Meta and Ray-Ban beef up smart glasses with influencers in mind
Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced yesterday at the group’s developer conference the launch of the second generation of smart glasses developed in collaboration with EssilorLuxottica and its Ray-Ban brand. For this second generation of the smart glasses, the partners have significantly upgraded several key features from the initial product, the ...
Lafont celebrates French “savoir-faire”, Parisian chic and family legacy on 100th anniversary
It’s not necessarily an easy task to summarize a century of history and the essence of a company in just a few words, but when we asked Matthieu Lafont, CEO of Lafont, the answer was short and quick to come. “We are since 2023 an independent family business and eyewear ...
Italian OEM group acquires Henry Jullien
iVisionTech, the Italian-based OEM eyewear supplier, has announced that it was acquiring French eyewear company Henry Jullien, after a competitive sale process managed by a French Commercial Court. The process followed the entry into liquidation proceedings of the L’Amy Luxe group, of which Henry Jullien was part since 2017.
French optical market flattish in 2022, official report says
The French optical market inched up by 0.2 percent year-on-year to €7,272 million according to the new report by the national research and statistics office, the Direction de la recherche, des études, de l’évaluation et des statistiques (DREES). The small hike in market value follows two years of strong COVID-related ...
Amazon smart eyewear range upgrade includes Safilo partnership
Amazon has announced the upgrading of its smart eyewear collection with the launch of seven new styles, including five Echo Frames models, its proprietary brand, and two designs by Carrera, a house brand of Safilo Group. It is the first time that the Italian eyewear company partners with Amazon.
VeneVision adds injection to portfolio with new acquisition
Fast-growing Italian eyewear OEM group VeneVision is adding another production process to its know-how portfolio with the acquisition of CIDI, a Treviso-based company specializing in the production of injected-polymer frames.
Slow H1 for Arts Optical as sales of OEM prescription glasses drop
Arts Optical, the Hong Kong-based eyewear manufacturer, has reported a 2.4 percent year-on-year decline in total revenue to 566.4 million Hong Kong dollars (€68m) for the first six months of 2023 as positive results in its distribution and lenses’ divisions could not completely offset a decline in OEM sales. Furthermore, ...
Global lens and frames market resilient to COVID and economic crisis, report finds
Underpinned by solid positive and long-term trends – aging populations and more digital lifestyles in the first place –, the global optical market emerged relatively unscathed from the COVID-19 crisis. That was one of the conclusions from the World Lens and Frames Demand report released last year by independent research ...
Modo acquires Italia Independent brand
MODO GROUP, the Italo-American eyewear company behind the MODO and ECO brands, has announced that it was acquiring the Italia Independent brand from the eponymous company. According to a release by Italia Indepedent, the transaction was agreed for a total of €1 million. As reported a few months ago, the ...
Packed house and new lay out for Silmo Paris
As the Silmo Paris teams are gearing up for the 2023 edition of the show that will take place in two weeks in the French capital (Sept. 29 to Oct.2), we sat down with Éric Lenoir, the event’s director, to assess the current status of the fair and the novelties ...
Lenskart’s Neso Brands invests $4 m in French DTC eyewear brand
Neso Brands, the $100 m investment fund launched by Indian-based optical retail group Lenskart last year, has announced that it has acquired a significant stake in Le Petit Lunetier, a French direct-to-consumer (DTC) eyewear brand. It is the first investment in Europe for Neso Brands and Lenskart. As previously reported, ...
The U.K. and North America drove INSPECS in H1
The Inspecs Group has reported a significant improvement in profitability for the first half year of 2023, mostly thanks to the substantial reduction of its lens unit’s losses, while group revenue progressed at a low mid-single digit pace in constant currencies. As previously announced, the company has changed its reporting ...
Safilo reaches deal with Thélios, Innovatek for Longarone plant and workers
Safilo Group said it has reached an agreement with Thélios, the eyewear business of the French luxury goods group LVMH, and Innovatek, an eyewear company owned by the businessman Carlo Fulchir, to guarantee the future of its Longarone facility and to relocate the 444 workers currently employed at the site ...
Thélios opens portfolio to proprietary brands with Vuarnet acquisition
Thélios, the eyewear company of French luxury group LVMH, has announced its acquisition of Vuarnet from NEO Investment Partners, the U.K.-based investment fund that owned the brand since 2013. This marks the first brand acquisition by Thélios whose portfolio included exclusively fashion brands from its parent company until now.
Fielmann upgrades outlook following confirmation of SVS deal
Fielmann Group has confirmed the closing of its acquisition of U.S. retailer SVS Vision, which will be integrated in the German-based retailer’s accounts from Sept. 1 and will therefore contribute four months of turnover to the group’s 2023 revenue. As previously reported, SVS Vision is based in Michigan and operates ...
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Danny Cassidy: “Be future-focused”
Compliance and circularity: catalysts for digital innovation. How brands can keep up in a world full of regulatory change.