Larry Sands has created a formula for the eyewear industry that has yet to be duplicated. Instrumental in defining luxury eyewear and establishing retail optical shops as part of a lifestyle, not a necessity, Sands is a true innovator. Sometimes you have to go against the grain, against what you are told, and parlay your instincts into what you believe in. Larry did just that by having his first successful chain of stores by age 23, forming a rock band and touring with rock luminaries by 25, then returning to the optical industry to introduce a new concept in optical retail by 30.

Larry had opened 5 optical shops in his home state of Missouri by the time he was 23. At 25, he sold the stores and returned to his first love, music. After fulfilling his dream of being a successful rock musician, he launched the country's first true optical boutique, The Optical Shop, in Kansas City, Missouri in 1971, while still just 30 years old. The Optical Shop tapped un-chartered territory with a focus on providing fashion eyewear beyond what was available at the time. While vacationing in Aspen that year, Larry found no retail optical shops. Despite being told that no one shops for eyewear while on vacation, Larry opened the first Optical Shop of Aspen, in a tiny 300 square foot space. The store went on to be hugely successful on an international scale. "The timing was right for what was happening in Aspen and in the eyewear business," states Sands. Aspen produced an incredible trade for the next seven years and the store became famous. Larry's name is permanently in bronze on a monument in the city's Pepke Park.

Sands soon began a true retail expansion, opening stores in Scottsdale, AZ; Phoenix, AZ; Newport Beach, CA; and on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles, with the newest location opening in 2005 in Miami, FL. Each of the Optical Shop locations has a unique décor created with the highest quality materials and workmanship creating fitting environments for the luxury eyewear sold within. While opening stores across the US, Sands has remained faithful to his original philosophy: "You can't be all things to all people. You have to target your customers and go straight for them."

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