On November 6, 2026, the 34th HKTDC Hong Kong International Optical Fair closed at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. Over three days, manufacturers, brands and designers from around the world met here to read the season — and to face the changes the industry is going through.
Under the theme "Bright Eyes • New Horizons," exhibits and sessions were grouped into five streams: fashion, sports, sustainability, smart eyewear and the silver economy. As the fair drew to a close, one question stood out: a fair lasts three days; a pair of frames is worn for years.
01 Three Days at the Fair, and a Longer Measure of Time
Over the three days, JIMEI received customers, designers and brand partners from around the world. Compared with previous years, what visitors kept confirming was no longer the color alone, but the reliability behind it: whether a shade holds over time, whether a palette stays consistent at scale, whether a promise is kept on schedule.
In the past year, global shipments of AI smart glasses reached 8.7 million units, up 322 percent year on year; technology is rewriting what eyewear is and does. Yet on the floor, what kept being picked up and put down was still acetate sheet — its color, its transparency, its grain. The faster things change, the clearer the constants become.
From fashion and sports to sustainability, smart eyewear and the silver economy, the fair's agenda spanned many fields, but the same question ran through all of them. Each stream had its own focus; the direction was the same. What the industry expects from material is shifting from "good for the season" to "reliable for the long term."
"New" gets a frame noticed.
"Steady" gets it kept.
02 Three Things Confirmed at the Booth
First, color is being valued for the long term rather than for the season. Low-saturation naturals were compared again and again and chosen for years ahead; saturated brights depend more on the palette built around them. Customers are moving from "what is trending this season" to "how long will this shade stay with us."
Second, the conversation about material and texture is getting finer. The question has moved from "which color" to "which transparency, which grain, which surface," and it grows more specific every year. The solid and translucent tones of Quiet Landscapes, and the transparent gradients and fluid grain of Atmospheres, were held up to the light and examined again and again.
Third, lead time is now part of the promise. Once a color is confirmed, the schedule for ordering and production follows. For customers, delivering on time matters as much as getting the color right.
On color stability, on texture, on bulk lead times — JIMEI gave clear answers. JIMEI stood out among this year's exhibitors and received the fair's "Most Scanned Exhibitor" honor.
03 The Curtain Falls, and Another Stage Begins
The fair is over; the conversation is not. What was discussed over three days about color, texture and the value of material will carry from the booth into daily work — into next season's color selection, development and design.
Hong Kong is the last stop of this season and the starting point of the next. For JIMEI, whatever was agreed and promised at the fair returns to the acetate sheet itself, and will be delivered step by step.
Our thanks to every partner, customer, and colleague who visited the JIMEI booth.
Three days pass in a moment; material is used for years.
May every closing leave behind choices that stand the test of time.
