Nightlife Vision
Anyone who has partied in a hot spot like Ibiza has likely experienced the blinding shock of morning light when exiting a club in time for breakfast. Such a scenario served as an unlikely inspiration for a new way to sell sunglasses. Last year, friends Alessandro Forte, Matteo Maragnano and Stefano Ottone, who collectively ran a vintage eyewear boutique on the Mediterranean isle, installed vending machines dispensing their new sunglass line, Glassing, placing them at the doors of the island’s famous nightclubs. Bleary-eyed partygoers began snapping up the firm’s Day-Glo aviators, priced at around $49, not only for the morning after, but to coordinate with their club-kid ensembles. The partners have extended their innovative distribution concept and the machines are now spread around Frankfurt, Florence and Milan.
For fall, Glassing signed with Polaroid to launch two designs modeled on an Eighties-style square shape in cream, midnight blue and brown. While the Polaroid deal will bring Glassing’s frames to optical shops for the first time, the guys behind the line are always on the lookout for new spots for their vending machines. Says Maragnano: “Airport lounges would be the ultimate home for them.”