Miami, Fla, Dec. 27, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Innovative Eyewear, Inc. (“Innovative Eyewear” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: LUCY; LUCYW), the developer and retailer of cutting-edge smart eyewear and operator of the Lucyd^® and Nautica^® brands for smartglasses, is pleased to disclose a summary of a strong year of innovations in R&D, new business partnerships, and significant team expansion. The Company believes these developments have furthered its goal of building the global standard in smart eyewear.

To view a video of CEO Harrison Gross explaining these developments, please click here.

Product Launches & Tech Development

Innovative Eyewear completed development on the following products in 2022.

1. Digital Try-on Display. A Lucyd-branded digital retail fixture that provides a virtual try-on experience to in-store clients at our partner retail stores. The proprietary software that operates the kiosk was designed and created in house and performs as smoothly as leading VTO (virtual try-on) applications developed by companies that focus solely on this software vertical        . The Company is able to remotely update the Displays with new brand content and glasses styles, and the tablet can also be scanned to download the Company’s Vyrb mobile app, making it a comprehensive Lucyd brand experience in all deployed locations. Launched early in 2022.
2. Cordless Charging Dock. This patent-pending accessory was developed in house, launched in 2022 and is a first in the smartglass space. It allows the customer to charge their Lucyd glasses simply by dropping them on their nightstand. The Dock includes three additional USB ports to enable the user to charge their phone, smartwatch, tablet and smartglasses simultaneously with one device.
3. 2022 Frame Collection. In 2022 we introduced four new models of our flagship product, including our Lucyd Lyte Jupiter model, which is leading the industry in terms of product weight. Weight is a proxy for comfort when it comes to eyewear, and the Jupiter model weighs just 28 grams, which is tied for the lightest smart eyewear on the market. Central to the luxurious look and feel of this new collection was the design and creation of new proprietary hinges that enable a more seamless appearance to the frames, which are being rolled out across all models. The launch of this collection also brought the number of Lucyd frame varieties to 16 total, which makes the Company’s offering the most diverse in the space.
4. The Company is pleased to announce it has completed initial production of its second generation product, Lucyd Lyte 2.0, slated to launch in Q1 2023. The Lyte 2.0 carries several new features including high-end styling from the Company’s new design team, a four-speaker array for immersive audio, and the longest playback time of any smart eyewear device, with 12 hours of music playback and talk time per charge. The battery life of the Lyte 2.0 surpasses the vast majority of true wireless audio devices in any form factor.
5. The Company has completed the development of a live streaming feature to its Vyrb social application for iOS and Android, which brings live audio chatrooms to the beta app. This will enable Lucyd glasses wearers to create and enjoy live audio events right on their smart eyewear, and this utility is also useful for real-time team communications.
6. The Company had six US design patents and one US software utility patent granted in 2022, as well as one Chinese patent granted, to protect its eyewear designs and software utilities. The Company has also filed new patents in 2022 in the US, Canada and/or China to protect its recently released Lucyd Dock and several pending products. The Company’s total number of pending and issued patents now stands at 47.

Partnerships

1. In late 2022, Innovative Eyewear acquired a multi-year, global license to the Nautica brand for smart eyewear and related accessories. As part of the deal, the owner of the Nautica brand, Authentic Brands Group, is assisting the Company with introductions to Nautica.com, independent Nautica store operators and buyers, and the Sports Illustrated online store. The Company has finished designing a dozen styles for an initial line of Nautica Smart Eyewear and expects to launch the line in H1 2023.
2. Lucyd products began to be carried on the Dick’s Sporting Goods (DSG) main website in March 2022, as a trial for consideration for an in-store presence. DSG is the largest sporting goods retailer in the US with 800+ stores.
3. Lucyd products began to be carried on Academy Sports + Outdoor’s mainsite, the second largest sporting goods retailer in the US with 260+ locations.
4. Lucyd partnered with Everest.com, a new sporting goods marketplace, to offer Lucyd Lyte glasses to their rapidly growing customer base.
5. In 2022, the Company grew its retail presence to 250+ locations carrying Lucyd Lyte in-store.
6. The Company conducted a successful research project to identify two additional manufacturing partners to provide supply chain redundancy for its smart eyewear.

Team Expansion

1. The Company hired Joaquin Abondano as VP Ecommerce and Product Sourcing. Joaquin is a very experienced digital marketer and product developer who has launched a significant number of products on digital marketplaces that have generated substantial direct to consumer sales. His expert level knowledge of Amazon systems is expected to improve the company’s direct to consumer brand awareness and advertising ROI.
2. The Company also hired Jan Cory as VP optical sales. Her background with over a decade of experience building Luxottica’s US business makes her an excellent fit for growing the retail presence of Lucyd products in the optical channel.
3. Furthermore, the Company hired two leading eyewear designers in 2022. One comes from a leading global sunglass brand, bringing their heritage of classic and timeless sunglass design to the team. The other designer has a background designing eyewear for some of the world’s leading fashion brands, bringing high fashion experience to the team.
   
   

The Year Ahead

There have been many significant developments and product improvements in 2022, and the coming year will bring many more key advancements for the Company, with the following products anticipated to go live in 2023:

1. The launch of the second generation Lucyd Lyte 2.0 product line with improved sound, battery and styling. Lyte 2.0 will be launched initially in 15 sunglass and 6 blue light styles. This launch includes several styles of smart eyewear designed specifically for women and youth, a key differentiator from other smart eyewear collections.
2. The launch of Nautica Powered by Lucyd smart eyewear and introduction into many Nautica points of sale around the world, kicking off what the Company expects to be a powerful combination of its user-friendly Bluetooth technology with iconic fashion brands.
3. The introduction of the Lucyd Bluetooth temple into new eyewear verticals such as sport wrap frames and rimless frames, which are minimal or non-existent on the market.
4. The full commercial release of the Vyrb social audio application and the addition of in-app purchases, content monetization and creator tools to the app.
5. An updated website with a vastly improved prescription ordering process to make it easier to purchase Rx-upgraded Lucyd products.
6. A dedicated wholesale website for the Company’s retail partners to be able to conveniently learn about and stock Lucyd products.

In sum, these developments and forecasted releases position the Company well to achieve its mission to Upgrade Your Eyewear® in 2023.

About Innovative Eyewear, Inc.

Innovative Eyewear is a developer and retailer of cutting-edge smart eyewear, under the Lucyd® and Nautica® brands. True to our mission to Upgrade Your Eyewear®, our Bluetooth audio glasses allow users to stay safely and ergonomically connected to their digital lives, and are offered in hundreds of frame and lens combinations to meet the needs of the optical market. To learn more and explore our continuously evolving collection of smart eyewear, please visit www.lucyd.co.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including those relating to the anticipated timing of completion of the offering and other statements that are predictive in nature. Forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe-harbor for forward-looking statements. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking expressions, including, but not limited to, “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “future,” “intend,” “may,” “outlook,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the expected launch date for the new Nautica smart eyewear connection. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its registration statement on Form S-1, as amended from time to time, under the caption “Risk Factors.”

Investor Relations Contact:
Scott Powell 
Skyline Corporate Communications Group, LLC 
Office: +1 (646) 893-5835 
Email: scott@skylineccg.com

Optical Sales Contact:
Jan Cory
VP Global Optical Sales
JCory@Lucyd.co

Diversified Sales Contact:
Ekene Ofodile
SVP Sales
EOfodile@Lucyd.co

New Products Developed in 2022