Retail / Luxembourg
Handcrafted eyepieces make global mark
Like Switzerland’s iconic Swiss watch, Luxembourg may soon create a synonymous claim in its own luxury accessory: eyepieces. Gold & Wood, an eyepiece manufacturer, has so far spread Luxembourg’s global stake in the eyewear category to Hollywood A-listers (Samuel L. Jackson), Silicon Valley titans (Tim Cook) and music superstars (Snoop Dogg) by making them their clients. Having just hired a new artistic director, Gold & Wood is focusing on spreading appeal for its handcrafted Luxembourg-made eyepieces.
Because Gold & Wood’s products noticeably omit any brand logo, the only stamp left on the product is that of “Made in Luxembourg,” a strategy that aims to transform the product into a global icon like the Swiss watch. “Our eyepieces bear no logo, as we are focused on production quality,” says Maurice Leonard, a Belgian national who founded Gold & Wood in Luxembourg in 1995. “We don’t measure the time spent on manufacturing, even though they are handmade; we prefer to gauge them by our noble materials, which are the best available, such as rare woods, buffalo horn and more,” he says. The addition of Alain Mikli, a famous French-Armenian eyewear designer, as the company’s artistic director is hoped to open up more doors. “We already have many people from showbiz, politics and business wearing our eyepieces,” says Leonard. “These are high-demanding customers, which says a lot about the quality of the ‘Made in Luxembourg’ mark.”
