Bloovs Eyewear: Innovation and Sustainability in Sports Glasses for Trail Running
Trail running demands not only endurance and strength but also reliable gear that adapts to changing conditions. Bloovs Eyewear, a brand born from a passion for sport and the outdoors, has set out to reinvent what athletes can expect from performance glasses. With innovative photochromic technology, premium materials, and a strong commitment to sustainability, Bloovs delivers eyewear designed by athletes, for athletes. In this interview, the team behind Bloovs shares their story, their vision for trail running, and how they combine style, comfort, and performance in every pair of glasses.
To begin, tell us: how was Bloovs Eyewear born and what inspired you to create a sports eyewear brand?
Bloovs as a brand was born 10 years ago at university, although our original concept wasn’t sports glasses but 100% customizable eyewear. Our first concept was a modular frame where you could change lenses and temples as many times as you wanted.
The problem with this concept was that many users didn’t dare to change the lenses themselves, so they went to the optician where they had purchased them to get them replaced. After conversations with several of our trusted opticians, we realized we had to change the concept and that’s when we decided to focus all our efforts on our passion: SPORTS.
As mountain enthusiasts, both in ultra-distance trail running and cycling, we decided to create a concept of eyewear that truly offered a PREMIUM quality product at a fair price—something that sounds cliché but was impossible to find in the market. And so, more than 8 years ago, we started focusing all our efforts on glasses with a 100% sports character.
Trail running is a very demanding sport. What features make your glasses suitable for running in the mountains?
It’s clear that nowadays, glasses are much more than just protective gear—they’ve become a fashion accessory that almost every athlete likes to wear and change.
But we (while putting a lot of effort into design) are fully aware that sports glasses must be an accessory that protects and offers a COMPLETE experience to users.
When it comes to TRAIL RUNNING, grip is one of the key elements due to the constant vibrations the glasses are subjected to during fast descents or on flat but uneven terrain. To ensure the glasses stay in place, we put a lot of care into the curvature of our frames, which combined with the SOFT TOUCH silicone (with hypoallergenic treatment) that we use both on the temple tips and on the NOSE PADS, provides total grip.
But if grip is important, what undoubtedly stands out most is the field of vision that the lenses offer. That’s why, together with one of our lens suppliers, we developed the CLEAR HD Vision technology, which increases contrasts to give us an ultra-clear view, even when we are out of breath. This increase in contrast also helps reduce eye fatigue, so our vision stays at 100% throughout the race or the most demanding training sessions.
Finally, in addition to mirrored polarized lenses, we also have highly advanced photochromic technology that offers protection from category 0 to 3 depending on light conditions. This technology is IDEAL for sports like trail running, where we are constantly going in and out of trails with varying light.
We know that light changes, dust, and sun exposure are major challenges in trail running. How do your models respond to these conditions?
As mentioned earlier, the biggest challenge in trail running is changing light conditions. That’s why we believe that both in trail running and MTB, it is essential to have good photochromic lenses that adapt to different situations.
In addition to photochromic technology, our lenses incorporate a hydrophobic treatment that helps repel water and sweat, preventing them from staying on the lens and impairing vision.
What sets Bloovs glasses apart from other brands on the market?
It may sound cliché, but we like to say we are the first brand to offer a PREMIUM quality product at a truly fair price. Brands selling products similar to ours usually have prices above €180, while those in our price range use much cheaper lenses and don’t pay the same attention to details like silicone or frame curvature.
But without a doubt, our biggest advantage is that we develop each and every one of our models based on our own experiences after hours on the bike or running in the mountains. In other words, we create products to cover needs that we ourselves missed in the glasses we used before creating Bloovs.
Have you worked or collaborated with trail runners to design and improve your products?
As we mentioned, we are sports enthusiasts and have a pretty clear idea of what a good pair of sports glasses should offer. But of course, we also make the most of the feedback we get from our ambassadors with every new model we launch, to keep improving.
For example, the new STELVIO (to be released on October 1) is the result of many conversations with two of our ambassadors (Lluís Puigvert, runner of the Salomon NextGen, and Sofia Aguayo, international triathlete for Spain), who asked for an extremely lightweight, slightly more curved pair of glasses to avoid any glare, and a slightly wider adjustable nose pad.
In addition to the technical side, your glasses also have a very attractive design. How do you combine aesthetics and functionality?
For us, as we’ve said before, technology is the most important thing—we want users to be amazed when they wear our glasses and want to repeat. However, we are fully aware that glasses have to catch your eye (no pun intended haha), and that requires eye-catching designs and combinations.
So, in terms of design, we like to innovate, relying on standards that we consider essential, and experimenting with different temple finishes and original colors like the “DROP COLORS” we use in some of our models. Always without altering the design curvature bases, but experimenting with air intakes in different locations, alternating more “Racing” aspects with more conservative ones…
What role does sustainability play in Bloovs Eyewear’s philosophy?
We are passionate about everything related to the mountains, which makes us fully aware of the impact producing glasses has on the planet. That’s why we work daily with our suppliers on new materials that help us reduce our carbon footprint. For example, our first collection of prescription glasses is made with a French material called Arkema G850 Biobased, which is just as flexible as nylon but uses 45% recycled materials.
The idea is to gradually experiment with these kinds of materials until all our glasses are made with 100% recycled materials.
If a trail runner could only take one model of Bloovs to a race, which one would you recommend and why?
Honestly, I think it’s impossible to recommend just one pair of glasses because I always say glasses are something very personal. What you like or find comfortable, maybe I don’t, and vice versa.
That’s why, in our catalog, we always try to offer a variety of models to satisfy all users—whether they prefer larger and heavier glasses, or more compact rimless ones for extreme lightness.
Personally, from the current catalog, I usually use the ITEN model for running because it fits me best, and it comes in one of my favorite colors we’ve made: “BLACK DROP.” But I’ll tell you in advance that soon, I think my favorite model will be the STELVIO because of its design and because it features the most advanced lens technology we’ve ever used. For the first time, we’ll use photochromic lenses with a mirrored tint—an absolute visual and technological revolution.
What are your future plans regarding trail running and outdoor sports?
Our idea is to continue strongly supporting the OUTDOOR sector and, together with our distributors, to open strategic points of sale in countries like Switzerland or Italy, where we are just getting started.
Within this strategy, TRAIL will be one of the main pillars, given its constant growth and increasing popularity. So, in the coming years, it will be very common to see us at some of the main trail events in the countries where we are present.
And to finish: what message would you like to convey to the TrailRunAdvisor community and to runners who don’t yet know Bloovs?
First of all, we want to congratulate them for practicing such an incredible sport as Trail Running, where you breathe fresh air, disconnect from the everyday, and connect with something as wonderful as nature. Second, we want to thank them for their passion, because it’s thanks to people that this sport is increasingly popular, and little by little, new spectacular places are being discovered that, before the trail boom, were somewhat hidden (always respecting the landscapes and not damaging them).
And third, we want to tell them that you need to try on a pair of glasses to know if they fit your needs, and that’s why, together with the people at TrailRunAdvisor, we want to launch a promotion with 50% off for all users of the portal, to encourage you to try them and give us your feedback. With the code TrailRun you’ll get 50% off on our Bloovs WEBSITE.
