Japanese optical retailer OWNDAYS, with more than 550 stores internationally, has expanded its footprint in Australia with two new locations opening in Sydney.
The stores are located in Westfield Hurstville and Westfield Burwood and began operating in mid-2024.
OWNDAYS’ first entered the Australian market with a shop in Westfield Chatswood in 2015. That was followed by a Sydney City store in May 2016.
“Further plans to expand the brand’s network Australia wide are in the works,” a statement said.
These new investments suggest Australia is a target market for OWNDAYS. Founded in Tokyo in 1989, the company has evolved into a retail chain operation selling more than 2.5 million pairs of glasses annually across over 550 stores in 13 international locations.
The company also made headlines in June 2022 following a strategic merger with India’s prescription eyewear company, LENSKART, in a move that “further solidified its position as a global eyewear industry leader”.
The frames OWNDAYS stocks are designed in-house, with each pair of spectacles “carefully assembled by hand”, the company said.
Bluebell Group, an omnichannel brand partner and operator in Asia, has supported OWNDAYS with its Australian expansion.
“This collaboration marks a continuum of the existing successful joint-venture for the Bluebell Group and the eyewear leader in the Hong Kong market since 2016, where the group operates the brand’s presence in 18 stores across the city today,” Bluebell said in a statement.
Ms Nelly Ngadiman, managing director of Southeast Asia and Australia for Bluebell, said due to how the joint venture had progressed in Hong Kong, the company was pleased to extend the partnership to the Australian market with two new stores in 2024.
“We look forward to reshaping the landscape of eyewear retail in Australia, through the brand’s unique eyewear offer and service, which we are both committed to delivering,” she said.
The Bluebell Group said it would use its knowledge of the OWNDAYS brand and eyewear sector, while leveraging its local landlord relationships and market expertise in the retail sector, to create “a capillary retail network into the Australian territory” for the brand.
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