Dragon is undoubtedly one of the best sports sunglasses brands in the market right now. Their durable and lightweight frames paired with cutting edge eyewear tech are a must-have if you’re a serious athlete or outdoorsman.
Not to mention, these sunglasses are 100% made by the athlete and for the athlete.
With numerous pro athletes on their roster, Dragon has become a staple athletic eyewear brand for skiers, snowboarders, surfers, motocross riders, and anglers.
But decades before it became one of the go-to sunglasses brands in the active lifestyle market, Dragon was just a relatively unknown shop in a coastal neighbourhood in California. Like most start-ups back in the day.
Today, Dragon is now an international brand that helps athletes all over the world to perform at a high level with its unmatched eyewear tech.
Here’s how it all happened:
From the garage to riches
Apple, Google, Amazon, and other wildly successful businesses have one thing in common. Their humble beginnings can be traced back to one seemingly unpleasant place: the garage.
These companies were once obscure start-ups but look at them now! They proved that to be a billion-dollar worth business, one doesn’t need fancy offices from the get-go. All you need is a game-changing idea and, apparently, a garage.
Dragon was no different.
Before the name Dragon was spoken in the same sentence as Lacoste, Micheal Kors, Nike, Calvin Klein, and so much more, it was nothing but a passion project that started in a garage back in 1993.
According to its founder, Will Howard, Dragon was born out of his eagerness to build something that will cover three of his favourite sports: surfing, snowboarding, and dirt bike riding.
So he set up shop in his surf town garage in Capo Beach, California and designed and built his first-ever pair of Dragon sunglasses.
The rest, like they always say, is history.
Does Luxxotica own Dragon?
Almost, but not quite.
For those who are not familiar, Luxxotica is an eyewear empire that owns some of the world’s biggest eyewear brands. We’re talking about Ray-Ban, Persol, Coach, Burberry, Costa, Prada, Oliver Peoples, Oakley, and so much more.
But more on that later.
Dragon is currently part of the Marchon Eyewear ensemble. It was acquired in 2012, nearly two decades after the creation of Dragon.
Marchon is the same manufacturing and distribution company that houses other bespoke brands like Lacoste, Calvin Klein, Fendi, Michael Kors, and so much more.
But before Marchon came into the picture, Dragon had already been owned by a larger eyewear company. The name of the company? Oakley. One of the crown jewels of sports eyewear.
It was all good and smooth-sailing until Luxxotica bought Oakley in 2007. Since Oakley owned Dragon at that time, the acquisition put the California homegrown brand in an interesting position.
However, Will Howard thought that the eyewear mogul wanted Oakley for Oakley and not for Dragon. So Will decided to jump out of the wagon and make a run on its own.
He set out to grow the company instead, which proved to be the better move because of how it all turned out for the brand.
Are Dragon sunglasses any good?
You bet! Dragon wouldn’t be a success story if it wasn’t any good, right?
Dragon’s goal right from the jump was to provide the best pair of sunglasses to the athletes that needed them. And since then, Dragon sunglasses have been part of the winning DNA of every sportsman and woman that it caters to.
No wonder big names like Jamie Lynn, Chris Roach and Mick Fanning signed up for their own signature sunglasses with Dragon. Not to mention other up and coming athletes are also queuing up to be on Dragon’s team roster, too!
If you’re a big surfing fan, you should definitely check out Mick Fanning’s signature Dragon Baile Sunglasses.
You might say “the following is great and all, but what makes Dragon a great brand of sunglasses, really?” Well, let’s get down to the nitty-gritty of their product technology and see for yourself.
Breakdown of Dragon’s Sports Sunglasses Technology
For top-notch athletes, it’s all about performing at a high level. That’s why they need a pair of sunglasses that can keep up with them.
Good thing Dragon can do more than just keep up. With several cutting-edge technologies integrated into their athletic eyewear, a pair of Dragons can also help enhance one’s performance. Whether you’re out riding the waves, gliding through the snow, or reeling in some big fish.
Below are various eyewear technologies that Dragon prides itself on:
1. Lumalens Technology
Dragon Meridien in Teakwood frame and Brown LL
Lumalens is Dragon’s self-patented colour-enhancing technology. It was first integrated into their snow goggles and has since expanded to their surfing and fishing collections as well.
These lenses can enhance your vision and improve the colour of your surroundings by filtering out specific lights in the spectrum. This tech helps you to level up your game despite varying lighting conditions. Especially if you’re competing out in the open.
Lumalenses also come with hydrophobic and oleophobic coatings that repel water droplets, fingerprints, dust, and oil giving you an unobstructed view of your playing field.
This technology is available on all of their sports sunglasses collections.
If that’s not enough for you, Dragon also pairs Lumalens with their ionized lenses that can maximize the contrast of your vision and reduce eye fatigue.
When you’re ready to shop Dragon sunglasses online, and you want Lumalens tech on them, look for the code “LL” in the model name. Just like these bad boys:
2. H20 Floatable Technology
It’s no secret that Dragon has deep roots in water sports. From surfing to fishing, and everything in between.
What kind of sunglasses could be more fitting for these sports than those that float, right? After all, you don’t want to see one of your prized possessions getting swallowed slowly by the water.
Dragon’s floating sunglasses are built with an injection moulded thermoplastic and a patented H2O material that has a lower density, allowing the frame to float in water.
With this technology, you can retrieve your pair of Dragons after it gets slapped off your face by a big wave when surfing.
To know whether your pair of Dragons will float on water, just look for the H20 Floatable logo sticker on the lenses. Don’t worry, they’re easy to peel off!
Look at these Dragon floatable sunglasses for reference:
- Dragon Monarch in Matte Black frame and Grey lenses
- Dragon The Jam in Matte Black frame and Petrol lenses
- Dragon Vantage in Matte Black frame and Blue Ionized lenses
- Dragon Verse in Matte Black frame and Copper lenses
3. Plant-based frame material
Dragon Renew in Matte Black frame and Green Ionized Lenses
Dragon also takes pride in their Upcycled Collection. It’s a series of bespoke everyday sunglasses that are made from Plant-Based Resin.
This resin is made entirely from ethically harvested castor bean oil, which is a much better alternative to petroleum-based products.
If this is your first time hearing about it, this resin is highly resilient and 100% renewable, making it the perfect material for sunglasses.
It also looks and feels like the staple material sunglass frame (plastic), but it’s just as durable and lightweight. But more importantly, Plant-Based Resin helps reduce our environmental footprint on the planet.
Using a natural bio-based material like this one helps protect the oceans that you love to surf, rivers you love to fish, and mountains you love to hike.
Mark our words, the plant-based resin could be the next big thing! So get ahead of the curve and check out Dragon’s Upcycled Collection.
Below are some of their best plant-based resin frames:
- Dragon Wilder in Matte Black frame and Blue Ionized lenses
- Dragon Renew in Matte Black frame and Green Ionized Lenses
- Dragon Cove in Matte Black frame and Rose Gold lenses
Find your pair of Dragons at Great Southern Sunnies
Whether you’re into surfing, fishing, snowboarding, or you’re simply a sunglasses aficionado, owning a pair of Dragon shades is a no-brainer.
A pair of these bad boys will certainly protect your eyes and level up your game at the same time. Especially if you pick the sunglasses with Lumalens Technology and H2O Floatable features.
But if you’re just looking for an everyday shade that you can pair with your daily or summer outfits, opt for the Upcycled Collection! By using these plant-based resin frames, you can help reduce our negative impact on Earth.
Buy Dragon sunglasses now!
We deliver nationwide and we’re happy to do it for free for orders above $80!