All Article articles – Page 130

  • Article

    Orange 21 needs to raise more equity

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    Orange 21, parent company of Spy Optic and eyewear licensee of O'Neill, has warned investors that it will need to raise more equity in the current quarter, after posting a net loss of $1.3 million in the first one. Sales declined to $6.7 million during the first three months of ...

  • Article

    The recession affected the Czech market, too

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    While sales of sunglasses are declining or stagnating in the Czech Republic, more and more people are wearing contact lenses in the country, according to Jirí Los, managing director of the country's biggest eyewear retailer, Fokus Optik. Contact lenses are also considered to be more fashionable, especially among women, who ...

  • Article

    New French online retailer has big ambitions

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The new group, called Sensee, is aiming to be the French leader in online sales of eyeglasses, sunglasses and contact lenses through major investments, strong management know-how and a declared program to cut in half the French customer's bill for identical optical products.The man behind the new Sensee project, whose ...

  • Article

    ASPs go up in Germany

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    An increase in the average selling prices of the spectacles they sold allowed German opticians to record a 2.8 percent increase in their overall revenues in 2010, breaking the €4 billion threshold and reaching an estimated level of €4.01 billion, according to their national federation, ZVA.Instead, the number of spectacles ...

  • Article

    Big slump and concentration in Hungary

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    Participants in the Optika Hungary show last month said they were trying to find a way out of a big slump in the market through more specialized knowledge and better qualification of the sales personnel, as it's getting hard to sell their products. While there are no official figures, industry ...

  • Article

    Brulimar forms a joint venture in India

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    Joint ventures can be a useful business model for entering one of the fast-growing emerging markets around the world.Brulimar Optical Group of the U.K. has formed a joint venture with its Indian distributor, Global Vision, to tap into the demand for branded fashion in India and the Middle East. Under ...

  • Article

    Shamir buy an Italian lab to cope with growth

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The deal, announced on Oct. 15, 2010, under which Essilor International will buy 50 percent of Shamir Optical Industry has been approved by all relevant authorities in Europe but still has to undergo clearance in Israel and the U.S. The Israeli lens producer remains confident the deal will be completed ...

  • Article

    New head at Carl Zeiss Vision

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    Raymund Heinen is the new top manager of Carl Zeiss Vision (CZV) since May 16, taking the place of Michael Hoffmann who has left the group by mutual consent after less than two years in the post. Michael Kaschke, president of the whole Carl Zeiss AG group, will participate in ...

  • Article

    Luxottica takes control of Multiopticas

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    Luxottica will exercise early an option to take over Multiopticas Internacional, in which it has had a 40 percent stake since 2009. The Italian group will buy a 57 percent stake for about €95 million in the South American eyewear company in July. Luxottica had an option to buy 60 ...

  • Article

    Hal’s stores earn less

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The optical retail operations of Hal Holding saw their revenues increase by 6.6 percent to €557 million in the first quarter of 2010. However, excluding the effect of new acquisitions and changes in currency exchange rates, they rose by 2.9 percent, and they actually suffered a 0.5 percent sales decline ...

  • Article

    Possible turnaround in European sunglass sales

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The European sunglass market may be on its way to recording an increase of more than 10 percent this year across all channels of distribution, according to executives participating in the annual convention of the European Sunglass Association in Pisa a few days ago, in contrast with the decline that ...

  • Article

    Italian firm launches recyclable frames

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    A company in the Cadore district of Italy, Plastididattica Commerciale, launched a new relatively inexpensive and environment-friendly technology to make 100 percent recyclable plastic frames at the Mido show in Milan last March.The core of the technology is a patented plastic injection method that uses recycled PET (which stands for ...

  • Article

    Schneider goes new ways

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The leading German supplier of free-form glazing machinery and other precision equipment is expected to grow to about €57 million this year from €52 million in 2010. To help sustain it continued growth and to better attract the most capable engineers and technicians, Schneider GmbH & Co. KG is moving ...

  • Article

    The U.S. market is improving

    2011-05-30T00:00:00Z

    The Vision Council in the U.S. has issued its Consumer Barometer, a report on consumer eyewear sales and purchases, for the 12 months ended March 31. It found that that total revenues from retail and eye exams grew by 1.0 percent to $32.18 billion in the country during the 12-month ...

  • Article

    Luxottica’s first-quarter sales up 11.8%

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    Luxottica finished the first quarter with an 11.8 percent increase in revenues to €1,556.1 million, joining LVMH, PPR and a string of other luxury goods companies that have beaten market expectations for the period. At Luxottica, sales were in fact driven by double-digit demand for luxury and premium brands, especially ...

  • Article

    Hal’s optical retail sales near €2.7 billion including franchises

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    The optical retail business of the Dutch conglomerate Hal Holding increased revenues by 8.0 percent to €2,194.3 million in 2010. Excluding acquisitions and currency changes, turnover rose by 3.7 percent. Comparable store sales were up by 0.3 percent, reversing the 1.6 percent decrease booked in 2009.Hal consolidates Pearle Europe, GrandVision, ...

  • Article

    Solid growth and finances at Optic 2000

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    The French buying and franchising group has reported a 79 percent increase in net profit to just over €7.7 million for the past financial year. Operating earnings increased by 57 percent to €14.9 million. Cash flow continued to improve, reaching €14.5 million for the year, and debt was further reduced ...

  • Article

    Safilo starts 2011 on strong note

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    For the second quarter in a row, Safilo booked higher-than-expected results in the opening three months of 2011. The company's chief executive, Roberto Vedovotto, said he believes that this year could mark its relaunch, after achieving a drastic turnaround in 2010 from a situation of near-bankruptcy. But while results in ...

  • Article

    Essilor confirms market’s acceleration

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    Essilor International increased sales by 13.4 percent to €1,027.6 million in the first quarter of 2011, in line with market expectations, and confirmed its view that the global optical market is gaining momentum and could rise by 3-4 percent this year instead of 2-3 percent as previously forecast.Organic growth reached ...

  • Article

    Growing Maui Jim acquires Zeal Optic

    2011-04-29T00:00:00Z

    Maui Jim has entered a promising new market segment by acquiring Zeal Optics. This rather sophisticated sports eyewear company, based in Boulder, Colorado, specializes in the development and manufacture of snow goggles with a built-in GPS that measures altitude, skiing speed and other parameters. Officials of Maui Jim note that ...