ray-Ban since 1952, which in turn has belonged to the Italian Luxottica Group since 1999. Wayfarers enjoyed early popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, returning to popularity again after a 1982 product placement. A second revival occurred in the mid-2000s.
Foster Grant, or FosterGrant, is an American brand of eyewear founded by Sam Foster in 1919. The Foster Grant brand is a subsidiary company of FGX International, a consumer goods wholesaler with headquarters in Smithfield, Rhode Island, which has been owned by Essilor since 2010.
Safilo Group S.p.A. is an Italian company that designs, produces and distributes prescription frames, sunglasses, sports eyewear, ski goggles and helmets, and cycling helmets under its own five house brands and 32 licensed brands, including Smith Optics which manufactures military grade eyewear.
Oliver Peoples is an American luxury eyewear brand established in 1986, and owned by Luxottica. The brand is sold in Oliver Peoples boutiques, online, and in fashion boutiques and department stores throughout the world. Oliver Peoples eyewear is designed in Los Angeles, Italy, and Japan.
Randolph Engineering, Inc., located in Randolph, Massachusetts, manufactures and sells sunglasses, shooting glasses, and prescription glasses. Randolph Engineering, Inc. is also the prime contractor for aviator sunglasses to the United States military.
DITTO is a company that sells software that aids eyewear companies sell their products online using virtual fitting. Originally DITTO was a retailer that sold designer prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses. The company is based in San Francisco, CA. It used virtual fitting technology to let customers try on frames from a computer. The technology measures a user’s face by homing in on pupils, ears, cheekbones, ears and other facial landmarks, and then came back with images of dozens of different pairs of glasses that might be a good fit.
Clearly is an online retailer of contact lenses, eyeglasses and sunglasses. The company was acquired by EssilorLuxottica Canada, and is headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. They are one of the largest online contact lens retailers in North America, and the largest seller of prescription eyeglasses online in the world.
Sunnies Studios is a Philippine-based lifestyle brand that began as a product line of sunglasses. Founded in 2013, Sunnies Studios has since expanded to offering prescription eyeglasses, and has ventured into the makeup industry, with Sunnies Face, and the food industry, with Sunnies Cafe. They maintain 127 stores in the Philippines and Vietnam, as well as an online store that extends its reach to Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.
Oliver Goldsmith is a British eyewear design company established in London in 1926 by Phillip Oliver Goldsmith. Under the directorship of his son Charles "Oliver" Goldsmith, grandsons Andrew Oliver and Raymond, and great-granddaughter Claire Goldsmith, the brand became known worldwide for its innovative designs for glasses and sunglasses worn by celebrities such as Diana Dors, Michael Caine and Audrey Hepburn. Hepburn's famous sunglasses in Breakfast at Tiffany's were an Oliver Goldsmith design. The sunglasses side of the brand ceased producing in 1985 but was re-launched in 2005 after a 20-year hiatus. The spectacle side has remained in production throughout, without interruption.
Gentle Monster styled as GENTLE MONSTER is a South Korean sunglasses and optical glasses brand founded by Hankook Kim in Seoul in 2011.
EssilorLuxottica SA is an Italian-French vertically integrated multinational corporation based in Paris and founded on 1 October 2018 from the merger of the Italian Luxottica with the French Essilor. The group designs, produces and markets ophthalmic lenses, optical equipment, prescription glasses and sunglasses. The company has a portfolio of proprietary and licensed brands including Ray-Ban, Oakley, Michael Kors, Varilux, Crizal, Transitions and LensCrafters. EssilorLuxottica is currently a global leader in the design, production and sale of ophthalmic lenses and frames.
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