Eddie Bauer enters smart eyewear space with Innovative Eyewear

Outdoor brand Eddie Bauer is entering the smart eyewear space, with a partnership with developer and retailer of smart eyewear, Innovative Eyewear, according to an announcement on Tuesday.

Innovative Eyewear, which also makes smart eyewear for the Lucyd and Nautica brands, will license Eddie Bauer for smart eyewear, through an agreement with parent company, Authentic Brands Group, according to a press release.

“We are pleased to partner with Lucyd to expand Eddie Bauer’s eyewear offering,” said Henry Stupp, president, lifestyle EMEA and India, at Authentic. “Eddie Bauer is known for delivering innovation across all of its product categories. Through Lucyd’s Bluetooth technology, we reinforce the brand’s standards in this emerging category.”

The Eddie Bauer smart eyewear collection is expected to launch in 2023, and has been coined as “multi-year,” without specific details on exactly how long.

​”Few names are as renowned as Eddie Bauer in outdoor recreation,” said Harrison Gross, CEO of Innovative Eyewear Inc. “Our Eddie Bauer smart eyewear collection, powered by Lucyd, will continue Eddie Bauer’s legacy of bold and beautiful craftsmanship, coupled with innovation, and will align perfectly with today’s adventurous lifestyles. We believe outdoor enthusiasts are looking for designer eyewear that both protect their vision and allows them to remain connected to their digital lives in an open-ear, handsfree format.”

Eddie Bauer’s foray into the smart eyewear market comes three months after the company named outdoor veteran executive Tim Bantle as its new chief executive officer.