All Eyes: J. Galt Eyewear brings a unique vision – and affordable, artisan-made eyewear – to Chevy Chase

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A new eyeglass boutique that doubles as an optometry practice is set to open its doors on the high profile corner of Euclid and South Ashland Avenues at the beginning of August.

Dr. Dawn Stratton, who founded J. Galt Eyewear and co-owns it along with Dr. Heechung Ko and Dr. Richard Mangan, assures that its assortment of frames will be unique and impossible to find anywhere in Lexington or anywhere else in the country.

“They are all handmade,” explained Stratton, who has worked as an optometrist in Lexington since 1994. “Some are made from very unusual materials, like wood or recycled paper. Some are funky, some are more traditional – but one thing I can guarantee is that you won’t see someone walking down the street wearing the same eyeglasses as you.”

While being fashionable and unusual, the eyeglasses at J. Galt will also be quite affordable: $175 will cover both the frame and prescription lenses.

Stratton and Ko have worked together as partners for 12 years at Stratton Eyes, the company Stratton started in 1996. It’s been located on Wellington Way for the past three years and on Moore Drive before that.

The company has been successful, and they might not have changed anything if it were not for their frustration with how expensive frames have been getting.

“Our patients had to pay more, and they were upset,” said Ko. “They had no idea what we had to go through as far as buying wholesale.”

Ko explained that close to 80 percent of all frames sold in the United States come from the same Italian company, which makes prescription frames and sunglasses for most designer brands, from Prada to Chanel and from Ralph Lauren to Versace; that same company also owns most major retail outlets. The lack of competition results in high prices, even though most of the brand name “Italian” glasses are being manufactured in China.

“We were tired of paying more and making our patients to pay more,” Stratton explained.

Through her research, she discovered lots of small, family-owned companies and independent artisans all over the world that are making high-quality frames and are willing to sell them for a lot less than brand names.

“We started contacting artisans in Germany, Spain, Belgium and Italy, and found out they are in need of a bigger market and would be happy to work with us,” said Stratton.

Quality of product was not the only thing Stratton and her partners were looking for in their future business partners – they wanted to know the story of each artist they would be working with.

“If we could not meet them, get to know them and form a relationship, we would move on,” Stratton said.

“We wanted our customers to know where their glasses came from and who made them,” she said, adding that she was particularly looking for artisans who work “for a cause.”

“We all need to make money, but if you are only about money, I don’t want to deal with you,” said Stratton. “We wanted to work with companies that have a humanitarian purpose behind their product.”

One company, she said, uses part of its profit to buy vitamins for children in third world countries; another gives money to the Hellen Keller Foundation for the Blind. Still another runs a clinic in Nepal, and every time they sell a pair of glasses in their store in Germany, one pair is donated in Nepal.

At first Stratton tried to sell the artisan frames in her Wellington Way store but soon found out there wasn’t much interest.

“It’s a different market,” she said. “We’ve been serving families, and those new frames simply did not sell.”

Stratton did not get discouraged. She realized she needed a different location: one with lots of students, professionals and “artsy” people, and Chevy Chase seemed to be the answer. She decided to start a new company in addition to her existing one, and Ko along with Mangan, an eye doctor who has worked for Stratton Eyes for a year, pitched in.

“We are all like-minded – we don’t put money at the top of our priorities, and we want to continue helping our community,” said Ko.

Over the years, Stratton and Ko have seen thousands of patients free of charge at the Hope Center, the Salvation Army, Room in the Inn and The Nest. They keep in touch with social workers at schools, who help them find children in need of free eye exams and glasses, and Mangan has volunteered for Special Olympics and for Kentucky Optometric Association.

“We believe in philanthropy,” Stratton said. “Not everyone can take a week off and go volunteer in Haiti, but there is plenty of need in our own community, and we are trying to fulfill it.”

The reason for not being able to go on long mission trips is the same for Stratton and Ko: They are both mothers and are very involved with their children.

The idea to name the new company after the famous literary character John Galt came from Stratton.

“‘Atlas Shrugged’ is my favorite book, and John Galt embodies innovation and hard individual work,” said Stratton, referring to 1957 novel by Ayn Rand.

Stratton said that just like Galt, she believes in the power of the human mind and also in the right of every person to make decisions.

“We don’t need big organizations to help people, we can do it ourselves,” she said.

Ko added that John Galt’s name symbolizes their attempt to stand up to the monopoly power and make quality products more affordable for people.

There will be no changes at the Wellington Way location, where Stratton Eyes will continue serving patients.

“We’ll be rotating back and forth between two offices,” said Stratton.

J. Galt Eyewear in Chevy Chase, just like Stratton Eyes, will have doctors on staff who will give eye exams and provide all eye-related services except surgeries.

In two years, Stratton is planning to open several new shops in Kentucky using J.Galt as a model. After that, she will consider teaching other people how to do it.

“We hope to franchise, and if we do, we can revolutionize our field,” she said.

J. Galt is located at 800 E. Euclid Avenue; the tentative open date is set for Aug. 1. Search for J. Galt Eyewear on Facebook for more information. cc

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