Edward Beiner always keeps an eye on the future.
In 1981, when he opened his flagship Edward Beiner Eyewear store in Miami, glasses weren’t considered a fashion accessory but a medical necessity. However, Beiner had a vision. He wanted to convince customers that eyewear should be treated with proper consideration because it’s the first thing people see when they look at your face.
“Today, glasses are part of a wardrobe for many people,” he says – and he’s widely credited in the industry for making that happen.
The son of a Brazilian jeweler, Beiner had experience in fashion, sales and marketing at a young age. But, after graduating from Ryerson University in Toronto, he took a different path than his father.
“I didn’t want to follow my dad,” he says. “I saw an opportunity in eyewear, even more important than diamonds. It had an extra side – the prescription lens. Almost anyone over 40 needs glasses. So, I thought, ‘What a great business,’ and then I realized this was how I could make people look beautiful.”
Today, Edward Beiner Eyewear has 11 stores throughout Florida, including in Town Center at Boca Raton, and online ordering is available worldwide. He’s known for innovative thinking, creating his own collections and nurturing emerging brands such as Barton Perreia and Salt.
Launched in 2018, Beiner’s 3-D printed eyewear collection was a landmark achievement for the company. The product, manufactured abroad, has frames made of polyamide, a material that can be produced in virtually every Pantone color.
“We recently made a pair of glasses in vivid yellow for a young woman who wanted the glasses to match the color of her sneakers and shorts,” Beiner says.
On weekends, he enjoys cooking and driving his Austin-Healey 3000 around Miami, where he lives with his wife of 34 years, Daniela Zanzuri. They have two grown sons, David and Steven.
Despite being in the industry for nearly four decades, Beiner’s passion for eyewear hasn’t dimmed.
“We underestimate the value of eyewear. The world would come to a standstill if it wasn’t for our eyes,” he says. “Gutenberg may have given us movable type, but if people couldn’t read, where would we be right now?” O