LOFT + EYEWEAR DESIGN WEEK 2026
LOFT EYEWEAR SHOWS are the premier independent luxury eyewear events held annually in New York City and Los Angeles.
The LOFT Eyewear Shows New York event is scheduled from March 5-7 at two venues on 28th St in the Chelsea/Hudson Yards district of New York City.
LOFT Eyewear Shows have set the standard for independent eyewear events in North America since 2000. In it’s 26th year, LOFT will once again present over 150 eyewear collections at the New York event. From it’s humble beginnings as a small group of friendly independent eyewear companies to now in 2026 continuing its reputation as an eyewear calendar highlight in New York City each year!
Founder, Richard Mewha, “We are always humbled by the incredible support from our vendors and optical retailers alike. We understood last year that we would have to grow our show to provide a viable and purposeful reason for all attendees to visit NYC for an eyewear event. We added vendors on the lens/lab side of the market as well as CE in 2025 and we are really excited to be expanding both of those areas this year. With the debut of our pioneering event Eyewear Design Week we encouraged other showrooms to co-ordinate to give our visitors a range of venues and events to attend. We have added several more to the list this year.”
LOFT NYC will take place in the same Chelsea Industrial space on 28th St as last year and have added a new space at High Line Nine just 100 yards up the street making it just a short walk between venues. The CE portion of the event has expanded to include complimentary courses sponsored by Loft and provided by the Opticians Alliance Of New York (OANY) and Kayla Ashlee of Spexy. Featuring several top industry speakers, this education portion will take place at the Chelsea Industrial space on each day of the event. Visitors can schedule all their eyewear appointments and CE classes online right on the LOFT website!
As part of the second Eyewear Design Week in New York, the show will be a major feature and anchor point for the eyewear events and showrooms spread out across the city. The event is designed to curate a sense of adventure and discovery where visitors can visit multiple showrooms and create their own itinerary of activities and experiences. As well as the Kering Eyewear and Thēlios showrooms and the Eyecon event, there are also events at the Marcolin showroom, an Italian eyewear exhibition and cocktails on West 18th St, and another CE program over 3 days on W 30th St sponsored by Zeiss, 20/20 Magazine and the Accessories Council.
LOFT Marketing Director, Louis Fullagar said “We learned a lot in 2025 and have used that knowledge to expand our event even more and bring our spaces closer together this year. We are ecstatic to have found the High Line Nine venue just up the street from Chelsea Industrial making it super convenient for all attendees. Having all the brands so close together is definitely exciting! Our innovative Eyewear Design Week project was really well received last year and has inspired many other spin-off events for 2026. We have been firmly putting independent eyewear on the map as has been our mission since day one. I’m looking forward to our expanded CE and partnering with these other companies and showrooms this year.”
Known for it’s excellent catering and beverages, LOFT will once again be the perfect meeting place for industry friends and colleagues while enjoying its relaxed environment. An eyewear escape rather than a traditional trade event, LOFT has always been the place to see the most exciting eyewear designs as well as a unique opportunity to talk to the people behind those designs one on one. The incredibly popular LOFT Party will take place on Friday 6th March at the Chelsea Industrial location. Tickets will be available closer to the date.
LOFT NYC is open from 9.00 AM - 6.00 PM Thursday 5th - Saturday 7th March.
Keep up with all the latest news on social media and via the LOFT Eyewear Shows website at lofteyewearshow.com and the Eyewear Design Week website at eyeweardesignweek.com
