In most optician’s shops, it is useless to look for frames made in Quebec. You are unlikely to find any, since barely a handful of manufacturers have taken up residence in the province. However, things could slowly change, thanks to enthusiasts who are developing unique local know-how.
At Atelier Ora in Mile End, artisan Félix Montmorency wears yellow earmuffs to protect himself from the noise. The sound comes from the machine that cuts the shape of the frames one by one from the acetate plates. This is actually cotton cellulose, a light and resistant material found in the manufacture of high-quality glasses.
“A lot of mass-market eyewear is made of molded plastic,” Montmorency said, noting that the latter are less durable and look better.
On a work table, pots are filled with acetate branches of various colors, also cut on site, by laser. The process of making the frames takes at least two weeks and multiple manipulations, explains Pascal Ferraris, co-owner of the company. The branches and the frame are sandblasted separately by hand, before moving on to the polishing stage. The pieces are then immersed in two rotating barrels containing wooden balls for the equivalent of four nights, interspersed with periods of sandblasting.
“At the end, the frame is shiny and can hardly be scratched,” explains Pascal Ferraris.
A metal rod is inserted by pressure into the temples using a machine that softens the acetate. The assembly of the frame, including the installation of screws and rivets, is done by hand. Finally, inscriptions are made by laser on the temples and are embellished with gold paint.
Around 1,000 frames come out of the workshop each year, thanks to the involvement of four pairs of workers. Manufacturing takes place on site from A to Z. The raw material is imported.
A transfer of knowledge
Atelier Ora was founded in 2022 by Catherine Pelletier Lauzon, who already owned Lunetterie Ora. She wanted to offer a range of local frames, particularly for ecological reasons. Most Quebec eyewear makers and optometrists who have developed their own collection have their products manufactured in Europe or Asia.
“There is no school that teaches frame making in America. There is in France, but not here,” the optician reports. “The way to learn it is through a master, someone who decides to show you.”
Mme Pelletier Lauzon had the chance to acquire knowledge from a Toronto supplier who had told him he was closing. The latter also sold him his machinery.
His Atelier Ora collection includes several models, sold for approximately $450 to $520. Mme Pelletier Lauzon believes that this price is comparable to those of imported glasses of the same quality.
In addition, a new model has just been launched, in collaboration with the Quebec group Doyle Optometrists, which has 25 branches. This frame named Mile-End, with brown, black and white tortoiseshell patterns, can be used as sunglasses or ophthalmic glasses. It will retail for $395.
“We have compressed our margins [de profit] “, reported Jade Pauzé, director of procurement at Doyle, to explain the price difference with other Atelier Ora models. She also says she worked with Atelier Ora to reduce production costs. Doyle thus wants to encourage its customers to consume Quebec products, since it has “the same values and the same desire to develop local expertise” as the M teamme Pelletier Lauzon.
The latter is delighted with the partnership which allows it to benefit from a network of 25 boutiques. “We are a small workshop, with a niche and local impact. The more of us there are to carry the same message, the stronger it will be,” says Mme Pelletier Lauzon. It comes to raise our voices.
A pioneer of recycled acetate
Another strong voice in this field is that of Anne-Marie Faniel. An opera singer and multidisciplinary artist, she opened the eyewear store Les Branchés about twenty years ago with her optician husband, Patrick Bolduc.
“For the store, I couldn’t find the shapes and colors I wanted,” says the designer. “When I learned that acetate scraps were being thrown away, I knocked on the factories in France, I saw in my head that they could be recycled.”
She then worked on developing a process and had the Faniel frames produced in France. For the past five years, she and her partner have brought production back to Quebec, more precisely to Val-Morin, in the Laurentians, where they employ a dozen people who have been trained on site. Several of their models are made of recycled acetate, which they are the only ones to make in Quebec.
“We recycle up to 100% of the material, not only the scraps, but also the acetate sawdust,” emphasizes M.me Faniel: Basically, the machine they created allows them to crush and melt this waste, which creates new colors.
Mme Faniel and her team have managed to build a vast international distribution network—which includes about 700 points of sale in the United States—where she sells her 15,000 to 20,000 frames per year. But be careful, each pair of glasses is considered “exclusive,” since the company produces a small quantity of each model and each color.
In favor of accessibility
In Les Branchés stores, Faniel frames are sold starting at $259. That’s 40 to 50 percent cheaper than the market price, the businesswoman estimates. She also points out that a large number of low-end glasses are offered in eyewear stores at comparable prices.
To be able to offer these prices, Mr.me Faniel says she chose profit margins that are much lower than the industry’s normal margins, which she considers “extreme.” “With that, I still live very well,” she says. “Our philosophy is to allow everyone to have access to quality,” she adds.
Les Branchés is expanding, with the opening of two new franchises last month. Mme Faniel invites interested opticians to join them, since they have “Quebec to develop”.
The duty and the stakeholders consulted for this article counted two other companies that manufacture glasses in Quebec. There is the Marie-Sophie Dion collection, sold in the Bar à lunettes boutiques. The Les lunettes de l’atelier store also offers a small collection made in its Gatineau premises.
Catherine Pelletier Lauzon believes there is enough room for new Quebec players. According to her, the more local manufacturers there are, the more consumers will have the opportunity to buy local and be made aware of the issue.