Do you prefer the quality of Ray-ban to Oakley, or Chanel to DKNY, or Prada to Armani or Dolce & Gabbana to DKNY well guess what all of those brands (& tons more) are made by the same company, Luxottica (an Italian company) controls over 80% of eyewear brands including Oakley, Ray-ban, Chanel, DKNY, Michael Kors, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Versace, Armani, Burberry & Dolce & Gabbana.
They even own Sunglass Hut Stores + tons of US sunglass companies. They have such a monopoly that they’ve pushed the price of sunglasses so high over the past 20 years that even other non Luxottica brands have to increase their price so the public believe they’re worth the same money. Crazy.
Ray-ban is the biggest example of a company taking something, increasing the price, then spending tons on marketing and people going mad for them. It just show what a few celebrities can do with the right sponsors.
Between 1937-70s Ray-bans were a much cheaper brand you picked up when filling up for petrol at service stations in the US.
Due to paid product placement in films such as Taxi Driver (1976), The Blues Brothers (1980), Risky Business (1983), Top Gun (1986), GoodFellas (1990), Reservoir Dogs (1992), Malcolm X (1992), Men in Black (1997), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998) & The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) the price increased as well, guess someone had to pay for all that product placement.
The brand has often been seen by the masses as the brand of the rich and famous with people such as Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson, Harry Styles (sorry), Taylor Swift, Madonna, Bruno Mars, Rihanna & literally thousands more all wearing them, it would be interesting to see which off that list got them for free, got paid to wear them or ended up paying full price!
From 1982 through to 1987 Ray-Ban had placed their sunglasses in more than 60 movies and television shows however in 1999 Bausch & Lomb (the original manufacturers) sold the brand to Luxottica for $640 million.
The sunglasses are now primarily produced in two factories in the People’s Republic of China or in one of six within Italy.
Thankfully websites like Asos now stock bargain priced similar styled glasses from just £10, along with TKmaxx who sell discounted designer versions are still trying to rock the boat (at least in the UK).
If you’re still fixed on picking up Ray-bans remember that buying from the US will generally be cheaper, examples http://10ws.co/1vJHp9n or http://10ws.co/1uT0k4M and select a UK address, so a $76 set work out at £66 delivered (including import duty/fees etc), the same ones direct from Ray-Ban in the UK £135 (a nice £69.00 saving). Proof from last time we posted > http://10ws.co/1iNUSf3 and http://10ws.co/1uT4Pwf
Sites like http://10ws.co/1eFdQmJ are well worth checking out if you need prescription sunglasses or glasses
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