Hakim Optical

Hakim Optical is a Canadian optical retail chain and lens-manufacturing business founded by Karim Hakimi. The company developed from a Toronto optical laboratory into a vertically integrated retailer supplying prescription eyewear, lenses, and contact-lens products directly to consumers. Its business model combines retail stores with manufacturing and laboratory capabilities, including locations promoted as one-hour factory outlets. The chain has historically positioned itself around affordability, convenience, broad accessibility, and quick service rather than luxury or highly specialized fashion retail. Hakimi, who was born in Iran, developed an early interest in lens making and later worked in the optical sector in Switzerland. After moving to Canada, he established an optical laboratory in Toronto's former Elmwood Hotel, now associated with the Elmwood Spa. He acquired and rebuilt used equipment from a closed laboratory in Chicago and initially produced lenses for local optometrists. The business then expanded into direct retail, allowing customers to purchase eyewear from the same organization that manufactured or processed many of its lenses. A small storefront opened near Highway 10 and Dundas Street in 1967. A subsequent location at Yonge Street and Finch Avenue helped establish the chain's presence in Toronto. By 1985, Hakim Optical had 27 stores, including locations in Ontario and Nova Scotia, and employed approximately 200 people. Many stores offered on-site, one-hour service, an operating feature that became closely associated with the brand. The company states that it has sold more than 40 million pairs of glasses. The chain continued expanding across Canada and was described in reference material as the country's largest privately owned optical chain. In 2016 it had approximately 160 stores. By June 2020, published information identified 161 retail locations, including about 140 one-hour factory outlets, together with six lens factories. The network has included stores in multiple Canadian provinces, although individual locations have opened, closed, or changed status over time. Hakim Optical has also invested in distinctive brand marketing. Since 2003, its advertising has used the jingle “Your Eyes Can Have it All at Hakim Optical,” which has been recognized in Canadian media as a memorable commercial jingle. In 2011, the company opened a flagship store at Yonge–Dundas Square in downtown Toronto, close to the area of its earlier retail operations. In 2017, it partnered with VusionVR Inc. on an augmented-reality and virtual-reality shopping application that allowed customers to use a selfie and digital eyewear filters to preview frames. Karim Hakimi has remained closely associated with the company and has been identified as its chief executive officer and day-to-day operational leader. In recognition of his contributions, Toronto renamed Lebovic Avenue in Scarborough Hakimi Avenue in 2008, an unusual honor because the honoree was living at the time. A documentary titled “Hakim: A Vision of Success” was produced for Omni Television with Persian subtitles. More recent public reports have documented the closure or threatened closure of several individual retail sites following lease-payment disputes, including the former Yonge–Dundas Square flagship and locations in Guelph. These reports concern particular premises and do not, by themselves, establish that the overall company has ceased operations. Hakim Optical remains presented as an active Canadian optical retailer, although current store counts, ownership details, and financial information are not established by the supplied sources.

Hakim Optical traces its origins to Karim Hakimi, an Iranian-born entrepreneur who learned the basics of lens making at an early age and later gained optical-industry experience in Switzerland. After immigrating to Canada, Hakimi established an optical laboratory in downtown Toronto's former Elmwood Hotel. He rebuilt equipment acquired from a closed Chicago laboratory and began producing lenses for area optometrists. The company moved from laboratory production into consumer retail during the 1960s. A storefront near Highway 10 and Dundas Street opened in 1967, enabling Hakimi to manufacture and sell eyewear through the same business. A later store at Yonge Street and Finch Avenue expanded the Toronto presence. This combination of production and retail became a defining feature of the chain, whose locations were frequently promoted as offering rapid, one-hour service. By 1985, Hakim Optical had grown to 27 stores, with 25 in Ontario and two in Nova Scotia. The company employed approximately 200 people, including many newcomers to Canada. Over subsequent decades it expanded its Canadian retail network and retained a privately owned structure. Reference material described it as the largest privately owned optical chain in Canada and reported approximately 160 stores in 2016. By June 2020, the reported network consisted of 161 retail sites, roughly 140 of them identified as one-hour factory outlets, alongside six lens factories. Brand-building has been an important part of Hakim Optical's development. Its advertising jingle, “Your Eyes Can Have it All at Hakim Optical,” has been used since 2003 and became one of the more recognizable optical-retail jingles in Canada. In May 2011, the company opened a flagship at Yonge–Dundas Square in Toronto. In November 2017, it collaborated with VusionVR Inc. on a digital fitting concept that used a customer's selfie and augmented-reality-style filters to show how different frames might appear. Hakim Optical's founder has remained central to the company's public identity. Karim Hakimi has been identified as chief executive officer and as the person responsible for day-to-day operations at the Toronto head office. Toronto recognized his civic and business contributions in 2008 by renaming Lebovic Avenue in Scarborough Hakimi Avenue. A Persian-subtitled documentary about the company and its founder, “Hakim: A Vision of Success,” was produced for Omni Television. The available recent information is more location-specific than corporate. The Yonge–Dundas Square flagship was reported closed in February 2023 following a lease-payment dispute. A Burnaby location listed online at Lougheed Mall was also described as permanently closed. In 2024, landlord notices were reported at two Guelph sites: the Silvercreek Parkway North store received a January vacate order citing unpaid rent, while the Stone Road Mall store faced lease termination in August. These events indicate operational difficulties at particular premises, but the supplied sources do not provide sufficient evidence to characterize the company's overall solvency, ownership, or current national store count.

• 2020

  Reported network reaches 161 retail locations

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material reported 161 Canadian retail locations and six lens factories, including approximately 140 one-hour factory outlets.

• 2017

  Digital eyewear preview partnership

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  The company partnered with VusionVR Inc. to develop an app that digitally placed eyewear filters over customers' selfies.

• 2011

  Yonge–Dundas Square flagship opens

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  Hakim Optical opened a flagship store at Yonge–Dundas Square in Toronto.

• 2008

  Toronto street renamed Hakimi Avenue

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  Lebovic Avenue in Scarborough was renamed Hakimi Avenue in recognition of Karim Hakimi's contributions.

• 2003

  Long-running advertising jingle introduced

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  The brand began using the jingle “Your Eyes Can Have it All at Hakim Optical,” which continued to feature in its marketing.

• 1985

  Chain reaches 27 stores

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  Hakim Optical had 27 stores, including 25 in Ontario and two in Nova Scotia, and approximately 200 employees.

• 1967

  First retail storefront opens

  [1]Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org

  Karim Hakimi opened a small storefront near Highway 10 and Dundas Street in the Toronto area, linking the company's lens laboratory with direct consumer retail.

Affordable, convenient, vertically integrated optical retail for the Canadian mass market.

• Eyewear

  Prescription eyeglasses

  Prescription eyeglasses are the chain's core retail offering. Hakim Optical combines frames with corrective lenses and has historically emphasized accessible pricing and fast turnaround. Its factory-outlet model reflects the company's effort to connect retail service with in-house or affiliated lens-processing capabilities.

• Eyewear

  Eyeglass frames

  Hakim Optical stores sell frames for prescription glasses across a broad, mass-market assortment. The available sources do not identify a complete proprietary frame portfolio or specific designer labels, so the offering is best described as the chain's general frame assortment rather than a separately documented product brand.

• Optical manufacturing

  Prescription lenses

  Lens production and processing have been part of Hakim Optical's business since Karim Hakimi established the original Toronto laboratory. The company subsequently operated multiple lens factories and used the manufacturing connection to support rapid retail fulfillment and one-hour service at selected stores.

• Vision correction

  Contact lenses

  Contact lenses are included among the optical products associated with Hakim Optical's retail business. The supplied material does not specify brands, technical categories, or a distinct proprietary contact-lens line.

• Optical retail service

  One-hour factory outlet service

  One-hour service is a retail format rather than a standalone product. Many Hakim Optical stores have historically been described as factory outlets capable of rapid lens and eyewear fulfillment, helping differentiate the chain through convenience and shorter waits.

• 2003Your Eyes Can Have it All at Hakim Optical

  Canada

  Hakim Optical introduced or began consistently using the advertising jingle “Your Eyes Can Have it All at Hakim Optical.” The tune became a durable part of the brand's Canadian advertising identity and was later cited by media as a memorable Canadian commercial jingle.

  Outcome. The jingle remained associated with Hakim Optical and continued to be used in later brand communications.

  Source

• 2017

  Introduce digital eyewear preview technologyProduct launch

  Background

  The company explored ways to make in-store frame selection more interactive and visual.

  Action taken

  Hakim Optical partnered with VusionVR Inc. on an application that used a customer's selfie and eyewear-style digital filters to preview frames.

  Aftermath

  The partnership demonstrated an augmented-reality-oriented retail experiment, but the supplied sources do not document its duration, rollout scale, or commercial results.

  Source

• 2011

  Open a downtown Toronto flagshipStrategy

  Background

  Hakim Optical sought a prominent retail presence near the center of Toronto and close to the area of its earlier storefront history.

  Action taken

  The company opened a flagship location at Yonge–Dundas Square on May 1, 2011.

  Aftermath

  The site was later reported closed in February 2023 following a lease-payment dispute.

  Source

1. 1Hakim Opticalen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Hakim Optical official websitehakimoptical.com