Carl Allen

I lead smart eyewear design at Mentra, where my focus is making smart glasses something people actually want to wear every day. By combining intentional design with Mentra’s open-source platform, I’m working to take smart glasses from early tech experiments to something people actually want, and need, in their everyday lives.

Allen Atelier is a trusted design partner for startups and established companies alike. We don’t just create products—we guide teams through the process, bridging vision and execution to deliver design solutions that succeed in the real world. - Industrial Design - Eyewear Design - Design Direction and Brand Signifiers - Design Research and Strategy - Eyewear and Fashion - Sporting Goods - Wearable Technology - Marine Transportation - Sustainability

Guiding design efforts across multiple lines of business shaping the future of VSP’s products, services, and experiences. - Utilized Human Centered Design methodologies to lead a cross enterprise team to identify and test new product category concepts, which led to the creation of VSP’s fastest growing product, Light Care, which has doubled in size to 4M members in the span of a year. - Brought light to the importance of Sustainability amongst internal stakeholders. Obtained internal buy-in and implemented VSP’s first step towards a more sustainable practices. - Identified gaps in the vision care patient experience, created and tested minimum viable concepts with patients and doctors to assess the effectiveness in empowering paitents with the knowledge to better inform personal decisions as it pertains to caring for their health. - Supported VSP’s provider network, of 40k plus doctors, in staying open at the onset of the pandemic to provide essentail care through the design and manufacture of 50k resuable faceshield, in 45 days, by utilizing 3d printed metal tooling. - Established and grew a new design team, with diverse skillsets, for VSP's newly launched Global Innovation Center.

Directed a team of 10+ designers in creating eyewear and snowboard goggle collections for Nike, Columbia, and Dragon Alliance generating 130M+ in revenue year over year. - Redefined and changed the form factor and elevated wearer comfort of eye wear by creating a new lens manufacturing process, in collaboration with Carl Zeiss, that led to the debut of the Wing and Vaporwing Elite on track and field athletes at the Rio 2016 Olympic games. - Worked with licensors, brand managers, and end customers to ensure collections were on point with consumer needs, emerging trends, and business objectives. - Grew the Nike Vision product line through the creation of new product categories including: Nike SB suns and optical, KD optical, and Nike SB snow google line. - Established a new design team and set design direction for the Columbia eye wear brand.

Led eyewear design efforts for Marchon’s highest revenue generating brand, Nike Vision. Worked directly with athletes to uncover needs and create eyewear solutions that maximised athlete potential. Created scalable design language for proprietary brands - Created the first unifying direction for the Nike Vision brand in the form a leading visual concept, Hyperflight, that guided the design team in creating a cohesive look and feel across all eye wear product lines. - Created new brand DNA and designed the debut optical collection for newly acquired Dragon Alliance brand.

Responsible for design of all eyewear collections, including runway styles, under the Calvin Klein Collection brand. Researched emerging trends to create on-point collections aligned with the seasonal creative direction of Calvin Klein Collection. Worked closely with vendors to insure design intent was maintained through the manufacturing process.

Industrial Designer specializing in ceramic’s for Kohler’s Kitchen and Bath segment. - Debuted Kohler’s new class 6 flushing platform with the design of the Cimmaron two piece toilet. Worked with engineers to establish new manufacturing standards, reducing cull in the pottery by 10%. - Worked on a year long advanced research and concept development project to identify user needs around personal grooming spaces and field tested new solutions in the field, via user testing in San Francisco and Chicago, shaping Kohler’s future product lineup.

Worked a variety of projects ranging from Fiskar scissors to Medical Devices

Expanded Boston Whaler’s product offering with the design of three new boat models. - Designed the 345 Conquest, Boston Whaler’s new flagship. - Evolved the design language of the Dauntless boat line with the creation of the 200 Dauntless. - Increased the product offering for the Montauk boat line with the design of the 190 Montauk.