(PRESS RELEASE) PORTLAND, OR – After 30 years of innovating eyewear – and with consumers demanding more from their product, investment and usage – Smith is elevating the user experience by being more purposeful in product design and creation through the Who We Serve platform. For 2018, Smith introduces a re-imagined sunglass collection amplified by ChromaPop lens innovation to see beyond normal capabilities with enhanced natural color and detail, designed for the intersection of life and sport. With styles that provide all-out high-speed performance to technologies hidden behind streetwise looks.
“This year is our greatest release of new products, innovations and designs within a single year. But what’s more important than the volume, is our focus. In really defining five user categories, and their needs and expectations for eyewear performance, Smith targets and defines who we serve more than ever, and we’re building product within each category with purpose-filled intent,” said Eric Carlson, Global Brand Director at Smith.
Moving forward, all Smith eyewear will be defined and developed under the new Who We Serve categories:
- Velocity: Designed for performance at full speed. Fast becomes faster. Developed for every performance advantage possible for athletes that use eyewear as equipment for speed.
- Water: Purpose built for advantage on the water. Sunglasses as performance gear for the ocean, river, and flats. Eyewear developed to solve the specific sets of needs for life on the water.
- Land: Crafted for all-purpose action. Eyewear developed with the right mix of performance features to meet the needs of versatile athletes as they transition from the streets into the mountains. This is a true blend of performance and style, utilizing key innovations to create sunglasses that move with you.
- Ridge: Modern classics. Merging timeless silhouettes with Smith design to create fresh perspectives for the modern explorer. Recognizable and relatable eyewear with performance features wrapped in contemporary styles.
- Horizon: Designed for the front edge of outdoor style.The future today – a brave new eyewear series where youth culture intersects with outdoor sport culture. With bold expressions and forward shapes, Smith defines tomorrow’s look for the outdoor enthusiast.
The design and development of Smith’s innovative and iconic eyewear is lead by Product Creation Director, John Ohran and Eyewear Category Manager, Mark McCann.
After graduating from Brigham Young University with a BFA in Sculpture, Ohran was recruited by General Motors as 3D CAD Surface Modeler in its Michigan Design Center. After a two-year stint, he moved on to a small industrial design firm in North Salt Lake City where he worked on his first Smith eyewear and goggle projects. His career led him to almost a decade at Oakley, holding positions in design/development, tooling technology and design engineering. With over 14 years of experience in eyewear and goggle development, Ohran relocated to Portland in Fall of 2016 to work again on Smith product creation. He reports to Alessandro Bellati, Product Creation Director.
McCann joined Smith in January 2017 with a career steeped in product marketing and management, most recently at Oakley and Toshiba. With a degree in Industrial Design from California State University and an MBA from Chapman University, McCann oversees the eyewear category roadmap, strategic business objectives, product lifestyle and goto- market intiatives across the global organization for Smith, Suncloud by Polaroid, and Forecast Optics brands. McCann reports to Eric Carlson, Global Brand Director at Smith.
John Ohran Mark McCann