Seeing in Style: RA Opticians

RA Opticians Bring Craftsmanship & Care

Jessica and Lyle Ooley have fit glasses on more than 10,000 faces over the last 25 years. After traveling the world working for independent eyewear brands, they’ve set up shop in Indianapolis to help Hoosiers see more clearly and find the perfect style for them.

While Jessica started her career in Portland, Oregon, Lyle grew up on 10th Street and is happy to be back. They’ve transformed a warehouse in the Factory Arts District into a stylish boutique space, designing and building every feature of it themselves.

“We wanted to slow down our lives a little and open up a brick-and-mortar store. The East side is just getting better and better,” Lyle says.

Ra is the only independently owned optician practice in the city and offers exams, styling and custom lens design. It exclusively carries independently-owned brands, made by companies the owners know and trust.

“Most people don’t know, but over half of everything that’s sold in the United States in optical is owned by one big company,” Lyle says. “They own all the brands you know, like Ray-Ban. They own the insurance, the shops, the lens companies, everything. Most of the money that they spend is on marketing, and the quality of the goods is a lot lower. When you’re working with independent brands like we do, most of what you’re paying for actually goes to just the design and manufacture of glasses. Our goods are handmade, and all of our brands are also independently owned.”

He and Jessica have visited most of the factories that make the glasses they carry, and he was impressed by the working conditions there, from businesses being environmentally conscious to paying their workers great wages.

“One of them is on a beautiful river in the south of France. You know, with paint, it can be kind of toxic, so they have this system that filters the water and pours back into the river,” he says. “They gave me a tour and the gag at the end is that the factory owner drinks the water coming out of his own factory. They’re really artisans. A lot of our frames are painted by hand and sometimes even done freehand. The acetates are shaped by hand. They’re using files and using the old ways.”

“The plastics we use are extruded from cotton, or cellulose acetate,” Jessica adds. “Those other brands are using plastics from petroleum, so ours are a whole lot better quality and much better for your body. You can feel the difference when you touch it.”

She got a job in an optical shop in high school and quickly realized her passion for design and styling people.

“I really loved being able to change their lives by changing the way they look: flattering their face and improving their self-esteem,” she says.

Ra has thousands of pairs of glasses in stock, but the opticians there guide people in the process of choosing the look that will suit them best and can make customizations or alterations for each customer.

“We’re proponents of having a wardrobe of glasses: you wouldn’t wear the same shoes or shirt every day,” Lyle says. “If you wear glasses, it’s the most important thing you put on. That’s the thing that changes your image the most.”

Ra provides options for various hobbies and professions. For an avid biker, they can make curved lenses so that the person can see over their shoulder. For someone who suffers from migraines or dyslexia, they can make therapeutic lenses. The opticians take precise measurements and use digitally surfaced lenses for the sharpest vision.

“We look at everything: how far apart their pupils are, bone structure, how wide their face is, how high their bridge is, their eyebrows,” Lyle adds. “A lot goes into perfectly fitting a pair of glasses, and most people have never experienced that.”

He adds that many of the people who gravitate to them are the ones who say, “I’ve never loved my glasses before,” and he’s confident that the team at Ra can find not just one choice for customers, but several.

“Our slogan is ‘feel seen’—no matter who you are or what your needs are, we’re here for you,” Lyle says. “A lot of LGBTQ+ communities don’t feel seen when they go into stores, and we have that extra sensitivity and expertise to help them find what makes them feel like them. When we’re ordering products, we buy specifically for different ethnicities to fit all kinds of faces.”

Lyle and Jessica are proud to provide a place for everyone to find the right eyewear for their unique style and needs, and they look forward to many more years of serving Indianapolis.

Ra Opticians hosts a cocktail party on the first Friday of each month and accepts walk-ins without an appointment. Find out more by visiting raopticians.com or calling 317-759-0317. The store is located at 1011 Massachusetts Ave., Suite 121, and is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., but closed on Mondays.