Mr Porter launches sunglasses blitz as H&M links with Chimi for eyewear collab

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jun 1, 2020

As the SS20 season is all-but-cancelled globally, lockdown easing is seeing retailers launching products that they know are likely to sell, especially in the menswear market. 

And while items for going on holiday, such as swimwear might be off the agenda for many, sunglasses are more likely to see demand. Even consumers who can only go to the local park will be wanting to look cool as they shield their eyes from what’s turning out to be a hot late spring and early summer in many countries.

And this is being seen across the price spectrum. YNAP’s high-end webstore Mr Porter has just launched The Archive Collection, an exclusive sunglasses capsule from 14 eyewear specialists. Spanning 35 frames, it’s inspired by “the best and most iconic eyewear from each brand”.

The new sunglasses collection includes archival ‘greatest hits’ and special editions from Cubitts, Cutler and Gross, Eyevan 7285, Flatlist, Garrett Leight California Optical, Jacques Marie Mage, Kirk Originals, Moscot, Mr Leight, Native Sons, Oliver Peoples and Persol. It also sees the introduction of E.B. Meyrowitz and The Reference Library to the site, with styles ranging from gold-framed aviators through to lightweight titanium frames.

Meanwhile, further down the price scale, H&M has unveiled a men’s capsule collection in a collaboration with eyewear specialist Chimi. There are three styles of sunglasses, each made from chunky acetate. 

And to add to the offer, there’s also a short-sleeved shirt, drawstring shorts and bucket hat in linen-viscose blends and sporty polyesters, plus pool slides and a bag — just in case anyone does get to go on holiday this year. 

All pieces in the collection have the distinctive Chimi colour choice – pastel yellow, blue, pink and purple, plus a cool grey for the accessories.

“With this H&M collaboration, we wanted to encourage people to see beauty in places around them, creating good summer memories in a joyous way,” said Chimi co-founders Charlie Lindström and Jonas Löhr. “In these peculiar times, we thought this positive message could give an extra spark to people’s lives. Each piece in the collection puts a twist on an iconic item, from our signature sunglasses to bowling shirts, and we believe that with H&M, we’ve created something new and exciting.”