Marchon and Calvin Klein Mark 30 Years of Partnership With ’90s-inspired Collection
Marchon is marking 30 years of partnership with Calvin Klein in a big way.
The eyewear company is issuing a special-edition collection that owes its shapes and proportions to vintage styles from the early days of their collaboration.
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Marchon president Nicola Zotta said the collection is among the three biggest initiatives for Marchon this year and that Calvin Klein is responsible for “positioning us as a credible player in the fashion arena. What Calvin Klein created in the ’90s was a breakthrough — most eyewear at the time was bold and clunky and Calvin went out with a completely different aesthetic that was lighter and much more sophisticated.”
With wire frame or frameless glasses, Calvin Klein and Marchon “set a new direction that most of the other players embraced,” said Zotta, who added that the CK deal also helped Marchon grow its footing internationally.
Now with the ’90s and early 2000s trending, the two entities will release a collection inspired by their original hits with seven styles retailing from $300 to $400. They find themselves entering the market at a similar moment, when much of the eyewear is produced of bold plastics and acetate.
Zotta said they are getting ahead of a trend toward slimmer eyewear, but that, “to a certain extent, the consumer is much more sophisticated and varied than 30 years ago,” and so this collection may help further a new market trend without setting a new paradigm.
Marchon’s partnership with the brand has spanned multiple Calvin Klein designers and creative strategies — exhibiting an adaptability that Zotta said “has been helped that there is a lot of trust there. Every collaboration has been very smooth, our offices are close to theirs so we are constantly exchanging thoughts and have been able to move at the same speed without feeling a lot of disruption.”
The 30th anniversary collection will be available in select specialty and department stores as well as Calvin Klein’s website and on Eyeconic.com.
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