Note: In exchange for a pair of eyeglasses, I am writing this review about J!NS (JINS) -@jinseyewear – the Japanese eyeglasses company.
Even after countless visits to Japan, I only heard about J!NS at a New York event earlier this year. There’s a good reason for that…when I’m in Japan, I’m there to eat, or to buy edible souvenirs.
For a bit of backstory, J!NS entered the eyeglasses market in 2001, and opened its first international store in Shenyang, Manchuria China in 2010. This April, they entered the US market with a flagship store in San Francisco, and now count four US stores among their more than 400 around the world. You can even order a pair online, pick it up within an hour at one of their US branches.
Is New York in the running for its own J!NS? I have a hunch that the answer is yes.
What stands out about J!NS? If you’re simply looking for a quick pair of glasses, you can get them in roughly 30 minutes, thanks to Kanna, their lens edging machine. It is named for a 鉋（かんな/kanna), the Japanese word for a carpenter’s plane, used in carving wood. Special orders – say, for glasses with blue light protection – take around two weeks to process.
The clean and welcoming San Francisco flagship J!NS, with Kanna in the background.
Although I only ever want a basic frame, J!NS has nearly 1200 different styles from which to choose. Reminding me of Uniqlo and their seasonal “themes,” J!NS also has collaborations with various brands both for their frames and eyeglasses cases. Even better- if you purchase a collaboration case, 100% of the proceeds go to charity.
Most recently, J!NS has been working on a pair of glasses that might be able to warn you about signs of lethargy/inactivity, which would function in tandem with an app. That’s nice and all, but tell me one thing, oh “smartglasses…” is J!NS an acronym?
Thanks again for the glasses, J!NS, and I look forward to your probable East Coast expansion!
buildingmybento 