Macron's viral aviators return at Omani business forum
Emmanuel Macron has resumed wearing his signature blue-tinted sunglasses during an Omani state visit, reviving a look that previously crashed a French eyewear maker’s website.
Emmanuel Macron sported blue-tinted aviator sunglasses on the steps of the Elysee Palace while welcoming the Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tariq. Presidential staff attributed the eyewear choice to "an eye problem" rather than the midday Paris sun, declining to provide further details. The French president continued to wear the frames throughout a signing ceremony inside the palace and later at a hotel hosting a Franco-Omani business forum.
The reappearance of the sunglasses revives a sudden commercial phenomenon for French manufacturer Henry Jullien. The blue-tinted eyewear first sparked a viral moment in January at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
At that forum, the aviators became an unwitting symbol of a European counter-offensive. Standing up to Donald Trump over his designs on Greenland, Macron argued that Europe needed to stand up to "bullies" and become "much stronger and more autonomous".
Trump subsequently fueled the media buzz by mocking Macron. The US president quipped that he watched the French leader "sort of be tough" with those "beautiful sunglasses". Macron, who speaks excellent if accented English, quickly shot back with the English phrase "For sure".
The public exchange triggered a consumer rush that crashed the Henry Jullien website. The commercial ripple effects extended well beyond the French eyewear sector. A winemaker produced a bottle of rosé whose label featured aviator sunglasses, a tie, and the words "For Sure".
The spectacle also crossed into British political life. Outgoing UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer jumped on the aviators bandwagon with a mock "Top Gun" poster featuring himself and Macron dressed as fighter pilots.
By wearing the frames again alongside the Sultan of Oman at a formal business forum, Macron has firmly integrated a viral internet moment into standard diplomatic protocol. For Henry Jullien, the repeated appearances offer the French eyewear maker a second wave of the consumer attention that previously crashed its website.
