The 20th Daegu International Optical Show (DIOPS 2022, hereinafter referred to as DIOPS), hosted by Daegu Metropolitan City (Mayor Young-jin Kwon) and organized by Korea Optical Industry Agency (President Gwang-sik Jin), was held at EXCO in Daegu on the 22nd (Wednesday).

This year's DIOPS will be held for a total of 3 days until the 24th (Fri), and the focus is on revitalizing the stagnant economy through continuous marketing support amid rising participation from domestic and foreign buyers, including the complete lifting of social distancing and easing of regulations on immigration.

In addition, 134 domestic and foreign optics companies, including glasses frames, sunglasses, lenses, contact lenses, devices and accessories, have confirmed their participation, and about 2,000 domestic and foreign buyers from 23 countries, including 102 buyers, have completed pre-registration so far.

The DIOPS will be held in Halls 5 and 6 of the East Wing, EXCO's new exhibition hall. Hall 5, dubbed the 'Salon de DIOPS', focuses on house brands for eyeglass frames and sunglasses, and Hall 6, dubbed the 'Technology Zone', will feature OEM/ODM, lenses, contact lenses, accessories, and converging items.

DIOPS, which is being renewed as a brand exhibition, is drawing attention due to the large number of famous domestic and foreign eyewear brands participating. In 'Hall 5: 'Salon de DIOPS', TART OPTICAL, Respect Eyewear (Deu Mea &), Maru I.T.C Co,.Ltd. (Yellows Plus), Meister Optics (Coblens), MYKITA Korea (MYKITA), Opti-Korea (RODENSTOCK), Oycos Eyewear (LAFONT), A-Ju Optics (Cazal), M-Two ITC (BJ CLASSIC), JNB Korea (MARKUS T) and Zio Corporation (Anne et Valentin), etc, and 20 globally renowned brands, as well as domestic and foreign house brand companies will participate and form the 'EFIS Special Pavilion'.

In addition, domestic designer brands are also introducing a large number of new product lines through DIOPS. Companies including World Trend (Frank Custom, Ironic Iconic), H2C Design (KNOUUN), Fantom Optical (Plume), Hube Eyewear(PLASTA), JCS International (CLROTTE), Jeong's Optical (VYCOZ), TH OPTICAL INS. (HIARI, Panroad, Cublin), March Eyewear (March), OptiKhan Artisan & Co (TPH), Rangolla Co,.Ltd. (Rangolla), Urban Eyewear Co,.Ltd. (Nine Accord), Hanshin Optical (Black Monster), The Craft (SAGAWAFUJII), 2-Face Optical (CARVEN), JSEYEWEAR (M.TATE), etc. will participate.

In 'Hall 6: Technology Zone', which consists of devices, lenses and accessories, various companies such as Moonshot Optical, Nado Korea, ISIS VISION, etc from the contact lens industry; EyeMe Optical (smudge equipment), Huvitz (optical devices), Shin-il Optical (optical devices), POLAOPTO (LCD eye examination equipment), Potec Co,.Ltd. (AutoRefractor), and other optics-related devices; as well as INTERBIZ (digital fitting solutions), KAGA FEI Korea (Retinal projection vision aid), and other converging companies will participate to display and promote new models. In addition, competitive companies from Daegu such as CMA Global (cleaner, case, etc.), as well as KYcloth (cleaner, case, etc.), ASUKA (eyewear accessory), and Eyemang (case designs) will participate to display and promote new models.

In this year's DIOPS, the special pavilion will be more diversified. In the Daegu Bukgu Eyewear District Pavilion and the Daegu Nowon Small Traders and Enterprisers Specialization Pavilion, companies with excellent source technology and root technology in the region will showcase the latest technologies and products from the South Korean glasses manufacturing industry. At the K-Eyewear Metaverse Zone, the 'K-Eyewear World', which was built as part of a project to advance and promote the South Korean eyewear industry last year, will be presented offline. After visiting the booth, there will also be an event where participants will be able to win free NFTs through a lottery after they log in to the 'K-Eyewear World' and find a hint to a quiz.

Various support projects from the Korea Optical Industry Agency can also be checked directly at the exhibition hall. It is expected to be a place to receive information on the latest technologies, trends and support projects from the optics industry through special pavilions for B2B sites such as the "EyeNShop & Eyewear Korea Public Relations Hall", "EyeVil Advanced Equipment Center Public Relations Hall", "Optical Surface Treatment Center Public Relations Hall", and "KOLAS Public Relations Hall".

The conference program will also be greatly strengthened at this year's DIOPS. During the first day of the exhibition, on the 22nd (Wednesday), the '3D Technology Trends and Cases Seminar' and the 'Global Optics Conference' will be held. On the second day (23rd), the '2022 Optics Innovation Growth Youth Job Training Seminar' and 'Convergence Optics Industry Trend and Prospect Analysis Seminar' will be held.

At the '3D Technology Trends and Cases Seminar', targeted towards optics industry workers and officials, held from 1:00 to 3:00 on the 22nd, classes such as the ①Introduction of 3D printing technology trends and DfAM applications, ②Introduction of Sodick OPM equipment technology ③ Case study of HP 3D printed custom glasses, and ④ Examples of uses of Sodick 3D printer, will be held.
(※ DfAM (Design for Addictive Manufacturing) : Designs for additive manufacturing methods optimized for 3D printed additive manufacturing methods)

The 'Global Optics Conference' will be held from 3 to 5 pm on the same day to present a new direction for the eyeglass industry and to confirm the future of the eyeglass industry. At the Microsoft booth, which launched their smart glasses HoloLens, Managing Director of Microsoft Korea Kun-bok Lee will give a presentation on the subject of 'Smart Glasses Application Field', and 'Smart Glasses Trend and Trend Analysis', and Anne Sophie Frenove, CEO of Cosmo Connected, a French startup related to smart glasses, will visit to present on 'the current state of smart glasses and the convergence plan with the Korean optics industry'.

Jong-pil Kim, CEO of Design Shower, a representative of South Korean glasses design as a first generation glasses designer in Korea, confirmed the recent spread of K-eyewear brand awareness and increased demand for Made in Korea products from the site, is actively emphasizing the importance of design and brand power to revitalize the eyewear design industry, and.

On the second day of the exhibition, at 10 P.M. on the 23rd (Thursday), practical training on social media marketing for the eye optical industry will be held under the theme of 'digital marketing promotion strategy that attracts customers' for young people participating at the Optics Innovation Growth Youth Job Training.

In addition, from 2 pm on the 23rd (Thursday), a seminar will be held under the theme of 'Convergence Optics Industry Trend and Prospect Analysis'. There will also be lectures on the future of the optics industry in the metaverse era and the understanding of the optics technology required by smart glass in metaverse by renowned Korean scholars, and it is expected to be a place to seek technological innovation and research cooperation methods and present future development strategies by sharing prospect analysis results.

In order to yield results from exhibitors' participation in the exhibition, the DIOPS secretariat will carry out various promotions.

Since the Korean Optometric Association and local and provincial eyewear societies are actively participating, more genuine buyers are expected to participate than ever before. Seven optician societies from Busan, Daegu, Daejeon, Ulsan, Chungbuk, Gyeongbuk, and Gyeongnam have already signed MOUs with the Korea Optical Industry Agency and confirmed group visits, and D.O.S. visits are given four points for on-site maintenance education and opticians are expected to actively participate in the exhibition. It is also operating a support program for group visits to the local optician societies, so it is expected that it will be easier to participate in the exhibition.

It also supports product and booth photography in the exhibition hall. Participating companies are provided with various benefits, such as receiving original photos and edited copies for free, which can be used as marketing materials in the future.

Meanwhile, participating companies are preparing events such as special discounts and new product launch promotions that will only be provided during the DIOPS period, which is expected to serve as an opportunity to promote transactions as well as boost visitations to the exhibition.

This year's DIOPS will be held as a hybrid exhibition combining online and offline. The 'Online DIOPS' opened on June 22, along with the opening day of the exhibition, and participants and exhibition products can be checked on the DIOPS website even after the exhibition is over.

In order to promote the excellence and awareness of South Korean eyewear brands, DIOPS will conduct 'Overseas Live Commerce' for participating companies.

In the case of live broadcasts of overseas interview videos, interviews with foreign reporters and companies, and product introductions are broadcast live on YouTube during the exhibition period, and the videos are continuously exposed after the exhibition is over. In addition, separate videos for each participating company are provided so that they can be used as post-marketing materials. 5 minute videos are provided to each company, along with English translations.

As part of the 'South Korea Glasses Industry Advancement Promotion Project', non-face-to-face (online) export consultations will be held simultaneously during the DIOPS period to meet foreign buyers who are unable to visit the exhibition. By providing an opportunity to participate, it is expected to help companies expand their export channels by providing customized matching support with overseas buyers who are unable to visit due to entry restrictions, etc.

In addition, the Korea Optical Industry Agency, which is the host of the exhibition, held a 'DIOPS Ambassador Appointment Ceremony' to publicize the status of DIOPS as the only optics industry exhibition in Korea. This appointment ceremony was held at the opening ceremony of the exhibition on Wednesday, June 22, and singer Solomon Lee from Daegu, who took third place in the televised singing contest 'Next National singer', participated as the public ambassador.

DIOPS celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, since the 1st Daegu International Optical Show※(DIOPS 2001) was held, and a DIOPS merit award (Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Award) will also be awarded to congratulate buyers and related parties for their achievements.

Daegu Mayor Young-jin Kwon said, "The exhibition is more meaningful because it is held at a time when various restrictions are being eased, and we will hold a successful exhibition with wisdom and strength so that participating companies can return with positive results."

Meanwhile, in this exhibition sponsored by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, hosted by Daegu Metropolitan City and organized by Korea Optical Industry Agency, △Glass frames △Gunglasses △Lenses △Contact lenses △Optic equipment △Cases & accessories will be on display. On-site maintenance training for seven municipal and provincial branches of the Korean Optometric Association will be held as a linked event, along with additional events such as the 4th World Korean Optical Business Convention, Optical Conference, K-eyewear Design Awards, Optometry Demonstration Event, and free eyesight tests.