Dress Your Eyes With Distinctive and Handcrafted Eyewear

March 2020 

Are you bored to tears with your current eyeglasses and want something that puts a smile on your face? Rediscover your inner personality that is calling out without busting your budget. Eyes on Main has what you’re looking for and more! Conveniently located on Main Street in the Arts & Design District in Carmel, Indiana, Eyes on Main is more than an eyewear shop. It is a chic studio that offers distinctive, handcrafted frames, made for every personality and budget!

Meet Kim and Tony Peters

Kimberly “Kim” Peters, eyewear curator, and her husband, Anthony “Tony” Peters, lab specialist, are excited to be on Main Street and to offer their customers an array of designer, quality and distinctive frames at a variety of price points, along with first-rate customer service.

Kim is a graduate of Carmel High School and Tony is a graduate from Westfield High School. This hip and creative couple have been married over 20 years and are excited to be part of the Carmel business community.

“We are here to help you rediscover that person you used to be,” Kim said. “That 12-year-old in you that never went away but grew up. For example, one of our clients—who’s an artist that became an attorney—came into our shop. He was wearing a basic and conservative pair of glasses. He left with an orange pair of frames and a huge smile on his face. Maybe bright and outlandish is not your [style], but we will help you find something that will make you feel confident and good about yourself.”

“We had another client who came in wanting something very basic—he said he knew what he wanted,” Tony shared. “I showed him one frame [from one of our collections that is fun], and his face lit up with a smile. He tried it on, and he said that he couldn’t stop smiling. I said to him, ‘Then that’s your frame!’”

It’s All About the Experience

Both Kim and Tony have been in the industry prior to the opening of Eyes on Main this past January. It was an unpleasant childhood experience at an eye doctor appointment that inspired Kim’s calling. That experience kickstarted her optical journey after high school and led her to create an environment where people felt valued and treated with respect and compassion.

“I started wearing [corrective] glasses when I was five,” Kim shared. “My parents always took me to a chain store, and there was nothing wrong with that, but there was one time—I was about 10 years old— where a woman handed me this lens blank that was extremely thick. She told me that if I didn’t get a certain kind of lens that she was pushing that I was going to have to wear those thick lenses. I started crying.”

Kim continued, “That woman made me feel terrible about wearing ‘Coke-bottle’ glasses, and being a kid is hard enough. My mom got upset and we didn’t end up purchasing my glasses there, but that [experience] has stuck with me over the years. I never want anyone else [adult or child] to have that kind of experience. It is really important to me to establish relationships with the person I am working with.”

Offering Distinctive, Durable and Handcrafted Works of Art

All of the collections offered at Eyes on Main are designed by the actual designer whose name the collection is branded after. Some collections are even exclusive to Eyes on Main in the state of Indiana.

“We went with collections that are family-owned and are made in small batch quantities,” Tony shared. “There’s nothing wrong with big corporations, but they don’t have the same culture that the family-owned vendors do. The designers teach us things about their brands and share their stories about how they got started in the business and who/what inspires them.”

Kim added, “We’ve met quite a few of the designers and have spent time with them, which has been really cool. Those encounters give us a pulse on the entire process as a whole. Part of the reason why we show local art throughout our studio is because we want to support independent artists, and eyewear is art. We want to support these independent designers who are also artists.”

The Signature Lines

Eyes on Main carries expressive collections by internationally renowned designers such as Jacques Marie Mage, theo, Anne et Valentin, Barton Perreira and Henau.

The specific designers picked by Kim and Tony are influenced by culture and architecture.

“Jacques Marie Mage’s designs are heavily influenced by vintage America,” Kim explained. “The frames from this collection are made in small batches, anywhere from 50 to 700 made worldwide. Each frame is numbered. You can’t beat the craftsmanship of these frames. The ‘Dealan’ is one their top sellers and is inspired by the musician Bob Dylan. The ‘Schindler’ [frame] was inspired by internationally renowned architect R.M. Schindler.”

Frances Klein is another French brand that Eyes on Main carries.

“We have a ‘thing’ for beautiful French things,” Kim admitted. “But what’s unique about this collection is they’re all handmade, and you can get really wicked [creatively] with the embellishments or you can go with something really simple. Some of the frames have actual feathers embedded in the acetate, and all of the embellishments are hand placed.”

When Was Your Last Eye Exam?

Eyes on Main’s in-house optometrist Dr. Linda Venezia OD, MS, is happy to take on new clients.

Dr. Venezia completed her Doctor of Optometry degree in 2012 and her Masters in Vision Science with a concentration in dry eye research in 2017 at Indiana University in Bloomington.  “I believe in treating people with dignity and respect, and I employ this philosophy in the way I practice optometry,” Dr. Venezia said. “My primary goal is to treat patients the way I would want to be treated, with a thorough and comprehensive eye exam. I was thrilled to discover that Kim and Tony share this belief in the way they provide optical care for their patients. I’m very excited to be a part of the wonderful team at Eyes on Main.”

Dr. Venezia sees patients of all ages for comprehensive eye exams including medical and contact lens exams. She has been a Carmel resident since 2012 and she enjoys spending time with her growing family.

Kim added, “We’re here to help our customers find the best solution and make recommendations for them. What sets us apart from other places is the fact that we’re going to take time to help you. When you come in, we offer customized lenses. We have high-tech tools that will help us with our measurements that are going to give you the same type of vision you see when you’re back in the exam room with the doctor out in the real world, and I think that helps set us apart a little bit more because we’re going to take the time to help you get you the best vision you can possibly have.”

Once you’ve made your appointment, either online or by phone, Kim and/or Tony will greet you at the door and offer you water or coffee while you wait for Dr. Venezia to greet you.

“The doctor will take you back to the pretesting room and then escort you to the exam room,” Kim explained. “You’re going to be with Dr. Venezia almost the entire time. She will check the overall health of your eyes with our state-of-the-art equipment. I will come back into the exam room, once she’s finished with the exam, and talk with you about yourself and what you want out of your glasses. Some people only wear them 20% of the time because they wear contact lenses. We offer several solutions for contact lens wearers as well.”

Tony added, “If you have an established relationship with an optometrist that you don’t want to give up, that’s OK—feel free to see your doctor and bring your prescription in. We will be happy to help you with selecting the frames of your choice!”

For those who are interested and are eligible for LASIK surgery, Eyes on Main is a TLC provider and is happy to provide information and resources for those seeking more knowledge about the procedure.

Eyes on Main has a finishing lab on its second floor for finishing treatments, which both Kim and Tony are certified and trained to do, such as custom lens tinting.

“We do a lot of [finishing] work in house, which helps us keep the highest level of quality control that we want for our clients,” Kim stated. “Depending on the type of treatments we do on the lenses, we can get most things back within an extremely reasonable timeline. Most of the finishing work is learned from hands-on training that I’ve been doing for 23 years. Tony and I attend workshops, and a lot of our vendors have continuing education that we complete. We learn a lot about the brand knowledge and the vendors’ histories by attending these seminars.”

Proud to Be Members of the Local Business Community

Having been raised in Carmel, it means a great deal to Kim to be a member of the city’s business community. She and Tony wasted no time joining OneZone—the local chamber of commerce organization—and are excited to maximize their exposure during the city’s major events and festivals that occur in the Arts & Design District.

“One the reasons why we chose this [specific] location was because of the walkability,” Kim shared. “People are purchasing their glasses differently these days. There is no shortage of frames online or at other establishments throughout the market. We want to set ourselves apart and create a unique environment here. I always invite feedback from people that come and shop with us so that we can keep a pulse on what our clients want and need from us.”

Be sure to follow Eyes on Main on Facebook and Instagram for announcements and trunk shows or to preview the latest styles and trends available at its studio.

To schedule an eye exam with Dr. Linda Venezia, call (317) 669-2312 or schedule online at eyesonmaincarmel.com. No need to schedule an appointment to visit Eyes on Main and to take a look at all its impressive collections and local art on exhibit. Stop in and see for yourself the eye candy it displays!

Writer:

Janelle Morrison

Photography:

Laura Arick