By Deirdre Carroll: Senior Editor

   NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.—Kaenon has launched its first product line extension, the Kaenon Optical frame collection. As part of the brand’s year-long 10th Anniversary Celebration, the collection includes four new prescription-ready styles.

“The void we identified, and intend to fill, is for lightweight, durable and well-styled optical frames that can be worn all day, fitting seamlessly within our active lifestyles,” said Steve Rosenberg, co-founder and CEO of Kaenon. “By utilizing advanced materials and frame-making techniques, and having fun with color and texture, I believe our first optical collection embodies the quintessential California lifestyle.”…

VM’s Deirdre Carroll (l) and 20/20’s Breanna Benz at the Tribeca Film Festival’s Director’s Lunch sponsored by Persol.

Robert Safian, editor and managing director of Fast Company Magazine, started his keynote session, Lessons of Innovation, by describing what Fast Company was and what sets it apart from other publications that focus on more traditional business segments. “We consider ourselves non-traditional business media focused on more creative businesses,” he stated.

It is a distinction that has put the publication in the unique position of seeking out and featuring up-and-coming, as well as established, organizations poised to make major changes in the world of business. “These changes are happening dramatically,” Safian said. “The idea of a global, mobile, interconnected world we once imagined is the world we are living in today. This is not the change and hyperbole of the ’90s. It’s real, it’s broad and it’s dramatic and we have to learn to deal with it.”

Safian described our current fiscally and socially unsettled times as “Generation Flux” and clarified that the term applies to both this period of accelerating change in our economy and to a group of people. “It is not defined by an age but more a psychographic, a type of person best equipped to deal with change,” he explained. “A person with a fixed mindset believes when you become an adult you are who you are and agree with that old saying ‘you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.’ A growth mindset recognizes that you’re only beginning when you do something new and that you will not be good at it. In fact, you will probably be bad. There will be embarrassment and they don’t care. They know that with time and hard work they will get it.

“Disruption is rippling through everything, every industry. It’s happening everywhere. Today, we recognize that we don’t know what the new rules are and for the first time in a very long time we are living in a world of chaos,” he acknowledged. “This is an opportunity for some of us, those of us who can take advantage of it. That’s who I consider Generation Flux. Generation Flux is a mindset and a willingness to adapt. The most important skill in the age of flux is the ability to add new skills.”

According to Safian, “Nostalgia is a trap in this age. It is not helpful to be stuck on what worked before; we have to move forward. Do not pigeonhole yourself or your business about what it is or where it might go. There are fast companies and there are fast parts of slow companies. You have to figure out to what extent you are willing to be the fast part of a company and how resilient you will be to resistance.

“We can change people’s perceptions of us and the things that we do if we focus on the possibilities and not the fear,” he said. “Forget the fear of failure. Failure is a badge of honor. Failure breeds and encourages risk taking which is endemic to Generation Flux.”

Safian left the room with this thought, “Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, said it best over 100 years ago: ‘It is not the strongest species that will survive. It is not the most intelligent. It is the one most adaptable to change.’” dcarroll@jobson.com

By Deirdre Carroll: Senior Editor

NEW YORK—Hot off her acceptance of the Chaplin Lifetime Achievement Award from the Lincoln Center Film Society where she rubbed elbows with the likes of Susan Sarandon, Glenn Close and Martin Scorsese the previous night, Vision Monday got the opportunity to sit down with legendary French actress Catherine Deneuve to discuss her work and partnership with Viva International.

 Among white orchids, champagne and macarons, the timeless beauty shared, “I was already wearing glasses when I began my partnership with Viva, so it made sense to get involved with a product because I had to use it myself. I think the woman who wears my collection is much like me in a way, classical. So we go through time easier, classic but evolving in a subtle way.”

That evolution was necessary given the longevity of the line. Originally signed in 1992, Catherine Deneuve Lunettes is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, but like the actress, the brand is by no means resting on its laurels. In January, Viva launched the brand’s first sun collection.

  “The Catherine Deneuve customer is elegant and seeks classic styling with a sophisticated flair,” said Liz Tontodonati, general manager for Viva. “For us, the sun collection is a way of growing the brand. When we see that Catherine Deneuve fills a certain niche for us at Viva we say ‘How    do we grow this even further?’ and ‘What are the needs of this particular consumer, for this product line?’ And the next best thing was sunglasses.”

“The years have been up and down because I think that follows the current of what happens in life but when you stay 20 years with a company I think it speaks for itself,” added Deneuve. “I trust them, they are American and they are here. They know much more than I do when it comes to the market. They tell me what we need and I listen to them and it makes sense. If they want to launch something it’s not just for the pleasure of doing something different.”

So far, the launch has been the right move for the brand. “It’s been fantastic,” stated Tontodonati. “It’s a very tight collection and it’s taking off; which, of course, now leads to ‘Okay, what else does this consumer need?’ And we came up with some fabulous ideas for readers.”

The ongoing success of the brand ties in closely with Deneuve’s own theory on her enduring appeal in America. “Maybe it would have been different if I had lived here and worked here but now it’s more of a long love story that has lasted because I’m far away and we don’t see each other every day.”

And just like the eyewear collection shows no signs of slowing down, neither does Deneuve. “Retiring doesn’t really mean anything today, for anyone. I think that if you still feel in shape and you are very interested in what you are doing and what you are offered is interesting enough, I don’t see why I would retire. For the moment, it is still very interesting. I still feel challenged by the things I am offered and by the things I accept to do,” she said.

“I have the impression that there are still things that I haven’t done yet that I have to do. Each new encounter or project brings something new. It’s life and it’s a passion. You cannot have passion all the time but when you are very interested in something, if you really like it, there is always something new, something different that happens. I am very lucky,” Deneuve concluded.

We should all be so lucky. 

By Deirdre Carroll: Senior Editor

NEW YORK—For Spring/Summer 2012, Marchon has introduced the new Ferragamo Eyewear collection which embodies the unique and timeless style synonymous with the Italian brand.

The brand, well-known for its shoes and leather goods, has long been associated with luxury, the innovative use of materials and skilled craftsmanship and translates that heritage into an initial launch collection of 37 suns styles and 37 ophthalmic frames.

The styles incorporate accents on the frame fronts, endpeices and temples that create an air of sophisticated femininity and casual masculinity. There are 49 styles available for women and 25 for men. Signature details include the “Gancino” and “Vara,” iconic Ferragamo details commonly incorporated into the brand’s accessory collections. The Gancino is fashioned after an iron gate at the company’s Florentine headquarters and is molded of polished metal and enamel; while the Vara, a clasp reminiscent of a bit, is engraved with the Ferragamo logo. In keeping with the brand’s roots, the collection features a standout aviator sun style whose frame front and endpieces are wrapped in leather…