Two million products at Mido 2008.

There were nearly two million products at this year's Mido in Milan and some 112 Chinese mainland and Hong Kong firms showed how the centre of gravity of the eyewear business is inexorably moving towards Asia.

This is a show which will move to an opening in 2009 (6 March to 9 March) in order to run concurrently with the international fashion accessories shows taking place at around the same time in Italy. Then from 4 to 6 September, Rome is the city that will host the inaugural Mido Business Forum.

Despite the fact that the Italian eyewear industry ranked top globally, with export sales in 2007 up 11.6% as against 2006, Asia is fast becoming the centre for both production and sales. Some 13.7% of Italy's total export sales were in Asia, while the Chinese mainland market continues to expand.

The Mainland represents a serious competitor to the Italian industry, owing to the fact that increasing numbers of fashion-oriented products and those featuring valuable materials are produced there, at highly competitive prices.

Wing Shing frames on display.

Stephanie Zheng at Wing Shing: meeting global customers.

From Hong Kong, Wing Shing Optical Manufacturers has been participating at Mido for over 10 years and met their international customers at the show this time.

The company's stainless steel and titanium frames are its best sellers. Some frames are finished with leather details at the side, while other models have side-pieces made of laser-decorated metal or feature embellishments of floral patterns and pearls. The average wholesale prices for these pieces start from Euros7.5.

Demonstrating how the trade show for eyewear is expanding, Elegante Arts Packaging Company of Hong Kong presented a new display stand for spectacles made of light wood and fabric-texture printed material, complete with transparent plexiglass shelves. There was also a modular presentation stand made of plastic material, in which the company name is repeatedly high-relief and bas-relief printed. New materials, including PVC, are also used, as well as silk-printed display stands and window cases.

PACKI opportunities.

Linda Tsang, sales executive for PACKI Eyewear (headquartered in Hong Kong and operating from Shenzhen), said: "we met our customary buyers coming from Europe, the US and the Middle East at Mido. Our production takes up frames and sunglasses made of materials like metal, acetate, steel and titanium."

Sunglass looks were rectangular, round and wrap-around

Cynthia Chu, general manager for Europe with Dragon Eyes Hong Kong, expressed her satisfaction for business at this edition of Mido, thanks to many new contacts. Most of her customers came from Europe, which represents the most significant market, followed by the UK, as well as the US, Canada and Latin America.

Dragon Eyes focuses on sunglasses, which are mostly made of large-sized acetate and textures reminiscent of animal hides. Customers were looking for lenses that are rectangular or rounded, or even mask-shaped wrap-arounds.

Dragon Eyes sunglasses.

Lenses from Taiyu (Xiamen) Optical.

Eva Huang, sales manager for Taiyu (Xiamen) Optical was less impressed by this first visit to the show, believing that the fashion-first approach doesn't allow sufficient space for her company's innovative, tech-advanced lenses made from nylon, AC, PC and TCR, using high-quality materials.

Capture equipment for ophthalmic use.

Eyewear designer CSO bases its production on design and manufacturing ophthalmic diagnostic tools. One of its novelties was Capture, a device for the non-contact analysis of the endothelial cells for CSO slot lamps, which is capable of penetrating all layers of the eye and helping ophthalmologists diagnose eye complaints.

Mega trends at the show

Extra-large "star" sunglasses reminiscent of Hollywood are expected to be the "box office" sales hits of summer 2008. Oval, round, square and squared, convex or butterfly shapes are all very much "in".

Materials used include faux tortoiseshell, horn, snake and a metropolitan version of a safari look, inspired by nature, with tones such as black, sage green, musk, amber, ochre, brown and beige. White and candy tones are also very trendy for summer 2008.

François Pinton's round sunglasses.

Lacoste special edition white sunglasses.

Eyewear includes black and grey shades for women and men, dull and transparent colours and tortoiseshell textures.

A number of men's models features a vintage look, and especially a Rayban-like drop shape, using acetate and metal altogether with leather details.

Design Naturell horn-rimmed frames.

NXT Intercast lenses.

Sunglass lenses mostly use a range of classic and restful colours, including brown, smoke-grey, grey, blue and green as well as black.

Lenses themselves are now more frequently glass as it assures a visual sharpness adaptable to any environmental and driving conditions, with protection from dangerous blue light radiation.

Meanwhile, sunglasses for kids are coloured and fun, copying adults' styles.

Cases for the most elegant glasses were made of valuable materials in a wide range of colours - and they included ecology-related materials such as wood, coloured felt and cork.

Branded options more high-tech

Sharp lenses from Barberini.

Barberini of Italy manufactures optical glass lenses featuring high quality sharpness of focus, and a wide range of colours and chromatic effects. These non-scratch lenses are resistant to shocks and protect the wearer from reflection (including those from polarised light), from IR and from UV rays.

Plz 1.8 from Barberini is the polarised sun lens that uses the thinnest optical glass available, capable of offering the best visual quality.

Rodenstock presented its new lenses, Progressiv PureLife, Multigressiv MyView and Impression FreeSign. Progressiv PureLife assures the wearer a clear and sharp view both for near and distance vision, featuring high reading performances, thanks to the principle that the image is focused on the retina. The viewing fields are wide and the viewing adjustment is short, Rodenstock claims.

Puma from Japan's Charmant Group launched a special collection of sports sunglasses called Puma Beijing, dedicated to the athletes of the Beijing Olympics, where Puma will be an official supplier.

Italy's De Rigo Vision came up with two collections: The Chopard brand relies on models embellished with 23-carat gold.

Vintage line from Ermegildo Zegna.

Alternatively, the new eyewear from the company's Ermegildo Zegna featured an Upper Class line in titanium and leather; as well as a Vintage line made from acetate and drawing inspiration from the 1970s.

There was also a Design line featuring titanium, rubber and plastic materials from the Ermegildo stylists.

New collections from Face à Face, a brand owned by the French company Architectures, proposed large-size sunglasses made of transparent and solid, bicolour acetate, as well as eyewear in titanium and acetate (with retail prices at Euros200).

Face-à-Face presentation.

Coco Song fusion wear.

X-IDE presented a new collection of hyper-feminine frames called Diamond, consisting of a light steel frame, a front with nylon circles and epoxy details, coloured transparent lacquer and embellished with small rhinestones and acetate terminals. Retail prices for the eyewear ranged from Euros180 to Euros210.

Stylist Coco Song, whose products are manufactured by Area, proposed a fusion of eastern and western cultures. Acetate frames included dried leaves decorated with metal or Swarovski crystals - or even gold and diamonds. Retail prices ranged from Euros180 to Euros250.

The first eyewear collection from Italian fashion designer Alberta Ferretti is to be manufactured and distributed by the Elite Group. It includes sunglasses and frames featuring wrap-over shapes and exclusive colours. Some models are decorated with metal micro casting stars, embellished by Swarovski crystals.

from special correspondents Cristina Bellavista and
Clara Dodino, Milan