“I went to see my favorite DJ, and I wore neon green sunglasses that received an overwhelming amount of attention,” he shares. “During this time, I worked at the beach as a surf coach. I soon started noticing the sunglasses people were wearing and noticed a considerably large gap between designer sunglasses and cheap ones like I wore at the nightclub.”

After some research, Fisher says it became clear that the market needed a midpriced eyewear option with the same cool factor as leading styles.

That’s when Blenders, the San Diego-based direct-to-consumer e-commerce startup, was born. Safilo Group acquired a 70% stake in the company in June 2020. Here, the surfer-turned-entrepreneur unpacks the brand’s DNA.

EB: How has Blenders grown since its launch?

CF: We’ve grown a ton—from selling just a few hundred pairs in year one, to selling more than 2 million pairs last year, our eighth in business. We have built an amazing customer base and branded ourselves closely with San Diego.

I’m a firm believer that brands need a physical presence in the real world, and our retail store gives us this platform to display the heart and soul of Blenders.

We’re opening a second store in Encinitas and have plans for Miami and Austin next!

EB: How has the pandemic affected the way you do business at Blenders?

CF: Oh, man. It made me really glad we had a solid e-commerce operation going! We’ve had challenges like every business has, but all in all I’d say we’re doing pretty well.

EB: Blenders has nearly 1 million followers on Facebook and almost a half a million followers on Instagram. What has been your strategy to build this epic following?

CF: Facebook and Instagram have been a huge part of our marketing efforts and it’s successful because we’re consistent and creative! We’ve built the brand through grassroots marketing and athlete relationships, so having programs that promote this is important to us. They drive engagement and build our community stronger, and, through this, developed a very loyal fan base.

EB: Blenders has been very involved in philanthropy. In 2020, you pivoted to make PPE by converting your production to make FDA-approved goggles donated to front-line health care workers. Also, we know that you’ve made it a focus to donate to breast cancer awareness initiatives. Why are these initiatives important to Blenders—and to your customer?

CF: Our decision to design and donate PPE to health care workers in Southern California happened because we recognized how desperately nurses and doctors and emergency responders needed eye protection—and they just couldn’t get it.

We were able to work with our manufacturers and produce FDA-approved goggles in a matter of weeks and get them into the hands of the people who needed them. It was one of the most gratifying things I’ve ever done.

Every year we also donate to Keep A Breast [Foundation] because my mom is a breast cancer survivor. The positive feedback we get from our customers makes us want to do even more things like this! It just feels good.

EB: What other key initiatives does Blenders have in the pipeline?

CF: We just launched internationally in Australia and Canada, so we plan to scale these new countries and explore new ones. Also, further build out our new product channels like Rx and blue light and develop new brand partnerships. Lots of exciting stuff happening in Blenderville!