Cubitts, which makes modern spectacles, has opened two new stores in the heart of the capital.
One is on York Place and the other in the Old Town on West Bow. The company has designed new frames reflecting the new surroundings and which are only on sale in Edinburgh. Elder and Anderson will be sold in the New Town shop and Cowgate and Bow which have aviator shapes and are more classic 60s design will be sold in West Bow.
Tom Broughton, founder of Cubitts said: We’ve been trying to acquire the beautiful curving site at 88-92 West Bow for over six years. But when that moment came, we realised it was difficult to offer all our services within its diminutive shape – such as eye examinations, bespoke consultations and repairs.
“So we began looking for a second site, and found 1 York Place – which offered enough space to bring our approach to spectacle making, eye examinations, repairs and services to Scotland for the first time. And now we have the best of both worlds – services in the New Town, spectacles in the Old Town – in two distinct but equally remarkable buildings, each with a rich history.”
Both shops have the brand’s full collection of frames which will be handmade in a customer’s exact measurements.
To celebrate the launch, Cubitts is partnering with a number of local Edinburgh’s independent businesses and organisations – including local tailors Walker and Slater, to display a curated edit of Cubitts’ frames in their stores, and independent bookshop Golden Hare Books which will showcase a selection of books in the Cubitts New Town shopfront.
In addition, Cubitts will be working with Jewellery and Silversmith students at the Edinburgh College of Art on a live design brief. The winning designs will be displayed alongside the store’s bespoke collection of frames.
Edinburgh Weavers will also launch a reproduction of one of their modernist designs in the form of a lens cloth, which will be available exclusively to purchase in the both Cubitts stores, with proceeds going to the team’s chosen charity, Alzheimer’s Society.
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