Oliver Peoples

By David Gill


The Oliver Peoples eyewear brand was started in 1986 when two opticians, Larry and Dennis Leight were encouraged by friends and family to start their own business. The two opticians opened their first boutique on the Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. The trendy boutique started by selling a collection of vintage eyewear that the pair had recently bought in an estate auction.

The collection includes literally thousands of America made metal frames and rimless glasses as well as clip on metal sunglasses that had been produced by American companies such as American Optical and Bausch & Lomb. The pair was very lucky as all of the frames were unworn, in mint condition and still in the original packaging. The goldmine allowed the Leight's to survive the opening of the business.

They purchased the entire collection available and along with it a receipt signed with the name "Oliver Peoples", the original owner of the collection. When deciding to sell the glasses in their boutique the pair found it fitting that the company was named after the owner and Oliver Peoples the brand was born.

Once the company had been set up and was successfully selling the eyewear they purchased at auction the pair realised what the next step was. The brand was going to design and sell a collection of eyewear and implement innovative marketing strategies, becoming a high end retail brand of eyewear.

The first Oliver Peoples collection was released in 1987 and was heavily inspired by the vintage frames that the company had originally sold. The range was introduced as wholesale and became instantly popular with distributors thanks to the unique designs. At the time the eyewear industry was dominated with futuristic frames and geometric shapes now seen on many 80s films.

The retro collection that Oliver Peoples offered was a breath of fresh air for the industry and became instantly popular with runway fashion that was also inspired by vintage designs. The direction of both fashion and eyewear to a vintage inspired look helped Oliver Peoples became one of the largest eyewear brands in the world.




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