From 3 to 5 February 2024, the spotlight is back on MIDO, global leader among eyewear tradeshows. For three days, stakeholders from all five continents will gather at Fieramilano Rho to discover the industry players that represent the entire eyewear supply chain in a highly international event.
WMIDO allows some exhibitors of MIDO 2024 to express their thoughts. Today’s interview is with Caroline Abram, founder of Caroline Abram.
Sustainability is a global priority, requiring businesses to respond accordingly to create a better future for us all. MIDO has been an active leader in the drive towards sustainability, creating two awards that reward and recognize those brands that achieve high levels of sustainability. The Certified Sustainable Eyewear (CSE) Award evaluating the sustainability of eyewear products internationally, and Stand Up For Green, recognizing brands that prioritize environmental protection. How does your company approach the issue of sustainability? What activities do you carry out that support the future of the planet?
Sustainability is indeed a critical issue for both current and future generations and the eyewear industry has moved proactively in developing innovations to enhance the sustainability of the sector. Manufacturers have adopted new materials and production processes to limit waste, reduce energy usage and increase the longevity of products. Supply systems are being refined with an eye towards reducing carbon emissions, grouping both manufacturing inputs and product deliveries as much as possible to minimize back-orders and ensure stock is available as needed.
In 2018 we moved offices to a new building specifically designed to maximize the use of solar energy, allowing for cost efficient heating during winters and cooling during hot summers.
In my opinion, sustainability is not just a critical global issue, it is basic common sense and as such should be and is a fundamental component of every company.
Young people are our future. Being close to them and responding to their needs is not always easy. MIDO, in this sense, always tries to keep up with the times and experiment: it was the first Industry Fair in the sector to have a digital magazine, to use a dedicated ap and reacted quickly to the COVID crisis by creating a digital platform. In 2024, MIDO was also the first in the industry to create a communication campaign using AI. How does your company try to reach younger people?
Young people, or Gen Z’s as they are often referred to, are our new customers and will undoubtably play a role in the successes or failures of the optical industry in the coming years. Our communications options will evolve to meet the needs of this new audience and AI may be a useful tool to meet their information demands. Younger audiences are largely driven by price, given that they generally have the least amount of purchasing power and many demands on their limited incomes.
To target Gen Z’s, I created an affordable, unique and colorful collection, called Blush that brings a breath of freshness and joy, just like a touch of Blush.
We are also trying to work out how to leverage and increase the impact of social media as it appears that in the optical industry only 3% of the customers define social media as a contributing factor in making a purchase. This percentage tends to be higher amongst younger purchasers which offers a potential avenue to increase impact.
We are very aware that we must not minimize the needs of very young clientele, and even less so their parents who are often anxious at the idea of their child needing optical equipment or glasses. When a child proudly wears their glasses as one of their favourite fashion accessories, thanks to an aesthetic and a design that reflects their personalities, they will eventually become adults who love glasses and consider them as something more than just a way of correcting a visual impairment.
It is with this vision in mind, that I created and designed the brand “Tête à lunettes” back in 2014, which was inspired by the “mini-me” looks. The idea was to have fun and create mother-daughter and father-son looks adapted to fit both parents and their children between 5 to 12 years old.
A 'hot' topic in 2023 is the increasing use of AI. MIDO, as we said, also used it in support of human creativity, to create the industry's first communication campaign. What do you think about the use of AI in your industry? Have you used it, and do you plan to use it in the future?
Well, like I’ve said before, AI is one of the options we are currently thinking about for future communication visuals. AI is a great tool that will probably change the way we work in the next 5 to 10 years but it needs competent people behind it to be used properly.
I don’t really have a position for or against it. Like all innovations it will frighten some people at the start, and it will probably become mainstream at some time in the future. Being one of the early adopters is something that excites me, and I can’t wait to find applications where AI will really bring something new to the sector.
What does it mean to design cutting-edge eyewear and accessories today? What message do you want to convey with your products?
Design is a very personal; some eyewear and accessories will be seen as cutting-edge for some people and will be just plain boring for others. For me, it just comes down to what I’m inspired about. I won’t say I’m cutting-edge in the shapes I’m doing because the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s are a big part of what inspires me; however, I’m trying to be innovative in the way I treat the frames as a whole. For me it’s primordial to work the material and the colours together, in a way that will make both shine.
As I see it, glasses are a part of who people are. I couldn’t see myself without glasses, it’s just the way I am, it’s more than just an accessory for me. My vision and the message I want to convey is that glasses should help men and women feel better about themselves! It should help them reveal the side of their personality they’d like to show the most. Glasses should enhance their beauty and this very special “je ne sais quoi”, glasses shouldn’t be a shield you hide behind!