An International CES attendee tries
on a pair of Jins Meme smart glasses.

SAN FRANCISCO— Jins, a Tokyo-based optical retailer known for its hip, affordable eyewear, announced plans to expand into the U.S. market with the opening of its first U.S. flagship store in San Francisco in Spring 2015. Since opening its first store in 2001, Jins has rapidly grown to become Japan's largest eyewear retailer by volume, and today, operates more than 300 retail locations across Japan and China. Jins said its U.S. flagship store, located in San Francisco’s Union Square, will offer more than 4,900 square feet of shopping space.

"We chose the Bay Area as our first stop in the U.S. because it perfectly reflects Jins' progressive spirit and passion for innovation," said Shinsuke Tomita, president of Jins Eyewear U.S. "With the opening of the San Francisco store, we hope to change the way people think about shopping for glasses in the U.S. Similar to how we shop for shoes or jewelry, we want our customers to explore countless designs and color options without being limited by the unnecessary complexities and inflated prices that are still the norm in the eyewear industry today."

The Jins store will offer more than 1,200 different eyeglass styles ranging in price from $60 to $120, including premium lenses, Jins said. Among them will be Jins Meme, a new class of smart eyewear that caused a stir when Jins previewed it at International CES this month. The glasses, which Jins will release in the U.S. in Autumn, 2015, uses eye-tracking and bio-sensing technology to detect changes in eye and body movements to monitor the body for better safety, wellness and health.

Jins will also launch its U.S. e-commerce site in Spring 2015. Customers nationwide will be able to purchase Jins eyewear online with an existing prescription, and San Francisco/Bay Area residents will have the opportunity to purchase their glasses online and pick them up in the store on the same day.