Caroline Abram
Caroline Abram is a privately held French designer eyewear brand founded in 1998, offering 1960s retro-glamorous optical frames, sunglasses, and accessories through global optical retailers, a Paris flagship, and DTC e-commerce, with handcrafted manufacturing in Dakar, Senegal.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Caroline Abram does
Caroline Abram is a privately held French eyewear designer brand founded in 1998 by optician-turned-designer Caroline Abram, operating under the legal entity SARL OPTA FILAO (also known as FILAO PARIS) and headquartered in Romainville, France. The company designs and sells retro-glamorous, 1960s-inspired optical frames, sunglasses, and eyewear accessories, including its signature revived lorgnette, chains, and ribbons. Its product portfolio spans three lines: the core Caroline Abram collection, the affordable Blush by Caroline Abram sub-brand, and the Tête à Lunettes children's collection.
The business model is multi-channel and consumer-facing. Caroline Abram generates revenue through (1) wholesale distribution to a global network of authorized optical retailers and opticians, (2) direct e-commerce via its own eshop.carolineabram.com platform, and (3) retail sales at its flagship boutique at 38 boulevard Raspail in Paris. Craft manufacturing is conducted by a women's team at Filao workshops in Dakar, Senegal, where Caroline Abram spent her childhood, using materials such as resin, silver, wood, and semi-precious stones. The firm has 11-50 employees, is founder-owned with no external institutional investment, and has been recognized with four gold Silmo awards, including a 2014 award for best kids design.
Caroline Abram firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Caroline Abram
- Legal name
- SARL OPTA FILAO
- Website
- https://carolineabram.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Caroline Abram is a privately held French designer eyewear brand founded in 1998, offering 1960s retro-glamorous optical frames, sunglasses, and accessories through global optical retailers, a Paris flagship, and DTC e-commerce, with handcrafted manufacturing in Dakar, Senegal.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Caroline Abram industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Designer Eyewear
- NAICS
- Optical Goods Retailers (45613), Apparel Accessories and Other Apparel Manufacturing (3159)
- SIC
- Ophthalmic Goods (3851)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Luxury & Designer Eyewear (CRAAAKAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Sunglasses (Non-Prescription) (CRAAAKAB), Eyewear Accessories & Care (Cases, Cleaning, Chains) (CRAAAKAI), Kids & Teen Eyewear (CRAAAKAE)
Keywords
Where Caroline Abram is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Caroline Abram business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Wholesale to Optical Retailers: Products distributed through a network of optical retailers and opticians globally. Retailers can be found through the store locator on the website.
- Direct E-commerce Sales: Consumer direct sales through the brand's own e-commerce platform eshop.carolineabram.com
- Retail Store Sales: Direct retail sales through the flagship boutique located at 38 boulevard Raspail, 75007 Paris
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Caroline Abram product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Caroline Abram designs, manufactures, and sells retro-glamorous optical frames, sunglasses, and eyewear accessories (lorgnettes, chains, ribbons, magnifying glasses) under three sub-brands: the core Caroline Abram line for women, the affordable Blush line, and the Tête à Lunettes children's line. Products are crafted using diverse materials including resin, silver, wood, and semi-precious stones, with handcrafted production in Dakar, Senegal, and distributed globally through optical retailers, the brand's own e-shop, and a flagship Paris boutique.
Product overview
Caroline Abram is a Parisian eyewear designer offering three main product lines: the core Caroline Abram collection (optical frames and sunglasses for women featuring retro-glamorous 1960s-inspired designs with butterfly curves, cat-eyes, and bold colors); the Blush sub-brand (an affordable, colorful optical and sun collection with bicolor acetate frames); and the Tête à Lunettes kids collection (children's eyewear echoing the adult designs with dynamic colors and translucent acetates). Additionally, the company offers a range of vintage-inspired eyewear accessories including lorgnettes, chains, ribbons, and magnifying glasses. Manufacturing is done in Dakar, Senegal, using materials such as resin, silver, wood, and semi-precious stones, with an e-commerce store available at eshop.carolineabram.com.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Blush by Caroline Abram: An affordable, highly individual, colorful collection of bicolor acetate frames with relief and bezel details, offering an extensive palette of shapes and colors.
- Tête à Lunettes
Products and services
- Caroline Abram Optical Women's optical frames featuring bold shapes like butterfly curves, panthos, oversize, and cat-eye designs. Retro-glamorous glasses expressing exalted femininity with an infinite palette of ultra-trendy acid colors.
- Caroline Abram Sun Elegant and colorful sunglasses Made in France, featuring the same retro-glamorous aesthetic with bold shapes and vibrant color palette as the optical line.
- Caroline Abram Accessories Vintage eyewear accessories including lorgnettes (face-à-main), beaded chains (chaînettes perlées), chains, ribbons, and magnifying glasses. The company revived the lorgnette, achieving international success.
- Blush by Caroline Abram (Optical) An affordable, highly individual, colorful collection of optical frames. Bicolor acetate frames fashioned with relief, marked with a bezel offering grace and distinction. Compliments all faces with shapes and colors ranging from radiant royal blue to sparkling champagne.
- Blush Sun Sunglasses in the Blush sub-brand, featuring the same colorful, affordable aesthetic as the optical line.
- Tête à Lunettes (Kids Optical Collection) Children's optical eyewear collection for kids from three or four years old. Dynamic colors and translucent acetates echo the Caroline Abram adult line, awarded the Silmo award for best kids design in 2014.
- Tête à Lunettes Sun (Kids Sunglasses) Children's sunglasses collection from the Tête à Lunettes sub-brand, designed with the same dynamic colors and translucent acetates echoing the adult Caroline Abram aesthetic for children from three or four years old.
Companies that use Caroline Abram
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Caroline Abram technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Caroline Abram partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Caroline Abram competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Oliver Peoples: Premium American eyewear brand now owned by EssilorLuxottica, focused on vintage-inspired luxury frames. Comparable to Caroline Abram in vintage aesthetic and premium independent optician channel, but operates at significantly larger scale and within a conglomerate portfolio.
- Persol: Italian luxury eyewear brand owned by EssilorLuxottica, known for heritage Italian craftsmanship and iconic designs. Comparable to Caroline Abram as a crafted eyewear brand with Italian/European heritage aesthetics and independent optical distribution, but at much larger scale.
Direct peers
- ProDesign Denmark: Independent Danish eyewear designer brand with a strong color and shape identity sold through independent opticians globally. Comparable to Caroline Abram as an independent designer-led eyewear brand with bold aesthetic differentiation and global wholesale distribution.
- Thierry Lasry: Independent French eyewear designer brand founded in 2006, known for retro-inspired and bold luxury eyewear. Directly comparable to Caroline Abram in vintage glamour aesthetic, independent positioning, and target customer of fashion-forward women.
- Linda Farrow: British luxury eyewear designer brand revived by Linda Farrow's family, focused on vintage-inspired frames and high-fashion collaborations. Comparable as an independent designer eyewear brand with vintage aesthetic, premium positioning, and global luxury wholesale distribution.
- Face à Face: Independent French eyewear designer brand known for bold, sculptural frames with strong color palettes. Shares the independent French designer ethos, independent optical wholesale channel, and distinctive aesthetic-driven positioning with Caroline Abram.
- Karen Walker Eyewear: New Zealand-based independent designer eyewear brand with distinctive bold frames and strong global wholesale distribution. Comparable to Caroline Abram as an independent designer brand with strong aesthetic-driven identity and international optician distribution.
- Anne et Valentin: Independent French designer eyewear brand founded in Toulouse, known for bold, colorful, artistic frames. Directly comparable to Caroline Abram as a French independent designer label with similar DTC, wholesale, and craft positioning targeting fashion-forward consumers.
- Lafont: Family-owned Parisian eyewear house founded in 1923 producing colorful optical and sun frames. Comparable as an independent French eyewear brand with a strong wholesale presence through independent opticians and a similar emphasis on color and Parisian design heritage.
- Leisure Society: Independent American luxury eyewear brand known for handcrafted vintage-inspired frames with bold colors. Comparable to Caroline Abram as a small independent designer brand with vintage-inspired aesthetic, premium positioning, and craft manufacturing emphasis.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Caroline Abram social profiles
Digital presenceCaroline Abram financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Caroline Abram leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Caroline Abram subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Caroline Abram funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Caroline Abram M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Caroline Abram
What does Caroline Abram do?
Caroline Abram designs, manufactures, and sells retro-glamorous optical frames, sunglasses, and eyewear accessories (lorgnettes, chains, ribbons, magnifying glasses) under three sub-brands: the core Caroline Abram line for women, the affordable Blush line, and the Tête à Lunettes children's line. Products are crafted using diverse materials including resin, silver, wood, and semi-precious stones, with handcrafted production in Dakar, Senegal, and distributed globally through optical retailers, the brand's own e-shop, and a flagship Paris boutique.
Is Caroline Abram a public or private company?
Caroline Abram is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Caroline Abram founded?
Caroline Abram was founded in 1998. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Caroline Abram based?
Caroline Abram is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does Caroline Abram make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Wholesale to Optical Retailers are the primary driver. The others are direct E-commerce Sales and retail Store Sales.
Who are Caroline Abram's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Oliver Peoples and Persol. Direct peers are ProDesign Denmark, Thierry Lasry, Linda Farrow, Face à Face, Karen Walker Eyewear, Anne et Valentin, Lafont and Leisure Society.
Does Caroline Abram have an API?
No public API is recorded for Caroline Abram.
What industry is Caroline Abram in?
Caroline Abram's product category is Designer Eyewear. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAAAKAD, Luxury & Designer Eyewear, with a secondary code of CRAAAKAB, Sunglasses (Non-Prescription). Its NAICS code is 45613 and its SIC code is 3851.