“Sales of eyewear in the UK have continued to grow steadily in 2025”

This reflects a positive outlook set out at the start of the year, suggesting growth in the market would continue, though possibly dampened by economic and political factors.

To round-off 2025, OT asked Cazin for her takeaways from the UK eyewear market, and what to expect from the year ahead.

How would you describe the optical and eyewear market in 2025? What has performance been like?

Sales of eyewear in the UK have continued to grow steadily in 2025, albeit at a slower rate than in the previous year. Value growth is outpacing volume growth in spectacles and sunglasses, which is due to a variety of reasons including premiumisation, new product development, in particular enhanced technology and innovation, as well as price increases. Lifestyle and demographic trends, such as the UK’s ageing population, increased screen time, and a heightened interest in health, has all contributed towards driving demand for eyewear in the UK.

Sales of eyewear in the UK have continued to grow steadily in 2025, albeit at a slower rate than in the previous year

Could you share some examples of consumer or market trends that have followed the expected trajectory this year? How do you expect consumer behaviours might evolve and how can practices prepare for this?

The market trend that has followed the expected trajectory this year is the rise of smart glasses. In both Euromonitor International’s 2025 UK Eyewear report, and Euromonitor’s Top 5 Trends in Eyewear report, we predicted that smart glasses would be a big trend in 2025, and this was indeed the case.

Smart glasses’ popularity in 2025 in the UK is being driven primarily by Meta (with the launch of Ray-Ban Meta Gen 2 and Oakley Meta Vanguard) and a wave of disruptive new entrants that have entered the landscape in 2025. These players are reshaping the competitive dynamics and accelerating innovation.

Social friction around public use is also anticipated to diminish, with EU legislation expected to normalise usage, following a similar trajectory to smartphone cameras. Still not considered mainstream, the price range of the Ray-Ban Meta glasses, for example, became slightly more affordable in 2025, depending on the choice of frame and lenses.

With 38% of UK Gen Z consumers planning to spend more on technology, according to Euromonitor’s Consumer Lifestyles Survey, smart eyewear is becoming an attractive offering.

Optical good practices need to take note. Practice owners should consider stocking a limited, high-quality range of reputable smart glasses that align with their brand and target audience. Educating customers through social media blog posts will also be key to addressing potential privacy concerns and to encouraging customers to enter the store.

Looking ahead, how do you expect the market to behave in 2026?

Eyewear in the UK is projected to see stable growth over the forecast period in value terms (at constant 2025 prices). Eyewear is a health-related product, and factors such as an ageing population, the increasing prevalence of myopia and presbyopia for those aged above the age of 45, should continue to drive growth in contact lenses and spectacles, as well as prescription sunglasses.

The UK market for myopia control is poised for strong growth over the forecast period, driven by the soaring prevalence of myopia and increasing education and awareness amongst parents about the importance of eye health. The success of function-led eyewear solutions for children, such as MiSight, Stellest, and MiYOSMART, was particularly notable.