(PRESS RELEASE) ALEXANDRIA, VA — Vision Expo East 2022 concluded on Sunday, April 3. The four-day event, which took place March 31–April 3 at the Javits Center, marked Vision Expo’s first Show in New York City since 2019 and brought enthusiastic members of the vision care industry from the United States and around the globe together under one roof.
Vision Expo East featured more than 360 exhibiting companies across several distinct neighborhoods and offered leading continuing education as well as engaging programming. Presented under the banner of VisionEd, Vision Expo’s education program offered more than 230 hours of education, ranging from the latest business strategies and fashion trends to patient education tactics and cutting-edge innovations. Returning to the Show, OptiCon@Vision Expo offered an unmatched education program and exhibit hall experience for opticians, contact lens practitioners and ophthalmic allied professionals.
“It was incredible to bring the vision care community together again in New York City for the first time since 2019. The Show Floor was buzzing with activity and the energy, especially on day one, was palpable as motivated attendees and exhibitors reconnected with their peers, conducted business and engaged with the education offerings,” said Fran Pennella, Vice President, Vision Expo, at RX, co-organizer of Vision Expo. “Of course, none of this would have been possible without the support and commitment of all our attendees, exhibitors and partners – we are truly grateful to each and every one who participated in this year’s exciting event.”
The Bridge, Vision Expo East’s main stage destination, featured the EYE2EYE Series, an educational series of panels on topics ranging from fashion trend forecasts to the metaverse and cryptocurrency, and headlined by fashion innovator and author, Dapper Dan. The Bridge also housed the Innovation Stage, the Show Floor destination dedicated to groundbreaking content and state-of-the-art products and services revolutionizing the industry.
The Career Zone-Student Lounge, a destination for students to connect with optical companies that are actively recruiting and explore career resources, also returned to Vision Expo East on Saturday, April 2.
Additionally, the winner of the OPTImum Retail Award — Black Optical — was announced and celebrated during a reception at Vision Expo East. The award celebrates independent retailers and showcases their products, stores, visions and stories.
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The Vision Choice Award, which recognizes the best new product at Vision Expo East, was awarded to ZEISS for the company’s PhotoFusion X Lenses.
NOW by Vision Expo, a new eyewear trends showcase, also made its debut at the Show, spotlighting curated selections of eyewear from more than 80 exhibiting companies. The intent of the program is to expand beyond eyewear at future Shows to also showcase products, technology and equipment.
“We created NOW by Vision Expo to highlight where our industry stands today and spotlight the trends to focus on for the year ahead,” said Nico Roseillier, creative director of Europa / State Optical Co. / American Optical. “It was gratifying to see it all come together and hear the feedback of attendees. NOW will be back next year with even more to offer.”
“It was an amazing few days back in New York City. We were thrilled to see so many of our members in-person — doing business, learning, forging new relationships and connecting with longtime peers,” said Mitch Barkley, Vice President of Trade Shows and Events at The Vision Council, co-organizer of Vision Expo. “We are very appreciative to everyone in the community for lending their support. The success of this Show directly impacts The Vision Council’s ability to fulfill its mission of growing the industry through education, advocacy, research, and consumer education — so by being here together we are all helping to elevate the greater industry.”
Images from Vision Expo East 2022 can be downloaded here.
In an effort to accommodate members of the community from around the globe, Vision Expo+, a free digital extension of the Vision Expo experience, is being offered until Friday, April 8 and features online showrooms from Vision Expo East’s exhibitors and recorded Vision Expo East content. Vision Expo+ is delivered through ShopVISION, a global sourcing platform. Panel discussions that took place The Bridge are available to view in an on-demand format on the ShopVISION platform.
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To gain access to Vision Expo+ offerings, register for ShopVISION here by clicking the “Sign in/Join” button and then “Register Now.” ShopVISION and Vision Expo+ are being offered on a complimentary basis to all eyecare providers, buyers and all Vision Expo East 2022 exhibitors. Registrants who signed up for Vision Expo+ during Vision Expo East 2021 do not need to register again.
Vision Expo West 2022 will take place at The Venetian Convention Center & Expo in Las Vegas from September 14–17, 2022. The Show’s educational program, together with OptiCon@Vision Expo, will open Wednesday, September 14, and the Exhibit Hall will Thursday, September 15. Details on registration will be released in the coming months.
Vision Expo East 2022 Testimonials
“We never stopped supporting Vision Expo because we understand the importance of this event for the industry. It is the most critical source of funding to drive The Vision Council’s important advocacy, awareness and consumer demand efforts. This year, we could not have been more thrilled with the significant level of customer engagement and the validation that this event creates the impactful tentpole moment for the industry,” said Sherianne James, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President Customer Engagement, Essilor of America, and The Vision Council Board Member.
“We were thrilled to be back in person at Vision Expo East, with a renewed vigor and strength, and with an expansive and highly engaging new show presence. There was an exciting energy at our booth which was driven by attention-grabbing and well-received brand experiences, including a kate spade new york pop-up boutique, an Under Armour mini-golf activation, a Carolina Herrera shop-in-shop and Carrera l Ducati and BOSS selfie-stations,” said Steve Wright, President and Chief Commercial Officer, Safilo USA, Inc.
“We were excited to be back in New York and to meet in-person with eyecare professionals and our industry colleagues. We had very good engagement with attendees this week in our booth as we celebrated the launch of ZEISS PhotoFusion X. Attendance was much stronger than last year’s show in Orlando and a testament to the industry’s continued recovery and improvement that we have seen over the last 18 months. We are looking forward to exhibiting in Las Vegas for Vision Expo West 2022,” said Jens Boy, President North America, ZEISS Vision Care.
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“Vision Expo East is one of the most impactful meetings in our industry. Education is developed and led by world-class faculty with varied formats that enable optometrists to stay informed on cutting-edge developments in their field. The exhibit hall was bustling, and industry got a real sense that live, in-person meetings are back in full swing. It felt great to be back in New York, seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Heru was proud to be an exhibiting company at this exceptional meeting,” said Kara Isselee, Senior Director, Product Marketing and Events, Heru.
“We were beyond ecstatic to be back in New York, in person and maskless, with all of our customers and industry colleagues. The show was truly successful in many facets and we look forward to continuing with the Vision Expo East momentum in 2022,” said Kelly Piotti, Senior Director of Sales Strategy and Planning, Hilco Vision.
