How many people drive a Range Rover and actually have time to rove a range? How many Explorer drivers "explore" more than the route between home, work, and the grocery store? And although neighborhood soccer-moms could easily transport the team in late-model station wagons, the staple of soccer field parking lots is more likely Nautica Villagers from Lincoln-Mercury or Ford's Eddie Bauer Expedition. Why? Because in most cases it is perception that defines reality, and the reality is that most people would rather be seen in an SUV than a station wagon.

Defining Moments

It is these perceptions, determined largely by unconscious associations with particular products or brands, which are the driving force behind the growing trend toward lifestyle-driven purchasing.

In optical, lifestyle brands began gaining popularity 18-24 months ago. Donn Sogn, owner of Martin's Fine Eyewear, with locations in Seattle and Edmonds, Washington says, "The thrust has definitely been in the last two years."

Lifestyle brand customers are those whose buying decisions are driven by a desire to find a personal connection with their purchase. At Drs. Cole, Cole and Krohn in Fresno, Calif., Margaret Hall indicated lifestyle brands are already making up "about 40 percent" of their business.

The Brands

"Lifestyle brands are the result of an evolutionary process," stated Janice Gaub, divisional vice president, brand marketing for Eddie Bauer. "What makes a brand lifestyle is that it is expandable. When a company can take the equity and trust that a consumer has in a brand name and expand it to other product segments, they have created a lifestyle brand."

"Right now my sales in this category are probably less than 20 percent overall, but they are growing rapidly," notes Gary Knighton, vice president of product for Knighton Optical, in Ogden, Utah. Virtually every collection considered "lifestyle" is founded in an image of casual, active living, and the mere mention of the names evokes very specific images.

The Customer

World renowned lifestyle designer David Chu, founder, president and CEO of Nautica, defines his customer as "more about attitude than psychographic or demographic characteristics." He believes lifestyle is "value fashion, function, utility and comfort. He or she could be 18 or 80. It's not about age or gender or economic status, it's about whom the customer is and what they want. It's a very personal thing."

Donn Sogn echoes this definition. "Customers who purchase in the lifestyle category aren't making an aspirational purchase. They aren't looking to prove anything to anyone. If there is a statement to be made, however, it's a very personal one."

The Look

Overwhelmingly, ophthalmic styles outsell sunglasses in the lifestyle category. Plastic frames are dominating, especially thin zyl in geometric shapes like rectangles. In metal frames, the performance metals like stainless steel and titanium are strong. In sunglasses, the lifestyle buyer looks for performance. Purpose in design and function become increasingly important, making polarized lenses tops on the list of desired attributes. Colors and finishes are from nature-burnished metals and zyls in browns, blacks, grays and deep blue and green.