Majority of Britons Wear Glasses

Almost six out of ten British people wear prescription glasses on a regular basis, according to new research by Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS). The results are published to coincide with National Eye Week, which began in Britain on 23rd September.

A significant proportion of younger people now require prescription lenses to correct their eyesight. The study - carried out by TNS VisionTrak - shows that one in five (21 per cent) 16-24 year-olds and just over one third (34 per cent) of 25-34 year-olds wear prescription glasses.

Younger adults are most likely to attribute 'attractiveness' to people who wear glasses. Fifty per cent of women aged 16-24 years old and 44 per cent of men aged 25-34 years old agree that wearing glasses can make a person look more attractive. This suggests that opportunities exist for eyewear manufacturers to target the younger market more widely.

In contrast, older people in Britain are less likely to associate glasses with attractiveness. Only one in five (21 per cent) 55-64 year-olds agree that wearing glasses can make someone look attractive and three-quarters of women aged over 65 years old think that it is 'strange for people to wear glasses for appearance rather than to correct eyesight'.

Whilst the designer market is relatively small - only 14 per cent of people in Britain wear prescription glasses with designer frames - it remains significant to the overall buoyancy of the eyewear market. Ninety per cent of people who wear glasses think that designer frames are overpriced, yet almost one in five people who wear standard frames admit that they would pay more than £200 for a pair of glasses. The question then is why don't they?

Matt Stockbridge, Account Director of TNS' VisionTrak said 'Younger people are increasingly wearing glasses and sunglasses as fashion accessories and therefore there is significant potential for manufacturers and retailers to expand the range of fashion glasses which target the youth market. In addition, educating younger consumers on the value of protecting their eyes from the sun could potentially double the penetration of sunglasses in this market. Habits and attitudes formed in the late teenage years tend to lay the foundations for the future of brands, and manufacturers are recognising the value of the youth market for the future of contact lenses. Whilst a quarter of 16-24 year-olds in Europe who require vision correction wear contact lenses, the potential for more young adults to wear contact lenses as an alternative to glasses is high. This age group is almost four times as likely to try contact lenses in the future than the total European population. In real terms, this presents an opportunity to target over two million young people in Europe.'

VisionTrak data is collected on a monthly basis using CAPI technology. Face-to-face interviews are conducted in Great Britain, France, Italy, Spain and Germany. Interviews are carried out amongst individuals aged over 16, who are recruited to form a representative sample by age, gender and region. A total of 132,441 interviews are conducted in Europe in a year.

All articles 2006-22 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas unless otherwise stated.

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