It might help you to know that the impetus for this post was an article I recently read in a well-known trade magazine for retailers. I won't mention the name of the magazine or the brand featured in the article because we don't sell that brand. Nonetheless, some of the statements made in the piece ring true for both Olympic Eyewear and our customers.

A Hot Brand for Runners

The article was all about one of the hottest brands of sunglasses for runners. The brand is about nine years old but didn't come into its own until a refocus brought on by COVID. Since then, it has experienced a meteoric rise through the ranks of smaller designer sunglass labels. The company is projecting growth of up to 40% this year alone.

What is their secret? Price point. They can sell a high-quality pair of sunglasses for under $50. Their low price point is enhanced by the fact that their products are designed to be fun. Rather than making overpriced, overengineered sunglasses that people don't really want, they are meeting customers where they are at a more affordable price.

They Need Strong Volume

Of course, when you target a lower price point, you earn less per unit. That is retail 101. But the way to make up for the lower margin is higher volume. Therein lies the tradeoff. If a brand decides to sell at half the price of a more accomplished designer label, that brand needs to be willing to push higher volume. The brand needs to sell more sunglasses to make the same amount of money.

This is not a bad thing, by the way. There is an old adage in business that says it takes more money and effort to win new customers then it does to keep current customers on board. It certainly applies to designer sunglasses.

Give customers the quality they expect at a price they deem fair, and they will be loyal. Continue to do that and you will keep more customers than you lose. That is the key to higher volume. Every new customer you bring into the fold should want to come back for subsequent purchases.

A Quick Word About Margin

I need to offer a quick word on margin before I close this post. Margin is the portion of total revenues that equals profit, measured as a percentage. Every business works on a margin that makes staying in business worthwhile. What constitutes an acceptable margin to you may not be acceptable to someone else. Retailers need to figure it out for themselves.

I mention this because the founder of the previously mentioned brand recounted in the interview how his company needs to be incredibly careful about margins. Keeping an eye on margin helps control spending so they are not wasting money on things that don't benefit the brand.

With an estimated 40% growth, I would say the brand is doing extremely well. They have mastered the price point and are now concentrating on moving volume. As a wholesale sunglasses distributor, that speaks to us. Hopefully it speaks to you as a retailer. Remember that the tradeoff for lower pricing is higher volume.

This post isn't meant to confuse you. Rather, we want to encourage you to change your thinking about sunglasses as seasonal products. Do not think of 'seasonal' in the sense that summer is the only time of year when you can sell sunglasses at a decent volume. Instead, think of 'seasonal' as being a way to promote sunglasses throughout the year – and keep your sales volume fairly steady, too.

Borrowing a Page From the Fashion Industry

Sunglasses began the shift from seasonal (summertime only) products to year-round product when designers started taking a page from the fashion industry. They began making sunglasses for each of the four astronomical seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Once they figured that out, they knew they could sell sunglasses year-round.

We still embrace that thinking today. Those of us who concentrate on wholesale sunglasses distribution have the task of making sure we have enough inventory available to supply retailers for each season of the year. Likewise, retailers base their wholesale purchases on the styles and trends they will need for the upcoming season. By focusing on what each season has to offer consumers, both wholesalers and retailers can work together to move more product.

Summer Is Still Peak

Despite the fact that sunglasses sell all year long, it does not negate the fact that summer is still the peak season. People spend more time outdoors during the summer months. It is only natural that sunglasses would be more in demand during those few months. But it is a mistake for retailers to focus so much time and energy on summer sales that the rest of the year gets neglected.

With autumn comes cooler weather and a change in foliage. The sun is lower in the sky. But people still spend time outdoors. Some go hiking, others prefer scenic drives in the country. Autumn is a perfect time for riding bikes, taking a leisurely canoe ride down a local river, and learning to ride horseback. And of course, don't forget the hunters.

The point is that there are still valid reasons to buy sunglasses in the autumn. Likewise for winter. Between skiing, ice skating, and all the other winter sports people enjoy, there is just as much a need for solid eye protection during the winter months.

A Different Pair for Every Season

One of the things the fashion industry has done very well is meet the consumer tendency to want something new. There are no fewer than four seasons in the fashion industry. There may be as many as eight depending on who you ask. The point is that fashion designers are continually churning out new designs for each season.

We don't necessarily do that with designer sunglasses. However, consumer trends change with the season. Selling year round is all about paying attention to those trends so you have the right inventory as each new season begins.

Wholesale sunglasses for men, women, and children are available during every season. As a retailer, change the way you think about sunglasses. They are no longer seasonal in the sense that they only sell during the summer. The calendar year has four seasons to it. You can sell sunglasses during each and every one of them. We can help you do just that.

As this post is being written, the 2024 summer Olympic games are winding down. There are just a few more days remaining. As a retailer, have you capitalized on the Olympics to reach more customers? Here's hoping so. Big events like the Olympics represent a stellar opportunity to sell more product.

Planning Started in January

Planning for Olympics-related marketing started in earnest this past January. Retailers hoping to have the latest sports sunglasses available in advance of the Olympic games started looking to their wholesale suppliers for great products and pricing. We started seeing orders coming in very early in the year.

Retailers who ordered early had access to the best selection. They were also able to start promoting sales a couple of months before the games actually started. The most successful among them have enjoyed steady sales over the last couple of months.

It all goes back to planning. Capitalizing on something like the Olympics requires being prepared in the months and weeks leading up to the event. And to be prepared, you really need a plan.

The Benefits of Strong Planning

If you are wondering how planning ahead can actually help you sell more designer sunglasses, we have some things for you to consider. Here are the benefits of a strong, well-developed plan:

• Inventory Access – It is obvious that most retailers are going to want to take advantage of events like the Olympics. That means high demand for wholesale products, including the wholesale sunglasses we sell. Planning involves getting orders in early. That translates into better inventory access.
• Product Placement – Ordering inventory is just the start. For big events, product placement is critical. As a retailer, you need to figure out the best way to display the sunglasses you intend to highlight for that event. A solid plan gives you direction so you're not left trying to figure it out when the event finally arrives.
• Consumer Trends – Consumer trends continue to evolve even as big events gradually draw near. Planning gives you an opportunity to pay attention to trends so that you can adapt as needed. If you wait until the week before, the most important trends may have already passed you by.
• Inventory Management – Even as you are preparing for the big event, you are still selling a regular inventory. You are going to need to maintain your inventory of wholesale sunglasses so that you can resume normal sales tactics after the fact. If you're not planning for that period, your inventory might suffer.
• Promotions – Lastly, you need time to come up with the actual promotions you will use to capitalize on the big event. Hastily developed promotions don't tend to produce the desired results. But a strategically developed plan put together over several months can be a game changer for sales.

If you chose not to capitalize on the Olympics to sell more designer sunglasses, note that it was a lost opportunity and then move on. Start preparing for the next big event now. The better and more thorough your planning, the more success you will have as a retailer. Meanwhile, we have to do our own planning as a bulk sunglasses wholesaler. Rest assured that we are already on it.

Impulse buying is an important part of retail. Don't shy away from it. Do not be afraid to encourage impulse buys. In fact, encourage them. Learn how to push the buttons that encourage people to buy on sight. You could see a pretty big bump in sales as a result.

Spur-of-the-Moment Purchases

By definition, impulse purchases are spur-of-the-moment purchases generally triggered by some sort of emotional or visual stimuli. Maybe one of your customers sees a brand-new pair of designer wayfarers that reminds her of her favorite celebrity. She suddenly has the impulse to buy a pair for herself.

Impulse purchases can be triggered by:

• Emotions – Some shoppers are encouraged to buy on impulse after having an emotional reaction to something. Shopping may be a consumer's form of personal therapy, for example. A shopper might be triggered to purchase due to a memory that evokes positive feelings.
• External Triggers – Impulse purchases can also be triggered by a wide range of external influences, including limited time offers, pop-up sales, and well-designed displays. External triggers are often related to the concept of fear of missing out (FOMO).

There truly are so many things that can trigger impulse buys. As a designer sunglasses retailer, your key to success is figuring out what makes your customers tick. We do the same thing as a wholesaler. We study the retail industry to help us understand the types of cues that encourage our customers to purchase bulk sunglasses. We then utilize those cues accordingly.

Common Ways to Stimulate Impulse Buys

If you have never attempted to go after the impulse buyer before, it might take a while for you to figure out what works best for your audience. But there are a number of common strategies you can employ right off the bat. Implementing a few of them and then studying the results can help you understand better ways to target impulse buys.

Check these out:

• Product Placement – Impulse buyers are often triggered by visual stimuli. As a retailer, this should tell you something: place displays in high traffic areas where customers are likely to see them. Display sunglasses right by the entrance, at the cash register, and other places within your space where you know traffic is heavy.
• Product Displays – Triggering the buying impulse requires getting the customer's attention. This is where attractive product displays become critically important. Use colors that attract attention. Place your most popular products, like wayfarers and aviators, at eye level. Use seasonal decorations to enhance your displays.
• Buyer Urgency – FOMO works best as a sales tool when you create a sense of urgency. Here is an example: run a one day only sale on your most popular brands and styles of designer sunglasses. Make the promotion clearly visible in your space and you will create that sense of urgency among impulse purchasers.

Selling wholesale sunglasses does not rely too heavily on impulse purchases. Selling at retail is a completely different enterprise. If you want to move more designer sunglasses then you ever have in the past, do not neglect to put some time and effort into encouraging impulse buys. Impulse is part of retail. Use it to your advantage.

We make our bread and butter as a wholesale sunglasses distributor. All our sunglasses are sold through our ecommerce portal. So what you were about to read regarding generative AI and SEO applies to us too. We have been working hard to keep up with the changes to online search, changes brought about by generative AI.

All the Big Boys Are Doing It

The first organization to implement AI-search in earnest is a company known as Perplexity. Their search engine bears the same name. Perplexity was launched in 2022 as a company built on an AI chatbot. They combined the chatbot with their large language model (LLM) to create a search engine intended to compete with Google and Bing.

Perplexity isn't fooling around. They already have about 10 million monthly users and are awash in investment funding. Their success has driven Google and Bing to be more aggressive in developing their own generative AI search platforms. Google now has Gemini while Microsoft has its Copilot.

What It Means to You

All this is well and good, but what does it mean to you as an ecommerce operator? It means you now need to start adapting your SEO efforts to take advantage of AI-powered search. AI-powered search has a few key characteristics:

• It answers questions in a conversational way.
• It provides answers rather than lists of websites.
• It relies heavily on longtail keywords for ranking.
• It prefers to use user-centric content.

AI-powered search is not designed to merely list a bunch of links users can click through to find what they want. Instead, it is designed to provide all the necessary information users want without them ever having to click a link. Links are still provided with answers just in case a consumer wants more information.

This suggests that your content needs to go above and beyond mere sales. It needs to answer important questions your customers might ask. It needs to provide information important enough for search engines to include it in their answers.

Think About Your Customers

As an ecommerce operator, the key to your success is making a connection with your customers. From an SEO standpoint, you need to think about your customers and the terms they would utilize in the search for new designer sunglasses. Bear in mind that your customers are unlikely to enter just one or two keywords. In fact, they are more likely to ask the search engine a question like, "Where can I find cheap aviator sunglasses?"

Create your content around answering questions, solving problems, and offering insights your customers might be interested in. Explain how to do something, like protecting that new pair of sunglasses from scratches. Do a deep dive into UV protection or explain how polarization works. If nothing else, know that content that performs well with AI-powered search is not fluff. It is meaty and relevant.

Don't be surprised if traditional Google and Bing searches disappear completely within the next year or two. As AI-powered search gets better, people are going to rely less on conventional searches. You are going to need to adapt your SEO practices if you want people to continue discovering your affordable designer sunglasses during their online searches.

Your primary focus may be on purchasing wholesale sunglasses at the best possible price so that you can turn around and sell them for a profit. We support you 100% in that endeavor. But many of your customers are concerned more about utility than anything else. They may ask about polarized sunglasses from time to time. More specifically, they may ask you how polarized sunglasses work.

In a phrase, it is all about the filter. Let us dig in and discuss how polarized sunglasses work in more detail.

Light Moves in Waves

Our industry credits Edwin Land for coming up with the first commercially marketable polarized sunglasses in the 1930s. Land knew that light moves through an environment in directional waves. The waves can move vertically, horizontally, or at any number of different angles.

This one fact explains why sun glare is such a problem. Light hitting the eyes from so many different angles creates the sensation of glare. If glare is intense enough, it can even be blinding. So the trick to preventing sun glare is to filter out some of the light. That is exactly what polarized sunglasses do.

A Filter in the Lenses

Polarized sunglasses have a filter embedded in the lenses. This filter reduces glare by preventing light moving in a particular direction from making it through. The easiest way to do this is to create a filter that lets in light waves of a single direction only. Today, the vertical filter is the most common.

A vertical filter blocks all light waves except those moving in a vertical direction. The vertical waves are the only ones that make it through the filter. Waves from multiple directions are no longer hitting the eyes, so sun glare is eliminated.

Why is the vertical filter the most common? Because our primary sources of sun glare in the modern world dictates as much. Think about it. Light reflecting off your car hood tends to move more horizontally. Likewise for water reflecting off a lake or river. It would make sense for the filter to not let those reflected light waves make it to the eyes.

What Polarization Does and Doesn't Do

This final point, what polarization does and doesn't do, is the most important thing for you to know on behalf of your customers. First of all, polarized sunglasses improve vision by filtering out glare. The consumer sees a clearer image through a polarized lens, an image with better contrast. This explains why anglers can clearly see fish in the water when wearing a pair of polarized sunglasses.

Here is the big thing in terms of what polarized sunglasses cannot do: block UV light. A polarization filter does not filter out UV waves. Rest assured that manufacturers have another solution in a UV filter. That's right. Polarized sunglasses that also block UV light have two filters embedded in the lenses: the polarization filter and the UV filter. But if a pair of sunglasses doesn't have that second filter, it does not block UV light.

Now you know about polarized sunglasses and how they work. Here at Olympic Eyewear, we hope you will make us your preferred choice for wholesale sunglasses for men and women. We have just what you need to keep your customers happy.

Sometimes it is a good idea to let your customers in on the technical stuff. Sometimes you market by targeting a particular lifestyle. But remember that sunglasses are associated with leisure. They are associated with getting outdoors and having a blast. So make sure your marketing is as fun as it is business-like.

To that end, we have put together a list of five fun facts about shades. Feel free to share them with your customers in any way that makes sense. They can be a great marketing tool if you just use your imagination.

Fun Fact #1: Sunglasses Go Back Thousands of Years

We are willing to bet that the majority of your customers believe sunglasses are a comparatively modern invention. They are not. Thousands of years ago, Inuit tribes used to make sunglasses from either ivory or bones. No, these shades look nothing like the wayfarers and aviators we sell today. They didn't even have lenses. Instead, they had small slits just large enough to see through but small enough to keep out most of the sunlight.

Fun Fact #2: Hollywood Made Them Famous in America

Sunglasses are utilitarian first and foremost. Every pair of bulk sunglasses you buy from us protects a person's eyes from UV rays. But that doesn't stop people from buying them for fashion purposes. In fact, that's how sunglasses became so popular in the U.S.

Back in the 1920s, Hollywood stars began wearing sunglasses in public to mask their identities. The rest, as they say, is history. It was not long before sunglasses became a fashion trend among Hollywood celebrities. From there, the rest of the country caught on.

Fun Fact #3: Aviators Were Originally Made for Pilots

Aviators have been considered a classic style of designer sunglasses for decades. They take their name from their original design: aviators were developed for pilots who experienced problems with sun glare. The aviator style was developed in the 1930s under contract from the U.S. military.

Fun Fact #4: Lenses Used to Be Made of Glass

Eyeglasses, and sunglasses by extension, were originally named as such because lenses were made of glass. Imagine that. Modern sunglasses have sported plastic lenses for as long as most of us have been alive. But that is not the way things used to be.

Imagine heavy sunglasses with glass lenses. Imagine them resting on the bridge of your nose for hours at a time. Talk about uncomfortable! It is a good thing that modern designer sunglasses have plastic lenses.

Fun Fact #5: 37K Pairs Are Lost or Broken Every Year

This final fun fact explains why your company, and ours, makes good money selling designer sunglasses: in the U.S. alone, a pair of sunglasses is lost or broken every 14 minutes. That works out to 37,000 pairs per year. Of course, our industry sells more than that number. That's because replacing lost or broken sunglasses isn't the only motivating factor.

There are plenty more fun facts where these came from. We hope you will use what we have provided here to market to your customers. Sure, sunglasses are serious business when it comes to protecting the eyes. But they can be fun, too!

Brick-and-mortar retailers need to rely on different marketing methods that go above and beyond websites and SEO. They need to meet their customers where they are, which is to say the town in which they do business. There are plenty of ways to do it. Just because you are not selling the wholesale sunglasses you purchase from us online does not mean your marketing opportunities are any less plentiful.

To demonstrate the point, we have put together three little talked-about ways to sell sunglasses in your town. They are all designed to not only increase your brand awareness, but also to make a connection with your audience in a very concrete way.

1. Combine Your Sunglasses With a Cause

In recent years, consumers have become more aware of the world around them. They expect the companies they do business with to practice at least some level of social responsibility. We think that this is good. We also think that not taking advantage of it equates to leaving a very good marketing strategy on the table.

How do you take advantage of it? By combining your sunglasses with a cause. Pick one or two nonprofit organizations that share your values. Maybe you are passionate about protecting marine life from plastic litter. Perhaps you believe strongly in helping people who are in trouble. Whatever the case, commit to donating a certain percentage of each sale to your favorite causes. Let people know exactly what you are doing, so they can partner with you by buying your products.

2. Team Up With Local Businesses

Another little talked about marketing method involves teaming up with other businesses to offer special deals. This used to be a very popular sales strategy before the public internet ushered in ecommerce. It still works for brick-and-mortar sales promotions.

Let us use the example of you teaming up with a local beauty salon. You can offer your customers a discount on their next salon visit with every purchase meeting a certain value threshold. Meanwhile, the salon can issue coupons for sunglass discounts when their customers pay for a particular service. By reciprocating, both you and the salon owner bring in more business.

3. Tap Into Social Media

This third idea involves the internet even though it has nothing to do with ecommerce. We suggest tapping into social media and its potential to help you drive a local audience. Doing so is as simple as running a contest.

Invite your local customers to take a picture of themselves while wearing the sunglasses they purchased from you – and mentioning your store. Enter them into a contest for a free pair. Every time their posts are liked, their names are added to a pool. At the end of the contest period, you are going to pull a name from that pool. The winner gets the prize.

Selling designer sunglasses in a brick-and-mortar store can be just as profitable as selling online. The key to both types of business is meeting your customers where they are. If you can make that connection, you can sell. We hope to be a part of your sales growth by being your primary provider of wholesale sunglasses for men, women, and children. Check out our inventory and then place your first order.

Browsing Olympic Eyewear's inventory of wholesale sunglasses makes it clear that we do not spend a lot of time focusing on quirky, kitschy, novelty products. One could argue that our most radical product line is our selection of shield sunglasses. But even the shield shape is pretty mainstream.

We take the position that being cautious with quirky products is a good idea. Yes, there are times when novelty sunglasses are appropriate. There are times when they do sell. But it is difficult to build a solid business with growth potential by focusing on quirky, kitschy, novelty products with limited appeal.

Limiting Your Audience

As a company that specializes in bulk sunglasses at wholesale prices, we are constantly aware of the need to meet our audience wherever they are at. Our audience consists of retailers, like you, who want the latest in designer sunglasses that they can be reasonably assured will sell without issue.

You have your own audience to contend with. Focusing mainly on quirky products naturally limits that audience. Quirky products include things like animal-shaped sunglasses, shades with kaleidoscope lenses, and products with frames that are decorated with beads, shells, etc.

Again, there is a time and place for such products. Every time the Olympics roll around, you have a limited opportunity to sell novelty sunglasses designed with the American flag or the Olympic rings in mind. But the window for such products is very narrow. It opens and closes pretty quickly. Trying to build a business exclusively around those particular products will not get you very far.

Daily Use Is Where It's At

None of this should be construed as a warning against all quirky, kitschy, and novelty sunglasses. When they are appropriate, by all means sell them. But concentrating on daily use is where it's at in this business. What types of sunglasses do your customers wear on a daily basis? That's what they expect to find in stock when they visit your store.

Getting back to shield sunglasses briefly, they are about the most quirky thing we sell. The shield design is intended to offer enhanced protection through a larger surface area. Sunglasses in this category can be pretty quirky themselves. Yet shield frames are mainstream.

They are a big hit with athletes. For example, cyclists and skiers love them. So do baseball players and golfers. Even the biker crowd appreciates a good pair of shield sunglasses. They would be an everyday item for someone whose main mode of transportation is a motorcycle.

Watch, Listen, and Ask

This entire discussion leads back to the premise of knowing your audience. The more intimately you know the customers you sell to, the easier it is to stock the products they intend to buy. The key is to watch, listen, and ask.

Keep an eye on the latest trends in sunglasses. They will help inform your short-term purchase decisions. Listen to what your customers are saying in person and online. You can even ask them what they think by way of surveys, polls, and face-to-face conversations.

Gathering as much information as possible puts you in a better position to meet customer needs. When it comes time to place your next order for wholesale sunglasses, you will know what to buy because you understand your customers.

That understanding dictates caution when it comes to quirky products. There is a time and place for novelty sunglasses in odd shapes and styles. But if you want to build a solid business with growth potential, stick with the sunglasses people are likely to use on a daily basis.

Checking out the 'Trends’ item in the main menu on our website reveals an interesting category of wholesale sunglasses: logo-free sunglasses. These are unbranded products offered completely free of any identifying logos or text. Consider them white label sunglasses, if you will.

Being new to the concept of logo-free sunglasses might make it difficult for you to envision how they can be integrated into your current inventory. How you present them to customers depends heavily on your overall strategy for selling sunglasses. The point of this post is to explain one strategy that seems to work well.

Pricing Is Your Value Proposition

Olympic Eyewear sells wholesale sunglasses for men, women, and children at very competitive prices. We offer low prices so that you have every opportunity to achieve your desired profit margin. Our assumption is that you will still sell at prices lower than what the big brands charge.

There is nothing wrong with this strategy. In fact, pricing is your value proposition. You can give your customers high quality fashion sunglasses that have prices significantly lower than other brands. The products we sell are appealing to your customers for that very reason.

What does all of this have to do with logo-free sunglasses? Think price point again. Remember that in every large group of consumers, there will be those willing to pay more and others insisting on paying less. The second group is the ideal target for logo-free sunglasses.

The Least Expensive Option

It is a safe bet that some of your potential customers are the kinds of people who look to pay as little as possible no matter what they buy. They love generic brands. At the grocery store, they fill their carts mainly with white label and store brands. They buy generic clothes at the department store and bulk items at the wholesale outlet.

Logo-free sunglasses appeal to this type of crowd. A lack of branding is exactly what such customers are looking for in a pair of sunglasses. They still get fashion designs in a variety of colors and styles, but at a fraction of the price. You can give them what they want without compromising quality.

Unbranded products sell best when they are priced lower than branded products. So consider your current pricing structure on the branded sunglasses you purchase from Olympic Eyewear. Then work out a lower price for logo-free sunglasses, a price that will still produce a comfortable profit margin. Selling the lower priced products side-by-side with your standard inventory suddenly makes them attractive to bargain hunters.

It is a Model That Works

If you are not sure whether the strategy will work, pay a visit to any franchise optometry chain. You are likely to see both branded and unbranded frames for sale. The unbranded frames will cost quite a bit less. Note that the chain would not sell these unbranded frames if customers did not want them. That tells the whole story right there.

Perhaps the appeal of logo-free sunglasses is the sense of 'winning' that customers often feel when they make a purchase. They walk away feeling like they put one over on the big-name brands by getting equal quality at a lower price. Work that to your advantage. Help your bargain-seeking customers find exactly what they want at a price that makes them happy.

Our selection of logo-free sunglasses changes from time to time. Be sure to take a look whenever you visit the Olympic Eyewear website to place a new order. And while you are here, check out all our wholesale eyewear categories.