Named in memory of Vanbremeersch’s late mother, “ZAC” reflects the brand’s ethos of combining sustainability with social impact. The company collects used eyewear from more than 1,500 drop-off points across France, including schools, pharmacies, retail chains, and corporate offices. Once collected, the glasses are reconditioned in inclusive employment settings such as ESATs (Etablissements et Services d’Aide par le Travail), AlterEos, and Vitamine T. Each pair is refurbished in about 20 minutes by workers with disabilities or individuals undergoing professional reintegration.
“Our goal is to make reuse mainstream, while showing that social inclusion can be built into every step of the supply chain,” said Ophélie Vanbremeersch in a March 2025 interview with Poets & Quants.
Refurbished eyewear is made available through Lunettes de ZAC’s flagship store in Lille, mobile pop-up shops, and a network of over 400 optical retail partners. A key milestone in scaling up was a strategic partnership with Atol les Opticiens, one of France’s largest optical networks, which brought the brand into mainstream retail.
In early 2025, the company partnered with La Poste, France’s national postal service, to pilot resale and collection points in 103 post offices. These locations offer non-corrective reading glasses and sunglasses priced between $31 and $49, improving access in underserved communities. Prescription frames reconditioned through retail partners are eligible for full reimbursement via France’s national health insurance and mutual insurance systems in some regions.
Lunettes de ZAC’s reuse model significantly cuts down on the environmental costs of new eyewear production. Each reconditioned pair uses approximately 6 liters of water, compared to the 18–30 liters required for new frames. In 2024 alone, the company diverted an estimated 300,000 frames from landfills.
In 2025, Vanbremeersch was named to the Financial Times Responsible Business Education Awards for scaling Lunettes de ZAC from a student initiative at IÉSEG School of Management into a nationally recognized model. She was also profiled by Poets & Quants and previously featured on Forbes France’s 30 Under 30 list.
Operating with a lean internal team and a wide partner network, Lunettes de ZAC demonstrates how reuse, affordability, and social equity can be linked in a replicable system. Its decentralized model offers a blueprint for sustainable transformation in industries beyond eyewear.
