NEW YORK—A number of optical and sunwear companies' products have been named among the finalists in The Accessories Council's first annual Design Excellence Awards. Building on its history of honoring individuals and companies, the Council launched the Design Excellence Awards to expand the recognition of outstanding products–especially ones that will be in market during the critical Fall/Holiday 2019 selling season. With that in mind, all finalist products selected are available for purchase in the U.S. via retail stores, e-commerce, TV retail or direct marketing between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, 2019.

Finalists in such categories as jewelry, handbags, footwear and eyewear were selected by The Accessories Council board of directors and the Accessories Innovation Committee based on the criteria of excellence in design, unique appearance and/or function, consumer needs addressed by product, appropriate aesthetics, innovative materials or technology, market positioning and competitive performance, social images, emotional appeal, and sustainability.

In Eyewear Optical, the finalists are:

1. ClearVision Optical, Amazing
2. Covry Eyewear, Chara Peony
3. Flexon, Black Collection
4. Jimmy Choo - JC228 (Safilo)
5. Tura Inc., MINI 741001 BLS

In Sunwear, the finalists are:

1. Atelier Swarovski Eyewear, style SK0240-P
2. Chloé - Curtis (Style # CE162S)
3. FENDI - FF 0399/S (Safilo)
4. Givenchy - GV Shower (GV7136/S) (Safilo)
5. Randolph Engineering, 23k White Gold Aviator Sunglasses with AGX Polarized SkyTec Glass Lens

Recognized as a finalist in the Tech/Innovation category is Shamir Autograph Intelligence spectacle lenses.



In addition to finalists, winners were announced for the Hall of Fame category, which recognizes one single iconic product that has stood the test of time as determined by the Accessories Council Board. In this inaugural year of the Design Excellence Awards, the Hall of Fame winner is Ray-Ban Original Wayfarer Classics.

"I am so excited to launch the Design Excellence Awards and to receive such a strong vote of confidence from the industry in our first year out," said Karen Giberson, CEO, Accessories Council. "We had over 200 products enter the awards which far exceeded our expectations. It's a true testament to the need for recognizing great design and providing our industry with even more tools to help them market their products to consumers."

Voting for the final winners in each category is open to everyone and can be done on The Accessories Council website starting immediately. Voting will be open until Friday, August 23.The final winners will be revealed live at a luncheon on September 5 in New York City. Sponsors of the Design Excellence Awards are Accessories Circuit, Donatello Arm, Launchmetrics, Marchon Eyewear, NANO, QVC/HSN and Swarovski. More details on the program and the finalists in other accessories categories are posted on the website.

Clockwise from top left, ClearVision Optical, Amazing; Covry Eyewear, Chara Peony; Flexon Black Collection; Tura Inc., MINI 741001 BLS; and Jimmy Choo - JC228 (Safilo).







Clockwise from top left, Randolph Engineering, 23k White Gold Aviator Sunglasses with AGX Polarized SkyTec Glass Lens; Atelier Swarovski Eyewear, style SK0240-P; Chloé - Curtis (Style # CE162S); Givenchy - GV Shower (GV7136/S) (Safilo); and FENDI - FF 0399/S (Safilo).