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On their own, sunglasses have a long and rich history. Their use as protective eyewear goes all the way back to the Inuits, whose traditional snow goggles helped protect them against snow blindness in the Arctic. That’s not to mention sunglasses popping up in Ancient China, with historical records noting that soldiers used colored lenses to shield against intense sunlight. Today, sunglasses remain a popular accessory—not just for safeguarding one’s vision but also for elevating their personal style.
Of all the market leaders that currently offer functional and stylish sunglasses, Ray-Ban is among the most prominent. According to Osum, it’s currently considered the biggest eyewear brand in the world. Holding a whopping 5% of the global eyewear market, it boasts an annual revenue of over $1.5 billion.
But how did it come to cement that position in the first place? And why do sunglasses lovers worldwide consider Ray-Ban so iconic? Here’s a brief history detailing the stories behind the rise of this legendary eyewear brand.
The Initial Problem
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Surprisingly, Ray-Ban wasn’t initially conceptualized as its own company. Rather, it all started with a single problem: visibility for Air Force pilots at high altitudes. Record-setting colonel John A. Macready of the US Army Air Corps noticed that the sun’s glare bouncing off white clouds and vibrant blue skies significantly reduced visibility at greater heights. However, goggles weren’t a good solution—they tended to fog up in these conditions. That’s why Macready approached the optical company Bausch+Lomb to solve the issue in 1929. By 1936, it developed the “Anti-Glare” prototype. These were eventually released as one of the most popular sunglasses models to date: the Aviators. Though we know them today as a pair of sleek metallic frames with dark-tinted, teardrop-shaped lenses, the original Aviators boasted green lenses mounted on plastic frames. However, a few key updates eventually saw them evolve into the iconic sunglasses we know and love today—and they’re the reason Bausch+Lomb founded Ray-Ban as a separate company in the 1930s.
Celebrity Power
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The eyewear brand went on a roll in the decades following the Aviators’ debut. Plenty of the Ray-Ban sunglasses that are still considered bestsellers today were released during this time. The Wayfarer, for instance, came in the 1950s, but its versatile rectangular design is still considered exceptionally stylish even when placed beside more modern Ray-Ban models like the Hawkeye and Boyfriend. Another popular pair, the Caravan, was introduced all the way back in 1947. Despite that, things weren’t all sunshine and rainbows for the brand. By the 1980s, Ray-Ban was experiencing a decline in sales that threatened to put it on the edge of bankruptcy. The one thing that saved it? Celebrity power. Though Ray-Bans were a staple in Hollywood’s Golden Age—when it was sported by the likes of James Dean and Audrey Hepburn—it was Tom Cruise wearing Aviators in the 1986 flick Top Gun that skyrocketed Ray-Ban to fame. The brand quickly went from selling 200,000 to a whopping 4.5 million pairs a year, officially cementing its position as an iconic name in eyewear.
Continuous Innovation
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Ray-Ban maintained its spot as the world’s biggest sunglasses brand in the nearly 40 years since Top Gun with one simple strategy: continuous innovation. It’s always on top of the latest trends in fashion and consumer preferences, which is why its sunglasses never fail to appeal to a large audience. Take the fact that over 60% of all materials used in the fashion industry are made of plastic. More people are becoming aware of this and are gunning for more sustainable products, which is why it’s no surprise that Ray-Ban started offering bio-based alternatives to its plastic acetate sunglasses frames in recent years. This eco-friendly collection is instead crafted from renewable materials like castor oil and corn. Not one to stick to traditional sunglasses designs, Ray-Ban even decided to turn the industry on its head with its Reverse collection in 2023. The lenses here curve inward instead of outward, perfect for wearers who want to stay on the cutting edge of fashion. And that’s not to mention its forays into emerging tech. The Ray-Ban smart glasses developed in collaboration with Meta are taking over the market as a wearable alternative to the smartphone, boasting abilities like hands-free photo and video capture, wireless communication, and voice-activated AI assistance wrapped up in stylish frame designs.