At Sphere, we pride ourselves on sourcing independent eyewear brands that highlight innovation and quality and bringing them to our space. Blake Kuwahara’s eponymous collection brings us unique, forward-thinking designs that we’re so excited to share.
Blake Kuwahara is the founder of FOCUS GROUP WEST (FGW), a multi-disciplinary design firm comprised of a team of eyewear designers, graphic designers, architects, and PR agents that takes a comprehensive approach to designing, branding and publicity for eyewear and fashion companies. Blake is also the Creative Director of the Blake Kuwahara Eyewear collection, which launched in 2015 and allowed him to express his own distinctive aesthetic sensibilities.
Blake came from a background of design leadership roles for companies like REM Eyewear, John Varvatos Eyewear, Carolina Herrera Eyewear, and many more, but previous to those roles, he earned a Doctorate of Optometry and a BSc in Psychobiology, and worked as an optometrist in a private practice in Manhattan Beach, CA.
Blake was drawn to the design side of the eyewear industry more than the clinical landscape and got his start creating eyewear for designers like Isaac Mizrahi and Hanae Mori as well as brands like Converse, Liz Claiborne, and Jones New York. Eventually he started his own brand, KATA Eyewear, where he employed ground-breaking engineering and production techniques to create texture and detail that reinvented eyewear design.
His bold experimentation gained him notoriety with top fashion publications and media outlets and was deemed one of the “100 Coolest People in Los Angeles,” by Buzz magazine, and one of the “100 Most Important People in the Eyewear Industry,” by Brilliant Magazine. Blake is also a member of the prestigious Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and is one the Executive Board of the Eyeqear Designers of the CFDA.
Blake Kuwahara eyewear designs are a favourite among top celebrities, like Questlove, Charlize Theron, Robert Downey Jr., and many more. Get acquainted with Blake Kuwahara’s latest collection on our shelves at Sphere!
