My entire family has poor eyesight. I, for one, started wearing glasses in 3rd grade. In high school I switched to soft lenses, then hard lenses, until I had LASIK done at American Eye in 2003.
Fourteen years later I can feel my eyes getting weaker—old age is creeping in. I have some reading glasses on standby but I rarely have to use them. One day I’m going to need glasses again.
In the meantime, a really cool optical salon has opened at SM Aura. Earlier this year I just happened to walk into this shop at the upper ground level.
I had never seen it before, never heard of the name Ronnie & Joe.
What really pulled me inside was the sight of these Matsuda eyeglasses.
As a child of the ’80s, I recognised one of the brands that defined the decade. Mitsuhiro Matsuda was one of the most coveted designer labels of my generation.
Inside, the interior design and the selection of eyewear just blew me away, beginning with the patterned glass doors and the whole ambience.
Founded by model/entrepreneur Michael Concepcion, Ronnie & Joe Optical Salon was named after his grandfather Joe and his twin brother Ronnie Concepcion.
“As an eyewear consumer myself, I recognized the need for a shop that would provide a variety of specialty brands and a curated experience you would not normally find in an optical store chain,” Michael said.
“We look beyond fickle designer logos and define luxury through a brand’s history, heritage, craftsmanship, material, design and attention to detail. Most of our brands have been around for close to 100 years, yet only a handful of specialty retailers worldwide like Harvey Nichols, Dover Street Market, Opening Ceremony, Colette, and Ronnie and Joe, carry them. We are proud to be a standing retailer and partner to represent these brands in the country.”
Expect to find the following brands at Ronnie & Joe: MOSCOT, Illesteva, Native Sons, Max Pittion, Grey Ant, Shwood, Matsuda, Karen Walker, Barton Perreira, DITA, Thom Browne, GLCO, Ksubi, Italia Independent and Mark Mcnairy.
Coming soon: Graphic Plastic, Garrett Leight, DITA, Thom Browne, House of Holland, Cutler & Gross, Mykita x Margiela, Activist, Effector.
Ronnie & Joe Optical Salon is at the upper ground level of SM Aura, open daily from 10 AM-10 PM.
To know more, go to http://ronnieandjoe.com.
