In 1950, Dr. Charles J. Soloway and Dr. Oscar Soloway began practicing optometry in downtown Winnipeg. With the goal of serving like-minded eyecare professionals in the area, by 1960 they were making lenses in a room in the basement below their dispensary and called their lab Central Optical Company. Decades later, Charles' son Rob expanded the business, establishing CENOCO, the frame distribution arm of Central Optical Company. After 25 years of working closely with Europa Eyewear in Chicago, in 2016, CENOCO was rebranded as Europa Eyewear Canada, furthering our commitment to provide Canada with the quality independent brands Europa is known for.

As two companies and families that share core values, the rebranding to Europa Eyewear Canada solidifies the close, long-standing personal and professional relationship between the Soloway family and Europa’s Shapiro family. As like-minded, independent companies, Europa Eyewear USA and Europa Eyewear Canada have always focused on partnering with independent eyecare professionals. The landscape of the optical world will almost certainly continue to change; but our focus on service, quality and being a true partner to the independent ECP will not.