Sunglass Collective founder Mark Wymond launched Kaleos Downunder in June this year

Born in Barcelona, Spain, Kaleos eyewear derives its name from ancient Greek, meaning ‘beautiful shape’. Eyes Right Optical co-director and Sunglass Collective co-founder Mark Wymond said that was precisely what attracted him to the brand at this year’s Mido show in Italy. “It’s different, not a generic product at all; really design driven and that was what we were looking for.”

Fresh off the boat, with some samples still to arrive, Kaleos’ latest sunglass and women’s optical ranges were introduced to the Australasian market for the first time in Auckland in June. Wymond said he was confident they would do well here, especially in New Zealand, as he knows a distributor in the UK (which is not known for being a good sunglass market) who couldn’t stop talking about how good Kaleos was at Mido and how well it sold in Britain. “It’s just a beautiful product: very fashion forward at an achievable price point,” said Wymond.

Affordability was a key part of Kaleos’ beginnings, said Joan Gassó, who co-founded the company with his partner, Kaleos’ creative director Claudia Brotons, a designer who used to work for fashion brand Zara. “Before creating the brand, we set up an optical shop and acted as curators of independent brands that we found interesting, so we saw the need to create a new brand that would offer a large, quality collection that would provide design and image without being too highly priced,” he said.

Each one of Kaleos’ frame designs takes more than a year and a half to complete, combining contemporary taste with functionality, assembled and moulded by hand, with a special focus on shape and the beauty within those shapes, said Gassó. “Beauty can be defined as a combination of visual qualities such as shape, colour or form that pleases the aesthetic senses. One of Kaleos’ key objectives is to find the connection between shape and inherent beauty through the creation of statement pieces. It’s a tribute to the beauty of an important accessory that enhances people’s features - the frame.”

Palette is also particularly important to the brand, with each colour carefully chosen and curated with the season, said Gassó. “We believe in frames that are well structured, lightweight, comfortable and made with the best materials. A frame should be durable and ergonomic. The difference is made by giving beauty to the frames.”