Eyewear in Mexico

Eyewear in 2021: The big picture

The emergence of COVID-19 in Mexico and the subsequent lockdown measures introduced by the government in 2020 resulted in many consumers being urged to remain at home wherever possible, including work-from-home strategies, restricted movement, and a focus on prioritising spending on basic essentials such as groceries, medicines and surface care. This had a significant impact on eyewear in Mexico in the second quarter of 2020, a market which had been experiencing stable demand pre-COVID-19, driven by a desire for greater convenience in terms of daily disposable lenses, innovative spectacle lenses and fashion trends driving demand for sunglasses.

Key trends in 2021

Despite some media stories around the potential dangers of using contact lenses during the pandemic due to the close contact between the fingers and skin and eyes, contact lenses is set to enjoy the strongest bounce back within eyewear in Mexico in 2021. The transition away from frequent replacement lenses (FRP) and towards daily disposable lenses (DD) is set to continue, although many will continue to opt for the former.

Competitive landscape

During the COVID-19 pandemic, players responded by creating greater awareness online, warning consumers about their eye health and the fact that they were more likely to be spending greater amounts of time in front of digital screens, either whilst working from home, or younger generations turning to gaming to alleviate boredom. Companies therefore used this period to market spectacle lenses which offered blue light protective coatings.

Retailing developments

Most non-essential retailers such as optical stores were closed for large parts of the second quarter 2020 and faced normalisation challenges during the third and fourth quarters. This was particularly difficult for eyewear as optical stores is the most relevant channel and most chained outlets operate in commercial complexes and shopping centres which were closed for long periods.

What next for eyewear?

Although eyewear is set to return to good retail volume growth throughout the forecast period, actual unit sales will only exceed pre-pandemic levels in 2026, such was the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Price sensitivity will remain for some time as many Mexicans struggle to rebuild their household and personal finances as the economy slowly begins to recover.

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