New | Eyewear makers refocus on Asian market
The €30 billion industry seeks to fix glitch in fitting faces of Chinese consumers amid rapid rise in region's share of global luxury spending
Glasses often slide down Huang Yina's petite nose. If she has been wearing them for a while, the rims of the frames leave marks on her face. And when she laughs, the glasses resting on her cheeks rise up.
Although Huang owns about 20 pairs of sunglasses, she almost never uses them. "I like aviators but they don't fit my face right," she said. "I keep buying them, hoping they are different."
Huang, who lives in New York, faces a problem that is common among Asians: eyewear not designed to accommodate the shape of Asian faces, a glitch the estimated €30 billion (HK$270 billon) industry is trying to fix.
Although brands have been producing what are known as "Asian-fit" ranges for several years, those products are stocked mainly in Asian stores, a merchandising model that fails Chinese and other Asian customers who are increasingly shopping abroad.
"I always buy in the West because the taxes are lower there," said Huang, unaware of the difference in fit.
Like Huang, thousands of Chinese customers believe they are buying the same pair of tortoise Dior shades in Paris as they would have bought in Beijing but end up with frames that are ill-fitting.