Oakley is an eyewear company known mostly for their high end sunglasses and ski goggles. Oakley also make watches, clothing, bags, backpacks, shoes, prescription glasses and other accessories.
Oakley's 'O' logo is placed on the sides of most of their glasses and sunglasses. The Oakley Corporation also owns Dragon and manufactures eyewear for Fox Racing. In 2006, Oakley acquired the Oliver Peoples group, a manufacturer of high-end fashion branded eyewear. Like many high priced brand name accessories, Oakley's sunglasses are often counterfeited and sold in markets around the world that cater to tourists and Internet buyers. Counterfeit Oakleys are often referred to as -Foakleys- (fake Oakleys)- and etc.. Counterfeit Oakleys are occasionally referred to as Oakeys, this is due to an inconsistency between the spelling of "Oakley," written on the bridge, on real Oakleys and fake ones.Oakley was first started by Jim Jannard in 1975, by selling what he called 'The Oakley Grip' out of the back of his car at motocross events. They were unlike grips riders had seen at the time.With the 'Oakley' logo present on the strap, onlookers could now recognize the brand. In 1984, Oakley introduced the Factory Pilot, which were sunglasses in the same shape as the O-Frame, but made of plastic. They also had removable lenses, and were popularized by Tour de France winner Greg LeMond and other professional cyclists. Soon after, Oakley introduced several models of sunglasses, including the Blades, Razor Blades, Frogskins, and the Mumbos, which eventually evolved into the M-Frame series of glasses. Now (November 15, 2007), Oakley and Luxottica announced a merger between the companies. Oakley Corporation now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Luxottica Group. Oakley in the portfolio of Luxottica group (located in Milan, Italy) with other brands like Ray Ban, Persol, and Vogue among others.