The Sunglass Brand That Famous People Can’t Stop Wearing

10/31/2018

At a workshop in New Orleans, an optician — who looks more like a surfer than what you probably imagine someone who crafts eyewear would look like — hand-cuts pieces of acetate that will eventually become sunglasses fit for royalty. As in: actual royalty. Independent eyewear brand Krewe counts Meghan Markle among its list of celebrity fans.

The brand’s star sightings can’t be counted on two hands, but we’ll name a few highlights: Beyonce (she owns at least three pairs), Serena Williams, Gigi Hadid, Blake Lively, Emma Watson, Kendall Jenner, Selena Gomez, and the Haim trio. It’s not just the fashionable women whose style we monitor closely who have taken to the brand — fashion icons David Byrne and Lil Wayne have also been seen donning the frames.

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#MeghanMarkle spotted in our GRAVIER Matte Black 24K (!!!!!!) These edgy, elevated aviators are hand-crafted to be the #crown jewel of any look. Duchess-approved ?
A post shared by KREWE New Orleans Eyewear (@krewe) on Oct 19, 2018 at 3:05pm PDT

View this post on Instagram

#MeghanMarkle spotted in our GRAVIER Matte Black 24K (!!!!!!) These edgy, elevated aviators are hand-crafted to be the #crown jewel of any look. Duchess-approved ?

A post shared by KREWE New Orleans Eyewear (@krewe) on Oct 19, 2018 at 3:05pm PDT

With plenty of celebrity endorsements, and sales that are growing 200 percent annually, it’s safe to say the brand is having a moment. Here’s why you should be paying attention:

It’s independently owned

Most sunglass brands on the market are actually owned by optics giant Luxottica, which makes everything from Ray Ban and Persol to Chanel, Prada, and Tory Burch’s sunglass offerings. Krewe, on the other hand, is a small but mighty manufacturer that designs everything it sells out of its headquarters in New Orleans.

Have you seen the sunglasses?

The styles are, in short, awesome. I had the chance to try out this Gigi Hadid-approved pair produced as part of a collab with Reformation, and can honestly say I’m now a person who wears sunglasses at night. The freckled acetate frames show an enormous amount of depth. Unlike other frames, the tortoiseshell pattern you can see in the main photo isn’t printed on the inner side of the frames, it’s actually worked into the material to create a 3D, cloud-like pattern.

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#Spotted: #gigihadid in #KREWE’s MILAN Charcoal ? Shop #fashionweek’s favorite frame at the link in profile ? #KREWEMuse
A post shared by KREWE New Orleans Eyewear (@krewe) on Feb 14, 2018 at 1:11pm PST

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#Spotted: #gigihadid in #KREWE’s MILAN Charcoal ? Shop #fashionweek’s favorite frame at the link in profile ? #KREWEMuse

A post shared by KREWE New Orleans Eyewear (@krewe) on Feb 14, 2018 at 1:11pm PST

Krewe’s best-selling style, the St. Louis Bengal, is another stunner — the gold tone metal nose bridge is inspired by New Orleans’ architecture, and adds a ton of character to the frame. The brand has also consistently sold out of, and had to restock, the Earhart and STL II (which are luckily in stock today).

Where to buy Krewe sunglasses

Ready to swap out your mass-market frames for an impeccably made (Beyonce-approved) set you’ll wear for life? Shop our favorite looks below, and see its extended collections at Shopbop and Neiman Marcus.