California Apparel News

The high-end optical market may seem like an unlikely place for two former professional surfers to land, but the fledgling glasses brand Salt Optics has a quality that can only spring from Southern California’s high-low beach culture.

Founded in 2006 by David Rose and Taylor Whisenand, both former Quiksilver riders, and business partner Ron Smith, Salt distills the easy beach/surf lifestyle into cool upscale glasses and shades. Whisenand, who also held the post of director of marketing for the Huntington Beach, Calif.–based surf giant, hesitates to categorize Salt as a surf brand but acknowledges that the surf industry plays a large role in the company’s back story.

“There are a lot of surf-industry refugees here,” he joked, sitting in Salt’s sunny Costa Mesa, Calif., headquarters. Salt counts several surfers, including a former Roxy surfer/model and a Roxy marketing executive, in its ranks. “A lot of what Salt is is an extension of our backgrounds. Quik was a great environment, and it was built on a lifestyle, as well. I had the opportunity of seeing how a small company keeps and adapts its culture and morals as it grows up,” Whisenand said. “Having that opportunity gives me something to reflect on what we want to implement here and what we want to do differently. It has helped us to make better decisions for Salt.”

Still, he said, the act of surfing, more than the industry itself, is what informs Salt’s corporate culture. “Surfing is soulful. You form strong bonds. It informs how you live and how you do business,” he said. For Salt, that means building a tight-knit team that focuses on producing top-notch product with a laid-back attitude. “We want to build an independent company with a great vision,” said Smith, whose extensive background in the optical market includes stints at Oakley, Oliver Peoples and Mosley Tribes. “We want to have control over our own philosophy and how we grow. That is very appealing.”

Rose, who before launching Salt was the lead designer at glasses maker Oliver Peoples, designs glasses made of titanium, alloy and acetate. All of Salt’s products—which include several takes on the classic aviator, understated geek-chic glasses and vintage-inspired frames—are handmade in Japan from Japanese and Italian acetate. Rose, who mines vintage resources and his own travels for inspiration, works with plastics manufacturers to create custom colors for his designs. Hand-polishing helps make Salt’s glasses lightweight and comfortable.

Surfing and the active lifestyle it implies also inform Salt’s design process. “The glasses have to be able to go with you to the beach, hiking, fishing— whatever,” said Monica Paull, Salt’s director of marketing. “So many glasses are designed for the look, and not much thought is put into making them durable. Our frames stand up to our lifestyle.”

Salt’s collection, which includes 23 optical styles and 30 sunglasses, sell in approximately 200 independent retailers nationwide. “We are super-focused on developing good working relationships with our retailers. Our product competes on a very high level, but our approach to our business is very humble. The retailers are an extension of us—and in this industry, there aren’t a lot of people saying ’Thank you,’” Smith said. Unlike the surf industry, he said, optics brands don’t sponsor cool athletes to sport their gear. Instead, choosing the right retail partners to help support and grow the brand is how Salt earns its exposure. “Our top accounts are our athletes.”

Retailers, Smith continued, like Salt’s combination of authentic beach lifestyle and upper-crust optical pedigree. “We’re an independent brand with an interesting back story. Our story opens doors, but our product is the bridge that keeps us there.” Katie O’Connell, co-owner of Los Angeles–based Society of the Spectacle, an independent eyewear retailer, said Salt’s story is great but the look is what keeps the company’s glasses selling well. “Their fit is the number-one selling point. They just look good on people, and their colors are so wearable. We sell a lot of Salt,” she said.

For its 60-piece 2009 collection, Rose plans to grow the optical range, adding more of the understated designs on which Salt builds its credibility. “We need to play it smart. We’re not trying to be everything to everyone,” Whisenand said.