Designers license sunglasses but don't manufacture them<\/p>\n
By Dini S. Djalal<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A friend recently confessed to me that he was
\nmiserable about clothes and shoes, wearing each fraying item in
\nhis closet until they fall off. A free spirit, he disdains
\npossessions and spending more than he should on life's
\nnecessities.<\/p>\n
But my penny-pinching friend is not wholly immune to
\nmaterialism. He has oval-shaped tortoise-shell frames to cover up
\nhis eyes. When he takes off his chic spectacles, he puts them in
\nan elegant case. The logo on the case? Giorgio Armani.<\/p>\n
\"Sunglasses are important, you know,\" said Greg, a guide for
\ncycling tours through Asia and Africa. \"My job means spending a
\nlot of time running around under the sun, so I have to have
\ncomfortable glasses. I can't buy those cheap, five-dollar
\nsunglasses, because they break easily and don't offer UVA or UVB
\nprotection,\" he said. He spent US$200 on his Armani specs, on
\nsale, and shows no regret of his purchase.<\/p>\n
Shades, sunnies, specs, blinders, goggles -- many words have
\nbeen tossed around for the two protective pieces of glass that
\ncover your eyes. Sunglasses, and eyewear in general, have past
\ntheir function as medical equipment, and are now key fashion
\nstatements.<\/p>\n
Along with perfume, underwear, and bed linen, Market-savvy
\ndesigners are not content with sketching suits or dictating
\nhemlines; they want their names on everything from plates to pens,
\nshoes to shampoo -- and make a ton of money in the process.<\/p>\n
Eyewear is an increasingly important component to the
\ndesigner's image because, to many, it's a necessity rather than a
\nluxury. Prescription glasses, for example, have a captive market.<\/p>\n
And unlike perfume or underwear, eyeglasses are visible proof
\nof one's purchasing power. Among jet-setting cognoscenti,
\nsunglasses are indispensable: some rock stars and fashion
\neditors, hiding their crow's feet and probably bloodshot eyes
\nfrom all-night partying, may as well be surgically attached to
\ntheir jet-black shades. Eyewear has become so trendy that, when
\nit was at its peak, many fashion victims with perfect vision wore
\nglasses to enhance their appearance. In matters of self-
\nadornment, glasses are vital.<\/p>\n
And profitable. While plastic wraparounds are sold on street
\ncorners for pocket change, designer eyewear can empty your
\npockets. The typical price for an exclusive design is between
\n$200 and $400, while bridge-line sunglasses can be acquired for
\nunder $200, but rarely under $100.<\/p>\n
Yet as central as eyewear is to a designer's collection, few
\nrealize just how little involved the designer is with the glasses
\nthemselves. Customers buy designer sunglasses for the designer
\ncachet, but actually designers license their name to eyewear
\nmanufacturers, with details of deals varying from license to
\nlicense.<\/p>\n
For example, the manufacturer of Calvin Klein eyewear,
\nrecently launched in Indonesia, is eyewear manufacturer Marchon,
\nowned by Americans Albert Berg, Jeff White, and Larry Roth.
\nMarchon bought the Calvin Klein eyewear license for the entire
\nworld.<\/p>\n
Marchon said it bought the Calvin Klein license because, \"It's
\na very aggressive company and Mr. Klein has a very good marketing
\nmind,\" Mr. X, General Manager of Marchon Hong Kong, told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
So what if the eyewear was made in Italy and Japan, and the
\nproduction controlled by the licensee, what is Klein's role in
\nthe business? \"The optical business is very different than
\nfashion. We take care of the industrial marketing,\" said Mr.X.<\/p>\n
And advertising? \"Advertising and marketing, we do
\neverything,\" he said.<\/p>\n
But where does that leave Klein? \"Well, the image is from Mr.
\nKlein, of course,\" he said. \"But the design is from both Mr.
\nKlein and our company. Eyewear has some very specific technical
\npoints and Mr. Klein does not know all these points,\" Mr.X added.<\/p>\n
Yet Mr. X insists that the eyewear is, essentially, designed
\nby Calvin Klein -- and there are between 15 and 20 new designs
\nevery year. \"Mr. Klein makes the final approval of designs. If he
\ndoesn't like a design, it gets sent back,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Funky frames<\/p>\n
The returned designs, at least for the Asian market, are not
\nlikely to be gold-plated ones. Mr.X said that the most important
\ndetail Indonesian customers look for in sunglasses was the gold
\ncolor -- normally not part of Calvin Klein esthetics. \"But now,
\nfor the Asian market, all Calvin Klein models have gold-plated
\ndesigns -- shiny gold and matte gold. But if you go to the U.S.,
\nyou can't find them there,\" he said.<\/p>\n
As for design details, Mr.X unfortunately did not bring any
\nsamples and only showed photographs from a catalog.<\/p>\n
Not so with Lee Cooper Jeans, which also recently launched an
\neyewear collection with a head-turning fashion show at the
\nFashion Cafe. At roughly $100 each, Lee Cooper eyewear is not in
\nthe same designer category as Calvin Klein, and targets a wider
\nmarket. But its marketing machinery doesn't stray far from the
\ntry-and-test path.<\/p>\n
For one, in keeping with demands of the glitz-minded Asian
\nmarket, glasses on display are also gold-plated.<\/p>\n
Also in keeping with the intricate web of fashion industry,
\nLee Cooper eyewear is made by Logo, France's primary eyewear
\nmanufacturer.<\/p>\n
The Lee Cooper rivet may grace all glass frames and metal
\ncases, but it is Logo that has been taking care of production,
\ndistribution and advertising.<\/p>\n
So the next time you balance those Armani specs and feel
\nyou've bought into the designer's prestige, think about the
\nassembly-line manufacturers cashing in on the deal.<\/p>",
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