California-based Oakley Inc. started life in the 1970s as a one-person business run by entrepreneur Jim Jannard, making handlebar grips for motorcycles.
It is a classic tale of a small backyard outfit growing into one of the biggest and best-known designer sunglasses brands.
Jannard raised $300 in 1975 to launch his company with the Oakley handlebar grips he sold out of his pick-up at motorcycle rallies across the West Coast.
They quickly became the grip of choice among the top UK motocross riders thanks to Jannard's unique material, increasing grip as the hands perspired. Jannard patented the unique material he called 'Unobtanium' and went on to make gloves, elbow and chin guards and goggles.
It was in 1980 that Jannard unveiled his O-Frame goggles with the Oakley logo embellished on the strap. The branding paid off, and soon, Oakley was the goggles of choice for professional motorcycle riders. The success of the O-Frame prompted the production of ski goggles. They mirrored the success of the motorcycle goggles, becoming the eyewear of choice on the mountain slopes.
Oakley sunglasses unveiled
The first Oakley sunglasses were unveiled in 1984, aimed at the sports enthusiast and resembling the famous goggles. Athletes valued Oakley's Factory Pilot eyeshades for their lightweight frame and excellent optical features. They were quickly followed up by the Oakley Frogskin sunglasses aimed at the casual wearer. Oakley M-Frame sunglasses, launched in 1989, quickly became the sunglasses of choice for many of the world's top athletes.
Rising through the ranks
But it was the 1990s that propelled Oakley sunglasses into the top ranks of designer eyewear. Wraparound sunglasses and tinted lenses took the fashion world by storm. By 2000, Oakley sunglasses were being sported by some of the biggest names in performance sports. The company signed a deal to manufacture Fox eyewear and bought out the Oliver Peoples brand before being snapped up in 2007 by Italian eyewear behemoth Luxottica for an enormous $2.1 billion.
Pole position in the arena
Today, Oakley sunglasses and goggles still hold pole positions in the sports arena. In 2012, they sponsored the US Olympic team, and much of their output was developed through extensive trials with athletes in the field. Oakley glasses are a standard issue with the US military and law enforcement, while the brand dominates the sports performance market. The company likes to place itself at the cutting edge of new technology with electronic gadgetry that includes a head-up-display on its Oakley Airwave snow goggles and more than 600 patents that make it first past the finishing post in performance eyewear.
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