NANNINI

It prompted the automotive and motorcycle aficionado Giorgio Nannini to create in his laboratory specialized and innovative eyewear for driving both antique and modern cars. The idea came about from passion and a need that he shrewdly perceived and resulted in the first Nannini eyewear, which was expertly made by hand to create something new and extraordinary. The idea of specialized indestructible eyewear ideal for different sports came out of a chance encounter with a Bugatti racing car driver in 1958. In 1962, another happy coincidence led Nannini onto his most ambitious project: the thinnest eyewear in the world, eyewear that was practical and easy to carry around. This is how Compact, the Italian and international prize-winning eyewear line, was born.
In 1972, production started on a large scale (meticulously Made in Italy, as it is still today) with the purchase of specially designed machinery to make glasses with lenses. However, it was not until 1976, after an innovative and successful sales campaign which included talking in-store displays (first in the industry), that the name became what it is today: well-known and appreciated world-wide, with immediate brand recognition. International market growth led to much recognition and resulted in the honour of a special exhibition for the eyewear being hosted at MOMA in New York: “Ingenious and Unique Eyewear in the World”.