An Insider's Look into the Optical World

Have you ever been to one of those opticals that makes you feel like you’re in the middle of a really bad 80s movie? The fluorescent lighting is buzzing above and the shelves are lined with plastic pegs full of glasses that all look the same and are only 2 colors: black and that weird reddish brown? You are barely even greeted by a human and if you ask a question about where are the glasses to choose from they give you a bored “Men’s/Women’s glasses are over there”.

Trust me, I was there once. When I was in high school and I didn’t know any better, I went into one of these generic opticals and fell for the 2 for $100. Later, I fell for the Prada glasses that cost way more than I could afford at the time because they were a brand name. I thought all brandless glasses were made the same and only well-known brand glasses were made of quality. It was shortly after this that I went on to work at an optical in San Antonio and I began learning all about the optical world.

My manager looked at my glasses and said, “let’s get you into something real”. It was a Devil Wears Prada styling moment.

My world opened to the endless possibilities of the Independent eyewear world.

What does independent mean? It means that they are not owned by the conglomerate that is Luxxotica. 

They are owned by their own designer or smaller company who values quality and has control in the design and the craftsmanship that goes into the glasses.  

Luxottica is known for controlling brands like Ray Ban, Oakley, Chanel, Prada, Miu Miu, and many more. They make their glasses in large quantities (I’m talking millions) in places like China. Then they buy rights to the brand name. 

So they slap a sticker on it that says “Chanel” and mark it up 20-50x what it’s worth to make you think that it was actually designed by Coco Chanel herself. In reality,  it was made with really cheap plastic and has nothing to do with the brand on it. They make a huge profit and you're left with a cheap frame that breaks after a few months. But hey, it says Chanel on it! 

When I bought my first independent designer frames, I could feel the difference. They weight, the texture of the acetate, the details in the small metal parts. Plus, they lasted me, well I still have them in my closet now, so about 15 years so far. All I do is replace the lenses every once in a while when my prescription changes. 

At Punto Focal, we only support independently made brands. Meaning you are guaranteed quality and the investment you make into your vision and eyewear will surely last you for decades. 

Our optical is anything but generic. We greet you with a warm smile, the scent of fresh coffee in the air. We bring you a drink from the bar and sit with you to find out what your eyewear style is before carefully selecting frames for you to try on. We pay attention to details like size, shape, prescription, hobbies, work life, etc to make the best decisions and add beautiful pieces into your eyewear wardrobe. We even take special measurements and use the best Zeiss lenses to generate the perfect lens for you. 

If you care about yourself, your eyes, and your vision, then please stop buying generic Luxottica frames. Stop supporting billionaire companies who profit over people’s lack of awareness and obsession with well-known brand names.

Let us introduce you into the beautiful world of handcrafted, small-batch, designer made glasses that are good enough for the celebrities and the royals. I promise they are good enough for you too!

Besides, life’s too short for boring glasses, Encuentra tu Punto Focal.