Sunglasses Market

The global sunglasses market is projected to witness significant growth during the forecast period, exhibiting a CAGR of 6.14% during the forecast period. The key factors driving the growth of the sunglasses market are the large pool of people suffering from cataracts and growing innovations by the major players. However, the high cost of raw material is expected to restrict the market's growth during the forecast period. Furthermore, strategic merger and acquisition are anticipated to create growth opportunities for the market.

The large pool of people suffering from cataracts coupled with the growing benefits provided by sunglasses such as protecting the eyes from UV exposure, polarized lenses which further reduce the intense glare projected by surfaces such as water as well as pavement, and many more have eventually contributed to its market growth. The clouding of the eye's lens, or cataract, causes a reduction in vision. Cataracts can harm one or both eyes and frequently progress slowly. Colors that have faded, hazy vision, haloes around lights, difficulty with bright lights, and difficulty seeing at night are just a few symptoms. Driving, reading, or recognising faces may become challenging as a result. Cataracts are most frequently brought on by aging, although they can also develop as a result of trauma or radiation exposure, be present at birth, or develop after eye surgery for another issue. Diabetes, tobacco use, extended sun exposure, and alcohol are risk factors. The fundamental mechanism includes protein or yellow-brown pigment clumps building up in the lens, which decreases light transmission to the retina at the rear of the eye. An eye exam is used to make the diagnosis. For instance, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), cataracts are the primary global cause of blindness. Cataracts are the cause of about 51% of blindness cases worldwide. Approximately 20 million people, in all. In addition, according to National Eye Institute (NEI), an estimated 24.4 million Americans aged 40 or older are affected by cataracts. Furthermore, roughly 50% of Americans aged 75 and older have cataracts. Hence, the growing number of people suffering from cataracts coupled with the increased awareness among consumers regarding the benefits associated with wearing sunglasses is expected to positively influence its market growth.

The sunglasses market is almost saturated with the presence of established brands, who compete against each other intensely to secure a larger customer base. Furthermore, mergers and acquisitions are gaining traction in the field of the sunglasses market. In the last few years, the sunglasses market has witnessed quite a few strategic mergers and acquisitions which assist in driving the market growth. For instance, in November 2020, Goodr, a manufacturer of stylish, practical, entertaining, and reasonably priced sunglasses for sports and active lifestyles, and CLG, a premier North American esports organization, established a marketing partnership that designates Goodr as an Official Partner for all CLG teams. Under this, CLG and Goodr will launch a joint venture to produce CLG-branded sunglasses for the game Goodr eyewear line. Furthermore, in July 2022, Lenskart acquired a significant interest in the Japanese D2C eyewear company Owndays. With the acquisition, one of Asia's leading online eyewear retailers will be born. Under this acquisition, Lenskart will expand its presence in 13 Asian markets, including India, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan. Thus, the constant strategic mergers and acquisitions taking place in the sunglasses industry among the luxury sunglasses giants across the globe have created lucrative opportunities for players in the global sunglasses market.

The raw material used for the manufacture of sunglasses usually includes injected plastic or acetate. While acetate frames are carved from acetate planks, plastic sunglasses are molded. Cotton is used to make cellulose powder, which is then processed with acid to create the raw material for acetate, which is finally pressed into planks. Moreover, the high cost of raw materials such as acetate is likely to increase the overall price of sunglasses which in turn may limit its market growth. For instance, in October 2021, Celanese Corporation, a global chemical, and specialty materials company announced that it would raise the prices of all acetate tow product grades marketed internationally will increase by USD 0.40/kg. This is mainly owing to the number of challenges which are being faced by the manufacturers such as new regulatory and legislative restrictions which have further increased the complexity of manufacturing and portfolio restrictions leading to high utilization rates, and logistics complexities including equipment and operator availability have added-cost and lead time uncertainties, which has further led to an increased cost of acetate. Hence, the high cost associated with the manufacture of sunglasses is likely to limit its market growth during the forecast period.

The stringent laws imposed by various government bodies may serve as a challenge for the sunglasses market. For instance, sunglasses, eyeglass frames, eyeglass lenses, and magnifying eyeglasses are medical devices that are exempt from submitting a 510(k) Premarket Notification to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Despite the 510(k) exemption for certain devices, various other FDA requirements still apply.

The FDA requires U.S. producers and first distributors (importers) to register their business.Foreign manufacturers must designate a United States Agent and register their business with the FDA.Device producers must register with FDA. Manufacturers must adhere to the 21 CFR 820 Quality System (QS) criteria.According to 21 CFR Part 801.410, the lens for eyeglasses and/or sunglasses must be certified as impact-resistant.

Furthermore, failure to comply with above all requirements may result in detention of the device at the U.S. port of entry. Hence, such laws laid by the government bodies are likely to serve as a challenge for sunglasses manufacturers, which in turn would limit the market growth.