Tired of Scratched Sunglasses

[Oztrepreneur]

You buy a pair of $200+ sunglasses and before you know the lenses are scratched, abraded....no coverage by Oakley and the likes. Replacement lenses are $100+.

Why not a coating that is upsold for like $30 when someone purchases a pair of expensive sunglasses that reduces (probably no feasible to say eliminate) the likelihood of day to day scratches.

Maybe a recoat every 6 months. Would keep your Sunglasses in better condition longer.

Is it a problem...well yes it irritates me, but not sure if possible, if other people feel the same or if people would spend $30 to protect their lenses.

Massive market, any 'expensive' polycarbonate manufactured lens but a large amount of technical know how to achieve this.

Just airing my thoughts...

 

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[Ninjakid]

Assuming the coating was scarcely noticeable, I think there's definitely a market for it. I would probably use this actually.

It's kind of like the screen protectors for iPhone.

 

[Oztrepreneur]

Thanks NinjaKid agree with your requirement.

It needs to be barely noticeable visually
It needs to have negligible interference with the optics of the lens (light diffusion, polarization etc)
It can't damage the lens
It must add a noticeable level of protection to the lens (ie. it must work)
It must be cheap enough for people to buy
It must be simple to apply

Looks like lots of barriers to entry, lots of control, potentially lots of scale.

It's kind of like the screen protectors for iPhone.

Yep my thoughts too, except not practical for a curved polycarbonate lens. People pay $20+ to protect their iphone glass from scratching.....would you for a $150+ pair of sunglasses?

I would.

 

[Journey2Million$]

they probably designed it to be scratchable so you'd have to buy new ones.
I hate products that are made to break.

 

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[Durete]

I wonder if putting on a screen protector for your tablet and cut it out for the size of your (sun)glasses would work.

as there are some that are not thick at all.

 

[Oztrepreneur]

I wonder if putting on a screen protector for your tablet and cut it out for the size of your (sun)glasses would work.

as there are some that are not thick at all.

Probably would but is clunky, and prone to coming off I'd say. An easier more permanent solution would be better, like a solution sprayed or dropped onto the lens.

 

[Oztrepreneur]

they probably designed it to be scratchable so you'd have to buy new ones.

No doubt little emphasis is put on making products more durable...especially when people willingly put up with damage and pay hundreds

 

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[10lapsdown]

I wonder if putting on a screen protector for your tablet and cut it out for the size of your (sun)glasses would work.

as there are some that are not thick at all.

Probably not due to the curved nature of the glass. A flat sheet will crease as it tries to conform to the curved glass. They'd have to be either "pre-curved" or possibly something you get done at the place of purchase. Maybe if they were a gel that conformed to the glass and hardened under heat treatment...

I wish they were around a year ago before my daughter got hold of my zegnas!

 

[Ma Co]

Something like this exists already.

Check out the wiki entry:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-scratch_coating

 

[Oztrepreneur]

I wonder if this refers to the scratch resistant coating that is put in when most glasses are manufactured or an aftermarket type that I imagine would be useful, or more marketable.

Something like this exists already.

 

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[Damage Inc.]

I think upselling at the sale of the glasses might be an important part of this. I say this because companies sell aftermarket lenses for about $15-20. I wear Oakleys, and usually have one or two sets of the aftermarket lenses. If I know I'm going somewhere where they are more likely to get scratched I usually put the cheaper lenses in. Now that I'm in that habit I probably wouldn't spend $30 for a film when I could get 1-2 sets of lenses for the same price. I'm not sure if I'm in the minority with doing this though or not. And having owned a few pairs of the same model of Oakleys, I even have extra Oakley factory lenses. For someone like me the pain point isn't great enough. But for a guy who is at the mall buying his first pair of Oakleys for $200 it might be easier to upsell $30 protection for his new investment.

 

[Vigilante]

I think there are two types of sunglass consumers :

1. People like me and my daughter who delight in $10 sunglasses that I beat the shit out of, and buy a few pair per year

and

2. People like my wife and my son, who buy the world's most expensive sunglasses, keep them in a protective case, and treat them like a fragile egg

In the world I live in, those are the only two types of consumers. Not sure a purist would add an aftermarket protection to an expensive pair of shades. I know my high end consumer family members wouldn't... they simply take extraordinary care of their shades. And mine? I wear them until I sit on them (scratches and all) and then throw 'em out and pick out something new, and extremely sporty.

 

[GuestUser140]

I don't have the knowledge, but is this something you would limit to sunglasses? Why not all glasses?

 

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[miked_d]

I'd always been the cheap sunglasses guy. Scratch or break? Buy new ones.

Someone bought me a pair of expensive sunglasses as a gift recently (~$200). I love them. They are the best sunglasses I have ever had. They are very clear and I would not jeopardize that clarity by using any films or sprays.

But this is just one opinion.

 

[SEBASTlAN]

Sunglass insurance?

 

[miked_d]

Sunglass insurance?

Hmmm....

 

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[contract]

The sunglasses industry is dominated primary by one gigantic umbrella group.

There's a great documentary on their market control, but I don't recall the name or title.

Just something to consider.

For me personally and others I know, whenever someone breaks their hinges, needs the frames adjusted, or scratches removed from the lens..

They just go down to their local eye glass dealer and get them repaired. There's still a lot of older shops that have plenty repeat business.

Manufacturers could offer this upgrade at a higher price point to upsell, but you'd be selling directly to the Manf.

Assuming the manf doesn't steal your idea and run with it, or ... Well steal it and re-brand it and flood the market with that protective branding.

I can't see many customers sending in their $200 sunglasses in the mail, having to bubble wrap them, cover insurance, etc.

If you provided shipping boxes/insurance, it would work. But then there's delay of time in getting the coating applied and sent back to the customer.

To be honest, I'd bet airplane paint/glass protection would do the job.

If the lenses are glass, even without protection, you can polish the scratches off.

Same thing goes with car windows, but not a lot of people polish their vehicle's windows..

 

[Oztrepreneur]

If the lenses are glass, even without protection, you can polish the scratches off.

True but most (have not fact checked) sunglasses are polycarbonate not glass.

Anyway looks like an idea that probably wouldn't float....back to the drawing board. Great discussion though.

 

[AgainstAllOdds]

The sunglasses industry is dominated primary by one gigantic umbrella group.

There's a great documentary on their market control, but I don't recall the name or title.

Luxottica's the company.

Their sunglasses cost about $5 to make. The rest of the price is brand value.

 

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[Oztrepreneur]

Luxottica's the company.

Their sunglasses cost about $5 to make. The rest of the price is brand value.

Yeh I heard numbers in the range of 75 million pairs of sunglasses or glasses....monstorous earnings!

 

[CommonCents]

scratch repair kit, commercialized, and/or an ebook how-to might be more feasible.

http://www.sunglasswarehouse.com/thesunauthority/how-to-remove-scratches-from-sunglasses

 

[smithsta]

This could be brought to market easily, there really aren't any barriers to entry as someone stated earlier, just takes some research.

I think you should look into it. if you don't, I will. Don't go off people's opinion, go off your own research and make your own judgement. If someone is willing to buy an expensive pair of glasses/sunglasses I'm sure they will be willing to try something that will protect them. Again, that's an assumption. Do your own research.

One thing that isn't an assumption is the product would be unique and has the advantage of being small, light, and easy to use.

If you need some advice to get you started on the right research path then give me a shout.

 

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[Oztrepreneur]

This could be brought to market easily, there really aren't any barriers to entry as someone stated earlier, just takes some research.

I think you should look into it. if you don't, I will. Don't go off people's opinion, go off your own research and make your own judgement. If someone is willing to buy an expensive pair of glasses/sunglasses I'm sure they will be willing to try something that will protect them. Again, that's an assumption. Do your own research.

One thing that isn't an assumption is the product would be unique and has the advantage of being small, light, and easy to use.

If you need some advice to get you started on the right research path then give me a shout.

Thanks Smithsta. I haven't completely gone off the idea yet...

 

[Oztrepreneur]

So in the interest of being married to the problem (easily scratched polycarb sunnies) but not the solution, I am wondering if it more appealing to come up with a poly-carbonate that is inherently scratch resistant. It would need to be modified during the manufacturing process. Hard to do but I wouldn't think impossible. This way you could just start your own range of scratch proof sunglasses under your own brand perhaps. Maybe a better way to go?