oscar magnuson on building a brand DNA that resists fleeting trends

A SERIES ON THE VISIONARIES SHAPING BRAND DNA

Since design and brand evolution are accelerating at an unprecedented pace, designboom and Most Studios present Navigators of Design. This 10-part interview series sits down with the senior leaders who are steering the world’s most influential companies through rapid industry shifts. Through conversations with Creative Directors, CEOs, and Heads of Design, the series provides a platform for visionaries who view design not as a superficial final step, but as a strategic business tool anchored at the core of a company’s survival. Launching the first feature, we speak with Oscar Magnuson, founder of the eponymous Stockholm-based eyewear brand, about maintaining a long-term horizon in a market dominated by fast-moving trends. 

‘The danger of being too trendy is that you can just as quickly become untrendy. At Oscar Magnuson Spectacles, we do not believe in pushing trends or hunting clicks. Building something that can last takes time, and time you can only have if you keep control and independence,’ starts Magnuson, in our interview series with Most Studios.

OM6 and OM7 by Oscar Magnuson Spectacles | all images courtesy of Oscar Magnuson Spectacle

THE INTERSECTION OF ITALIAN SOUL AND SCANDINAVIAN DISCIPLINE

Launched in 2006, Oscar Magnuson’s aesthetic is the result of a deliberate collision of cultures: three years of industrial design study in Italy followed by a master’s at Konstfack in Stockholm. While Italy instilled a poetic, at times nearly spiritual respect for design, his Scandinavian heritage provided the structure and stringency necessary to build a brand. This combination results in a strict internal design system that ensures every frame maintains a specific feel, look, and quality recognized worldwide. 

‘The years in Italy have deeply influenced the way I look at design and how I treat it as a strategic business tool. To me, design is not something you add at the last step.’ Magnuson explains. ‘I created Oscar Magnuson Spectacles as a sort of alter ego… a deep love and respect for design and the arts, held together by a strict rulebook that strives for a minimal but never boring expression.’

Monochrome eyewear

NAVIGATING THE LONG-TERM HORIZON THROUGH CRAFT AND SYSTEM

The ongoing consolidation of the global eyewear market serves as a primary motivator for the brand’s continued independence. By refusing to follow the speed of the digital-first world and the pressure for constant novelty, Magnuson maintains a long-term horizon, focusing on a monochrome, sculptural aesthetic where repetition creates a recognizable, identifiable pattern. This commitment to longevity is also mirrored in the physical product; the brand utilizes plant-based bio-acetate, BioNylon, and recycled materials like Tritan Renew for demo lenses, treating sustainability as a non-negotiable responsibility rather than a reactionary shift. 

‘It is through repetition that you create a pattern, and only a pattern can be identified and recognized,’ Magnuson says, believing the future of creative leadership relies on the navigator skills of patience and confidence. ‘We have to stay true to the concept of Oscar Magnuson Spectacles, which is ultimately a clear design system. The aesthetics is one part of what we sell, but in the end we are also selling a medical device that solves a problem for the user. Through our design rulebook, however, we are able to find new markets and compete at the highest level on the world stage. Without design as the core decision-maker, we would not be able to compete.’

Oscar Magnuson Spectacles’ factory in Italy

The frames of the Oscar Magnuson Spectacles eyewear are designed in Stockholm and handcrafted in Italy, while leather cases are sourced from Tärnsjö, one of Sweden’s oldest eco-tanneries. Even as the role of Creative Director expands to manage the broader business of design, the focus remains on a clear design system calibrated to produce a specific quality recognized worldwide. Magnuson emphasizes that the development of sculptural frames, such as the OM 6 and OM 7, requires months of collaborative study with Italian suppliers to engineer new mechanical solutions for technical hurdles like hinge anchors. 

‘I am still amazed that we managed to build a 100% European supply chain for our cases using a truly handcrafted production. But we had to simplify to find a design that combined great aesthetics, reasonable production cost, production integrity, and function,’ notes Magnuson. ‘I also believe we have a responsibility as brand owners to find the best solutions available. If I can use bio-acetate instead of conventional acetate, I will. It might not be the perfect solution, but at least we are trying, and we are showing our consumers that we care, so maybe they will too.’

case and packaging

As the industry looks toward the future, Magnuson views the rise of artificial intelligence as a shift that will prioritize original ideas over pure craft, rewarding brand leaders who maintain a disciplined focus. By viewing design as an anchored system rather than a series of reactions, the brand maintains a sense of relevance that is defined by its own internal evolution rather than the noise of the global market.

‘Of course we need to stay contemporary, and we do need to deliver on the expectation for novelty and concept innovation. But we do not need to follow every trend that appears. Find your path and stay on it. When everything is spinning faster, the brand that stays firm and stays true to a long-term vision will be the one that wins, because it is both easier to spot and easier to follow,’ he concludes.

OM frames mix

project info:

Navigators of Design Series: a collaboration with Most Studios

Design has never changed faster. These are the people navigating that change.

Navigators of Design is a 10-part interview series produced in collaboration between designboom and Most Studios. As the landscape of brand and design evolves at an unprecedented pace, we sit down with the senior leaders — CEOs, Creative Directors, and Heads of Design — shaping the world’s most influential companies.

From rethinking workflows to defining design as a core business differentiator, these conversations provide a platform for the visionaries lifting the industry to new heights.

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