SILMO 2026: What Independent Opticians Should Watch For

SILMO Paris, the world's leading optical trade show, opens its doors from September 25 to 28, 2026, at Paris Nord Villepinte. As every year, the show brings together frame manufacturers, lens makers, equipment suppliers, and opticians from every continent — and, as every year, a good share of what gets unveiled on the big-name stands simply isn't designed for the independent store.

Here, without the marketing filter, is what genuinely deserves the attention of an optician running their store solo or with a small team.

1. Next-Generation Measurement and Centering Stations

Every edition, the major lens groups unveil increasingly sophisticated measurement columns (automatic detection, posture measurement, advanced personalization). Technically impressive — but these systems are built for chains with a sales volume that justifies the investment, often bundled with commitments to buy lenses from the same supplier. For an independent who wants to stay free to source from anywhere, that's not always the right option.

2. The Patient Data Question

More and more measurement and try-on tools work by connecting customer data to a supplier's cloud. It's a real question worth putting to exhibitors: where are your customers' measurements stored, who can access them, and what happens to that data if you switch suppliers?

3. Changing Habits: Near Vision, Computer Vision

Time spent in front of screens keeps reshaping what progressive lens wearers need. Several speakers at the show are expected to address the distinction between classic near vision (reading, ~35-40 cm) and so-called "intermediate" or "computer" vision, at a different distance and posture. It's a topic we follow closely at IO Tech — see our article on why a single measurement is no longer enough.

We'll be keeping an eye on this year's announcements ourselves and will update this article if anything useful for independents comes out of it.