aka Sunglass Rob
What I doCEO and Optician
SportRx Frame Width™139mm
Most nine-year-old kids don’t want to wear glasses. That wasn’t the case for Rob Tavakoli.
“I’ve been obsessed with glasses since I was nine,” he says. Rob credits his basketball coach in the 1980s with sparking his interest in eyewear. “He was this unbelievably cool dude, and he was my idol. One day, he came in wearing these Oakley Razor Blades with the pink stem, and I was sold.” Rob knew then that he wanted to work in eyewear and even cheated during an eye exam so he could get glasses.
Sunglass Rob, as he’s known at SportRx and on YouTube, officially began his career in eyewear when he was 17 and got a job at Sunglass Hut. “There was a very basic computer file of every brand that Sunglass Hut carried. I absorbed all this product knowledge, and that really cemented my love of glasses.” He’s worked in eyewear ever since and has held a number of different roles, including buyer, manager, finance and accounting manager, and product designer.
Rob is a self-described “glasses nerd” who has been collecting glasses since 1996. He has about 300 pairs now and admits to changing his glasses three to four times a day. He also keeps pairs that have a special meaning for him. “I keep the ones that have sentimental value or have inspired me in some way or are collectible. Oakley was my first favorite brand, and I have many pairs of vintage Oakleys.” His passion is so deep that he says, “If you cut my arm off, I bleed sunglass tints.”
Rob’s love of all things eyewear led him to SportRx in 2007. After just four days on the job, he knew he was going to stay. “This place is me. This is about doing things nobody can do, doing things that most people say no to, and finding a way by being creative and different.” Rob held a variety of jobs as he moved up in the company and became CEO in 2022.
It would be hard to run an eyewear company without a strong desire to help people see better in everything they do. “Wearing one pair of glasses for two years for every activity, as most people do, is incorrect,” Rob says. “The right tool for the right job makes a difference, and that can't be more true when it comes to vision.” He compares this to wearing different shoes for different activities. “You have specific shoes for going to a fancy event, going mountain biking, going to work, or playing pickleball, yet you wear the same pair of glasses for all of those things.”
Working at SportRx enables him to design lenses to suit customers’ needs. “Tell us what sport you’re doing and what conditions you’re in, and we’ll come up with the right lenses for you. We have lots of different specific lenses with different kinds of combinations of coatings, mirrors, and features that have been really well thought out for particular activities. With the right eyewear, your favorite activity can be safer, more fun, and more comfortable.”
Another thing Rob loves about SportRx is the company’s top-notch customer service. No one at the company can say no to a customer without a supervisor’s approval. Employees also call people who order online if they think there is something wrong, such as a customer choosing a frame that would be too big based on their measurements. “We want to get you the best glasses you’ve ever had in your life, and if they’re not, you can return them and get your money back.” Customers can even get a full refund if their glasses were remade and they still don’t like them. “We can’t be beat as far as how much we care about our customers.”
Rob is also passionate about helping people grow. “The thing I like the most about my job is helping people grow in their career and in their lives.” To that end, SportRx has a leadership book club that anyone can join where they read leadership and business books. The company has also started a scholarship reimbursement program. “If we have any opportunity to help someone have a better life—that’s what makes me most excited.”
Rob is married and has two children. Like him, his wife has many pairs of glasses, and his son likes to wear the same glasses as Rob when they go mountain biking. “We have a lot of glasses in the house!”
Even after 28 years in the industry, Rob is still excited about eyewear. “It’s incredible what the right pair of glasses can do. I truly believe that you can’t have a bad day with good glasses.”