Courtesy photo Jeff Fetters smiles while leaning over the edge of a fishing boat. He’s unafraid of losing his sunglasses in the lake, because Kynd Eyewear floats in water.

EDITOR NOTE: The Daily Press will be featuring a series of articles on businesses taking part in the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo in September, highlighting their history and what makes them unique. The series will run on a regular basis in the Daily Press.

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By R. R. Branstrom

rbranstrom@dailypress.net

ESCANABA — A vendor of sunglasses made from bamboo with high-quality, polarized, polycarbonate lenses was first attracted to the brand when he saw a pair of Kynd Eyewear shades floating in a bowl of water at a festival in Milwaukee in 2018.

Kynd was a startup company founded by two college roommates in San Diego, relayed Ken Baumann, who now owns the business. The duo had a mission of creating sustainable eyewear, he said, and they got the business off the ground in 2012 and ran it for about seven years.

In July of 2018, at Summerfest — a music festival in Milwaukee — Baumann came upon a booth selling sunglasses that don’t sink. His question was whether the shades were polarized — and indeed they were.

Polarized lenses filter out glare, which reduces eyestrain. High-quality polarization dramatically diminishes the appearance of sunlight flashing off the surface of water from multiple directions.

Kynd Eyewear are made with Revo polarized, UV400-rated lenses. That passed the quality check for discerning customer Baumann, who bought a pair at the festival and loved them.

The fact that the bamboo-and-polycarbonate glasses float has “two upsides,” Baumann said. If they fall in a lake, they can just be scooped right off the surface. One benefit is the owner hasn’t lost a nice pair of sunglasses; the other is that they don’t become pollution sitting on the lakebed and never breaking down.

In April 2019, the then-owners of the eyewear company announced that they were looking to get out of the business.

Baumann found out about the San Diego pair “giving up the gig” because he was on the Kynd Eyewear email list. After buying a few more pairs of sunglasses from their liquidation sale, Baumann moped for a while about the great brand going out of business.

“So after about three months of complaining, basically, to my wife, saying, ‘I can’t believe that these guys are letting this go’ … she said, ‘well, see what it’s about,'” Baumann said.

He recalled that other parties interested in purchasing Kynd were corporate, and he believes that he won the bid partially because the founders preferred for the business to remain in smaller hands.

It was a turnkey deal — Baumann acquired the name, web domain, existing product line and supplier in October of 2019. The biggest difference for customers was that orders were now being shipped out of Baumann’s home in Volo, Ill. instead of California.

Each design from Kynd Eyewear was dreamed by either the previous owners or the current one, and the glasses subsequently produced by a manufacturer in China, where bamboo — the fastest-growing plant in the world — is native and grows in abundance.

One change Baumann made was to drop the price.

“At the time, when I bought my pair up at Summerfest, the same pair I now offer, they were $130. Now they’re $99, because I lowered the price point to try to make them more obtainable, more price-friendly to more people,” Baumann explained. “And it’s still lucrative for myself.”

Since taking over the company, Baumann has also added a few styles to the Kynd line. Those additions grew directly from interactions with customers — or potential future customers.

“A lot of what I do, and what I will be doing up there in Escanaba (during the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo in September), is to go live to shows and present the wares and talk to people directly,” he said.

Most sales are made online, but Baumann believes that a good way to reach new buyers is by displaying the products in person. After all, that’s how he discovered Kynd.

“For someone who never owned or bought a pair of Kynd Eyewear sunglasses to just buy online, thinking that they’re gonna look good on them … a lot of people want to try them on.”

Getting to talk with people as they’re actively shopping for sunglasses has served Baumann and the business well. By understanding their wants, he’s better able to provide what people are looking for.

“The feedback is a big thing for me,” Baumann said. “There’s a pink pair that’s in the O.G. class. That was because I got a lot of requests for pink sunglasses.”

The most popular style of Kynd sunglasses, a go-to pick for sportsmen, is the “Eclipse” — a curved, wraparound type. But the original style was a little large for some people, and upon hearing that, Baumann worked with his manufacturer to make a slightly smaller version. That new release is called the “Solstice.”

He’s also added a few “mini” models for kids.

Kynd is looking forward to attending a number of events in various parts of the country.

Taking steps to establish the brand on the East Coast, Baumann went to the New Jersey Saltwater Fishing Expo in March and already has plans for the Empire State Outdoor Sportsmen’s Show in February 2026.

In August, attendees of the XRoads41 music festival in OshKosh, Wis. will find Kynd Eyewear’s booth selling not only its regular models but also 50 pairs custom-made for the event.

Kynd Eyewear will come to the Upper Peninsula for the very first time for the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo of September 19 to 21.

There are also a couple representatives who promote the brand in their respective regions, on social media, and to their customers — some of them are fishing guides, Baumann explained.

When customers purchase from Kynd Eyewear, paying full price for one pair earns them lifetime 50% off replacements in the future. So if someone buys a pair of Heartbreakers for $94 at the Ice Fishing Expo and accidentally breaks them three years from now, Baumann will send the customer a code for 50% off another pair.

“Retaining customers is a thing,” Baumann said, “and to offer them 50% off — of course, the percent of the profit is diminished immensely at that point, but it’s still them in the brand, still wearing those glasses.”

Glasses also come with a microfiber cleaning cloth, fabric pouch, and a clamshell-hinged bamboo case that floats as well.

The product line and information about upcoming events and more can be found at www.kyndeyewear.com. The brand is also on Facebook as KYND Eyewear. shades floating in a bowl of water at a festival in Milwaukee in 2018.

Kynd was a startup company founded by two college roommates in San Diego, relayed Ken Baumann, who now owns the business. The duo had a mission of creating sustainable eyewear, he said, and they got the business off the ground in 2012 and ran it for about seven years.

In July of 2018, at Summerfest — a music festival in Milwaukee — Baumann came upon a booth selling sunglasses that don’t sink. His question was whether the shades were polarized — and indeed they were.

Polarized lenses filter out glare, which reduces eyestrain. High-quality polarization dramatically diminishes the appearance of sunlight flashing off the surface of water from multiple directions.

Kynd Eyewear are made with Revo polarized, UV400-rated lenses. That passed the quality check for discerning customer Baumann, who bought a pair at the festival and loved them.

The fact that the bamboo-and-polycarbonate glasses float has “two upsides,” Baumann said. If they fall in a lake, they can just be scooped right off the surface. One benefit is the owner hasn’t lost a nice pair of sunglasses; the other is that they don’t become pollution sitting on the lakebed and never breaking down.

In April 2019, the then-owners of the eyewear company announced that they were looking to get out of the business.

Baumann found out about the San Diego pair “giving up the gig” because he was on the Kynd Eyewear email list. After buying a few more pairs of sunglasses from their liquidation sale, Baumann moped for a while about the great brand going out of business.

“So after about three months of complaining, basically, to my wife, saying, ‘I can’t believe that these guys are letting this go’ … she said, ‘well, see what it’s about,'” Baumann said.

He recalled that other parties interested in purchasing Kynd were corporate, and he believes that he won the bid partially because the founders preferred for the business to remain in smaller hands.

It was a turnkey deal — Baumann acquired the name, web domain, existing product line and supplier in October of 2019. The biggest difference for customers was that orders were now being shipped out of Baumann’s home in Volo, Ill. instead of California.

Each design from Kynd Eyewear was dreamed by either the previous owners or the current one, and the glasses subsequently produced by a manufacturer in China, where bamboo — the fastest-growing plant in the world — is native and grows in abundance.

One change Baumann made was to drop the price.

“At the time, when I bought my pair up at Summerfest, the same pair I now offer, they were $130. Now they’re $99, because I lowered the price point to try to make them more obtainable, more price-friendly to more people,” Baumann explained. “And it’s still lucrative for myself.”

Since taking over the company, Baumann has also added a few styles to the Kynd line. Those additions grew directly from interactions with customers — or potential future customers.

“A lot of what I do, and what I will be doing up there in Escanaba (during the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo in September), is to go live to shows and present the wares and talk to people directly,” he said.

Most sales are made online, but Baumann believes that a good way to reach new buyers is by displaying the products in person. After all, that’s how he discovered Kynd.

“For someone who never owned or bought a pair of Kynd Eyewear sunglasses to just buy online, thinking that they’re gonna look good on them … a lot of people want to try them on.”

Getting to talk with people as they’re actively shopping for sunglasses has served Baumann and the business well. By understanding their wants, he’s better able to provide what people are looking for.

“The feedback is a big thing for me,” Baumann said. “There’s a pink pair that’s in the O.G. class. That was because I got a lot of requests for pink sunglasses.”

The most popular style of Kynd sunglasses, a go-to pick for sportsmen, is the “Eclipse” — a curved, wraparound type. But the original style was a little large for some people, and upon hearing that, Baumann worked with his manufacturer to make a slightly smaller version. That new release is called the “Solstice.”

He’s also added a few “mini” models for kids.

Kynd is looking forward to attending a number of events in various parts of the country.

Taking steps to establish the brand on the East Coast, Baumann went to the New Jersey Saltwater Fishing Expo in March and already has plans for the Empire State Outdoor Sportsmen’s Show in February 2026.

In August, attendees of the XRoads41 music festival in OshKosh, Wis. will find Kynd Eyewear’s booth selling not only its regular models but also 50 pairs custom-made for the event.

Kynd Eyewear will come to the Upper Peninsula for the very first time for the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo of September 19 to 21.

There are also a couple representatives who promote the brand in their respective regions, on social media, and to their customers — some of them are fishing guides, Baumann explained.

When customers purchase from Kynd Eyewear, paying full price for one pair earns them lifetime 50% off replacements in the future. So if someone buys a pair of Heartbreakers for $94 at the Ice Fishing Expo and accidentally breaks them three years from now, Baumann will send the customer a code for 50% off another pair.

“Retaining customers is a thing,” Baumann said, “and to offer them 50% off — of course, the percent of the profit is diminished immensely at that point, but it’s still them in the brand, still wearing those glasses.”

Glasses also come with a microfiber cleaning cloth, fabric pouch, and a clamshell-hinged bamboo case that floats as well.

The product line and information about upcoming events and more can be found at www.kyndeyewear.com. The brand is also on Facebook as KYND Eyewear.