Luxottica Group S.p.A. announced that its Oakley and Ray-Ban brands will spearhead a new partnership with Google to design, develop and distribute a new breed of “smart eyewear.”
In an announcement Monday, the two companies outlined a far reaching strategic partnership that calls for Luxottica and Google to work together to create innovative iconic wearable devices. Through this relationship, Luxottica and Google will match up high-tech developers with fashion designers and eyewear professionals. In particular, the two corporations will establish a team of experts devoted to working on the design, development, tooling and engineering of Glass products that straddle the line between high-fashion, lifestyle and innovative technology.
Luxottica added that the two major proprietary brands of the Group, Ray-Ban and Oakley who has a 10-year heritage in wearable technology that has evolved from MP3 to HUD devices, will be a part of the collaboration with Glass; however details about these new products will be disclosed at a later stage.
“We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Google, and are proud to be once again setting the pace in the eyewear industry, as we have been, with more than 50 years of excellence,” said Andrea Guerra, Chief Executive Officer of Luxottica Group. “We live in a world where technological innovation has dramatically changed the way in which we communicate and interact in everything that we do. More importantly, we have come to a point where we now have both a technology push and a consumer pull for wearable technology products and applications. We believe that a strategic partnership with a leading player like Google is the ideal platform for developing a new way forward in our industry and answering the evolving needs of consumers on a global scale.”
Google Vice President and head of Google X Astro Teller said Google is looking forward to pushing Glass and the broader industry forward into the emerging smart eyewear market.
The first collection generated by this partnership will combine high-end technology with avant-garde design offering the best in style, quality and performance. These forward-thinking devices will be the result of a new and unique strategic approach reflecting attention to detail, uncompromising quality and technology nurtured in the global market. The sophistication and elegance of this new generation of products will be a dramatic step forward in an evolving category and elevate the consumer experience in this area.
