Americans love their sunglasses, spending $2.3 billion on nonprescription styles annually, according to VisionWatch Eyewear statistics. Here are some other shady stats.
Where we buy them: Grocery, drug and mass retailers sell 67 percent of all glasses; sunglass specialty stores, 8 percent; sports stores, 7 percent; department stores, 6 percent; optical independents, 2 percent; optical chains, 1 percent; and flea markets, 2 percent.
What we pay, on average: $130 at optical chains; $107 at independent optical shops; $97 at sunglass specialty stores; $28 at department stores; $7.50 at grocery, drug and mass retailers; $6.23 at flea markets.
Age and gender matters: People age 18-34 buy 40 percent of glasses sold; those 35-44 buy 26 percent; 45-to-54-year- olds purchase 17 percent; and those 55 and older buy 17 percent.
Women buy 55 percent of all sunglasses sold, versus 45 percent for men.
