SILMO Paris 2022 was announced as the recovery edition. The figures are now in, and they surpass all expectations, with a spectacular rise in the number of international visitors and an increase in participation by French opticians, confirming that SILMO Paris is back to its pre-crisis levels. This demonstrates the importance of SILMO for business, communication, information and trends.
During the four days of the trade fair, the 750 exhibitors – frames, lenses, technical materials, brands, general purchasing organisations, services, and so on – welcomed nearly 27,000 visitors, roughly half from France and half from abroad. In detail, the number of French visitors reached 13,462, for an increase of 21% compared to 2021. Foreign visitors, from 146 countries, reached 13,444, up by 107% from 2021.
“These figures demonstrate the appeal of SILMO Paris, a leading trade fair that remains an international platform for business and a hub of interaction for all the professionals in the optical and eyewear industry,” confirms Amélie Morel, Chairwoman of SILMO Paris.
While exhibitors ensure the success of a trade fair through their products, creations, innovations and services, SILMO Paris supports them through its unfailing organisation and a complete ecosystem that showcases, informs, and defends the stakeholders in the optical and eyewear industry. An overview of the highlights of the event: awards and visions of the future.
SILMO OPTICAL DESIGN CONTEST
Inaugurated this year, the first SILMO Optical Design Contest awarded Adi Abramov, a student at the Shenkar College of Engineering, Design and Art in Ramat Gan, Israel.
The members of the jury, presided by designer Emmanuel Gallina, unanimously chose his project “Unfoldable. X”, eyeglasses and sunglasses with a sharp, minimalist aesthetic, in recycled plastic, with no screws or hinges, featuring temples that may be detached in a simple step thanks to an ingenious high-tech X-shaped construction.
Adi Abramov’s objective was to create eco-friendly designer frames of which the industrial process rationalises production and limits the use of materials.
To review, the Optical Design Contest aims to stimulate creation and innovation, and to reveal the future talents set to design tomorrow’s eyewear. This international competition is open to all students over the age of 18 who are currently enrolled in a design programme and who can demonstrate having already completed at least three years of higher education or the equivalent.
International Opticians Association (IOA)
In a partnership with SILMO Paris, the IOA awarded the International Optician of the Year Award at the introduction to the SILMO d’Or awards ceremony. Among the four finalists – Wendy Buchanan (Canada), Grant Hannaford (Australia), April Petrusma (Australia) and Jean-François Porte (France) – the Australian Grant Hannaford won the award.
Fiona Anderson, the Chairwoman of the IOA who made the trip from the United Kingdom for the occasion, awarded the prize to this professional based in the Southern Highlands. He is recognised for his sense of innovation and excellence in matters of clinical treatments, while leading the training of optometrists at the UNSW (the University of New South Wales, an Australian institution located in Kensington, a suburb of Sydney).
“You are an inspiring model for our profession”, praised Fiona Anderson as she awarded the trophy to Grant Hannaford.
In order for the jury to establish the winner’s profile and choose the champion, eight criteria are taken into close consideration:
– Professionalism: the client must be central to the concerns of the business, and be cared for without fail.
– Excellent communication skills, both in-person and on social media.
– An entrepreneurial spirit, with a solid business sense demonstrated by the success of the company.
– Innovation, whether in terms of the business model, product offer, or store layout.
– Specialisation, with a reputation in a specific branch of the optical industry.
– Creativity, both in terms of the products on offer and the practices.
– Commitment to the profession, the community, charity organisations and the industry. And in conclusion, the winner must be a fervent defender of the profession.
The Interschool Challenge
On Monday, September 26th, an Interschool Day was held for all the students in the optical and eyewear field, enabling them to discover the entire industry and its news and to encounter its professionals.
During their tour of the trade fair, the second-year students of a two-year vocational training course got the opportunity to participate in an Interschool challenge.
More than ten schools had the honour of facing off at a competition, preceded by speeches and exclusive discussions with the Optic 2000 teams and their partners, the swimmer Florent Marais and the breakdancer Gaëtan Alin, both athletes who will compete at the Paris Olympics 2024.
CFAI Saint-Etienne won the challenge. Its five best students will enjoy a trip to one of the 2023 SILMO Family events.
VISIONS OF THE FUTURE
Silmo Next
How can technology revolutionize the optical and eyewear sector by 180°, from bricks to clicks, from smart glasses to the Metaverse?
This topical question formed the common theme of the SILMO Next forum, which featured discussions and reflections on the future of the industry through the first Digital Village dedicated to the optical and eyewear industry. The Digital Village presents connected products, solutions and/or systems relating to new technologies by welcoming corporations and start-ups – many hailing from other sectors – to experiment, invent, and transform the optical and eyewear industry.
The forward-thinking SILMO Next welcomed discussions and debates with Talks by professionals and companies who revealed the future perspectives of the physical, virtual and connected worlds:
Othman Chiheb from Microsoft, Virginie Corbasson from Carlin Creative Studio, Alexandre Cado from OuiVu, Marc Adamowicz from LightVision, Romain Afflelou from Cosmo Connected, Jean Sahler from EssilorLuxottica, Paul Morrow from Morrow Optics, Yoann Aretz from DoctoLib, Benjamin Hakoun from Fitting Box, Sophie Mulsant from Arkema, Alireza Parandian from Materialise, Esteban Villalon from Lavoisier Composites, Matthieu Lépine from Brand Ambassador, and Alice Villafranca, Alex Ganvo and Éloïse Minder from l’Institut de Chalon.
Their talks were completed by a workshop dedicated to a burning subject: “The emergence of the Metaverse in the optical world.”
Replays available very soon on the Silmo website.
Also revealed at SILMO Next, THE TRENDS FORUM presented a selection of 120 glasses selected among the exhibitors’ collections. Among the four trends of 2023 to watch and review in issue 31 of the digital magazine Trends by SILMO.
Combination (unlimited designs)
Composite frames – in metal and plastic – assert their “streamlined sophistication” with essential shapes enhanced by a controlled complexity of volumes – a masterful multiplication of accents and finishes – to add character to every pair of deliberately designer frames.
Big brown (is the new black)
Black has not disappeared, of course; it is a standard in eyewear. However, intense dark browns are taking over from it, offering a variety of rich tones: tortoiseshell, mahogany, cacao, bistre, caramel, burnt sienna, bronze, and more. These colours appear in materials with a great deal of density.
Bulky (generous curves)
These glasses have nothing to hide: they are eager to grab centre stage, with substantial proportions that can be quite exaggerated. A wide array of materials, thickness and curves steal the show for an impressive look. This trend area also includes the visible/invisible concept with “thick” frames in crystal and coloured plastic that play peek-a-boo, clearly imposing their presence without blushing.
Enlightened classic (not boring, but stylish)
The “Enlightened Classic” concept takes a new perspective of familiar eyewear shapes, redesigning them, reworking them and resizing them to bring a fun touch to them: a stylistic twist that reaches outside the box, beyond standards and aesthetic conventions. The idea is to break with the established codes while maintaining a certain elegance.
Silmo Academy, the great comeback
A foremost scientific symposium, SILMO Academy seizes upon societal questions to guide and train opticians in knowledge and progress being made in optical and ophthalmologic matters.
This 11th edition addressed two current issues: myopia and the importance of good vision in an ageing population. Professors, doctors, scientists and lecturers shared their research work and shed light on broad themes:
Myopia
– The latest news about managing myopia
– Mark Bullimore, scientist, lecturer and professor in Sciences of Vision
– Evaluation of the risk factors in the progression of myopia
– Olga Prenat, specialist in medical marketing and professional relations
– Case studies from the ophthalmologist’s point of view
– Arnaud Sauer, professor and hospital practitioner at the ophthalmological department of the University Hospitals of Strasbourg
– Facial anthropometry: glasses for children and positioning of lenses
– Dr Alicia Thompson, optician and director of education, research and professional development at the ABDO
Refractive error and visual development in the born-in-Bradford children cohort
Dr Neema Ghorbani Mojarrad, optometrist, winner of the 2021 SILMO Academy grant
The Importance Of Good Vision In An Ageing Population
– Visual and ocular manifestations of neuro-degenerative dementia
– Kelly Malloy, professor and specialist of neuro-ophthalmic illnesses
– Patient-centric dementia care in ophthalmic practices
– Elaine Grisdale, development director of the International Opticians Association
– The evolution of the world of low vision
– Bill Harvey, professor and editor of the Optician Journal
– Visual ageing, spatial cognition and autonomy
– Dr Angelo Arleo, a researcher at the CNRS and director of Chair SilverSight and the Laboratoire Vieillissement Visuel et Action at the Institut de la Vision Paris
– The role of visuo-podal integration in spatial orientation and mobility during ageing
– Pierre-Olivier Morin, posturologist and specialist of visuo-plantar re-education, Laboratoire Vieillissement Visuel, Winner of the 2020 SILMO Academy grant
Meilleurs Ouvriers De France Eyewear Craftsmen
Each year, the Meilleurs Ouvriers de France come to share their passion for craftsmanship, to support the national Meilleurs Ouvriers de France competition, and promote the awareness of Meilleurs Ouvriers de France glasses craftsmen.
By demonstrating their savoir-faire at a space set up like a workshop, they also promoted the École des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France Lunetiers. This learning institution in Morez offers any optician or optical professional the opportunity to gain solid basic information in eyewear, reinforce their skills, and increase their autonomy in personalising and artisanally crafting frames by taking their choice of classes, which are exclusively taught by Meilleurs Ouvriers de France.
AND EVEN MORE WITH SILMO NEWS: The whole trade fair is live and on replay
Every day at the trade fair, a daily news report summarises the events of the salon, completed with interviews, debates and live broadcasts to capture the impressions of visitors and exhibitors and to reveal the originality of products and companies… To watch and replay on silmoparis.com, YouTube, and all the social media of SILMO Paris.
We look forward to seeing you at the next edition, to place from 29 September to 2 October 2023. In the meantime, meet us at the upcoming events of SILMO Family:
SILMO Istanbul – 17 to 20 November 2022
SILMO Singapore – 12 to 14 April 2023
Read more about this show on TEF Magazine or visit their website.
