LONDON — French eyewear brand Izipizi has expanded considerably in the past 15 years, and it has no plans to stop.
A clever take on the phrase “easy peasy,” the brand now employs more than 200 people, sells via 25 stores in France, the U.K., Belgium, Croatia and Serbia, and has over 7,000 points of sale around the world, including Selfridges in London, Isetan in Tokyo and MoMA Design Store in New York.
Xavier Aguera, who cofounded Izipizi (which was known as See Concept until 2017) alongside childhood friends Charles Brun and Quentin Couturier, said the company’s goal remains the same after all these years: to become the Swatch of the eyewear sector, creating smart, simple, premium but affordable products.
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“Our dream is to be a brand in everybody’s life. There was no emotion in our former brand name. We picked Izipizi because when you say it, you need to smile. And this is the main spirit of our company. We are here to give smiles to our customers,” said Aguera.
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The brand started with reading glasses and now provides a range of products spanning sun, kids, blue light, sport and accessories. Its latest collection is called Stadium, a line of reading glasses with a retro-sporty edge.
Aguera said the demand for glasses made for outdoor functions like mountaineering, skiing, trekking, running, cycling, golf and water sports is growing fast. People not only wear them for these specific needs but also style them as fashion statements in daily life.
Brand partnerships get attention, too. Izipizi has a colorful kids’ selection with French luxury kidswear company Bonpoint and a crossover with Moleskine featuring two-tone reading glasses and large notebooks.
Last year it also launched a fashion-forward range with Engineered Garments, the clothing brand established in 1999 by Japanese designer Daiki Suzuki. It features ultra-round retro and modern reading glasses with a camouflage finish alongside circular sunglasses available in camouflage or khaki leopard designs.
In the meantime, Izipizi glasses are becoming greener.
To offset its environmental impact, Aguera said the company is investing heavily in bio-based materials such as polyamide sourced from castor oil to reduce carbon emissions in its production. Izipizi received a B Corp certification in 2023 and shares its latest sustainability achievements in its annual corporate social responsibility reports.
Aguera said the brand takes pride in being an independent player in a category generally dominated by large eyewear groups. While it took private equity firm TowerBrook in as a minority investor in 2022, Izipizi aims to continue to grow at a steady, healthy pace.
“To create a nice brand, of course, we need to go fast, but also to go right. I have seen a lot of brands going up and down. We have a plan to expand, and we can do it as we are doing now,” said Aguera.
The prime focus of 2025, according to Aguera, would be expansion across southern Europe, while the U.S. would be a key source of growth for the brand in the mid- to long-term.
The U.S. market contributes 20 percent of total revenues. Europe accounts for 60 percent of its market share and the rest of the world represents the remaining 20 percent.
Last year, the brand hired Jonathan Crespo as its first chief executive officer of North America. Crespo, who previously worked as global senior director of business management and development at Oliver Peoples, is now leading the brand to develop wholesale, e-commerce, and eventually a brick-and-mortar presence in the region by 2026.
That process is also being turbocharged by industry veterans like Ulric Jerome, who was CEO of Matchesfashion between 2013 and 2019.
Jerome now sits on the TowerBrook management advisory board, and helps direct-to-consumer brands and retail brands within the portfolio, including Izipizi, to scale globally with a digital-first mentality.
Another key area Izipizi has set its eyes on is customization.
Aguera admitted that at this stage it would be hard to deliver good customization experiences that match expectations while being affordable, but he confirmed that the company is working on rolling out the service one day.
Retail space upgrade is also on Izipizi’s agenda.
Recently the brand gave its first retail store in the Marais district in Paris, opened in 2017, a major facelift with a new concept that showcases the sunny, smart and simple spirit of the brand and its products.
In the long term, Aguera said Izipizi would like to explore opportunities in Asia, where brands often need to offer Asian-fit styles to accommodate differences in facial structure.
At the moment, the brand is getting positive feedback in nations like Japan, Thailand and Singapore, while China remains an under tapped market.