Morgan M. Hurley | Contributing Editor

Trunk show raises glasses, awareness and funds 

Two Hillcrest businesses have joined their creative juices and are planning to serve up a stylish, eye-popping event that will function as both a charity fundraiser and a celebration.

Urban Optiks Optometry will present “Raise Your Glasses” — a vendor trunk show expo — on Feb. 24 from 5 – 9 p.m. at Martinis Above Fourth.

The expo will showcase 13 of Urban Optiks’ 18 exclusive vendors, all coming together in one place to raise money for Optometry Cares, a nonprofit arm of the American Optometric Association (AOA) that offers eye exams and services to underserved individuals and assessments for infants born with eye issues.

Dr. Gary Klein, optometrist and proprietor of Urban Optiks, is excited about the expo, which will also celebrate the patients who have supported his business over the past seven years. He hopes to make it an annual event benefitting a different eye care-related charity each year.

“This is the first time we’ve done a trunk show outside of Urban Optiks, and we’ve never done anything this large before,” he said. “This is big. [Trunk shows] are usually a buying experience for people who are in the business.”

Generally, Klein said, when a trunk show is offered for the public, it’s done at the retail store with one vendor’s frame line, without competition. At the “Raise Your Glass” event, however, 11 different frame vendors will be participating side-by-side in a layout that encourages attendees to move from table to table talking to each vendor and perusing hundreds of frames — many manufactured in Paris — while enjoying live entertainment.

“It’s really a rare treat that the vendors would all get together and do something like this,” Klein said.

In addition, two high-definition digital lens manufacturers, Shamir Optical and Carl Zeiss Vision, will be on hand to explain the technology behind their high quality lenses.

“Really this whole thing snowballed because actually it’s our seventh anniversary at Urban Optiks, so we wanted to have sort of a celebration and a ‘thank you’ to our patients for those years. We thought, ‘What can we do that’s fun? Let’s try to get a trunk show together and see if all our of our vendors who have supported us would be willing to do that,’ and they were all on board about it,” Klein said, adding that finding a worthy and relevant charity was the next thing on the agenda.

The theme came together progressively. “Raise your [martini] glasses” to celebrate the anniversary, “raise” awareness to eye health issues and raise money for those in need.

Klein is proud of the four ways he said Urban Optiks “redefines eyecare” — fashion: with classic, modern and vintage-inspired frames from all over the world; technology: the latest in diagnostic and digital lens equipment; expertise: a highly skilled staff; and experience: personalized attention and care.

Four opticians round out the staff at Urban Optiks: Kristy Cambone, Nathan Caracter, Erika Caesar and Holly Linden. All will participate in the trunk show on Feb. 24.

One would never know they are walking into an eye doctor’s office from the care Klein and his staff have taken to create a warm and inviting space in the Cairo building on Park Boulevard. Klein calls the motif “technology meets vintage.” Klein’s high-tech examination area is hidden from view, but it too is a primary focus of his practice.

“This is all boutique; this is special,” Klein said. “This was a commitment to bringing in the best eye wear and the best technology available together in one location. You can’t be everything to everybody, but if someone is looking for something unique and different, of high quality and they want to get the best vision possible with the lenses we use, that’s what we’re about.

People wear their glasses every day they want them to look good and to last,” he added.

Vendors participating at the trunk show include: Gold & Wood Paris, Tom Davies London, Face a Face Paris, Anne et Valentin Paris, ic! Berlin Germany, i.a.eyeworks USA, Claire Goldsmith London, Oliver Goldsmith London, Traction Productions Paris, Booth & Bruce England and Matsuda Japan.

The event will kick off with a “Very Important Patient” (VIP) reception from 5 – 7 p.m. with hosted hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and a pre-expo shopping experience to thank patients for their years of patronage. Others wishing to attend the VIP reception can do so for $15.

The trunk show itself, free to the public, runs from 7 – 9 p.m.

Martinis Above Fourth is located at 3940 Fourth Ave., on the second floor. For more information and to register, visit urban-optiks.com/raise.

—Morgan M. Hurley can be reached at [email protected].