Corporate and M&A – Page 4
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ArticleMeta acquires 3D-printed ophthalmic lens company Luxexcel
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has discretely acquired Luxexcel, the supplier of 3D-printed prescription lenses, at the end of last year in a strategic move certainly aimed at enhancing the tech giant’s virtual reality (VR) portfolio. No official announcement was released by Meta but the investment, which ...
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ArticleFielmann expands Spanish business with new acquisition
The Fielmann Group is strengthening its presence in the Spanish market through the full acquisition of the retail, wholesale and manufacturing businesses of MFI Group, a leading optical and hearing-aid supplier in northern Spain. The transaction will be completed on Dec. 31, 2022. The investment comes after the takeover in ...
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ArticleDe Rigo to acquire Rodenstock eyewear division
De Rigo Vision has announced the signature of an agreement to acquire the full ownership of Rodenstock’s eyewear division, a transaction that is scheduled to be completed at the end of second quarter of 2023. The amount of the acquisition was not disclosed. The family-owned Italian group said the investment ...
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ArticleWarby Parker details strategy at Morgan Stanley conference
Warby Parker, represented by its co-founder and co-CEO Dave Gilboa, participated earlier this week in Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference, during which the company detailed some elements of its current business and replied to questions on its future strategy, including on ways to achieve profitability. The U.S. omnichannel ...
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ArticleOptiswiss maintains focus on ECPs, innovation and premium products
In an interview with Eyewear Intelligence, Samuel Frei, CEO of Optiswiss, sheds light on how the Swiss-based independent lens maker navigates an increasingly consolidated optical market with a strategy based on a focus on premium products, distribution through independent eyecare professionals (ECPs), state-of-the-art production facilities, investment in new technologies and ...
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ArticleMarcolin to invest $250 m in TOM FORD perpetual license
The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) have announced the acquisition of the TOM FORD in a deal that values the luxury brand at $2.8 billion and also involves the Ermenegildo Zegna Group and Marcolin through long-term license agreements, for fashion products and eyewear products, respectively. The transaction is expected to close ...
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ArticleMorel puts focus on direct distribution, brand heritage and CSR
In an interview with Eyewear Intelligence, Amélie Morel, communication director of Morel Lunettes, explained how the family-owned company has taken advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to accelerate the transformation of its international business, and has reinforced its focus on the brand’s heritage as well as its CSR commitments. A member ...
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ArticleSkugga to launch new financing rounds to accelerate development
In the wake of Skugga’s recent Silmo d’Or award in the technological innovation and connected products’ category, we spoke with Mikael Eriksson, the Swedish-based company’s CEO and one of the main shareholders along with his brothers Daniel Eriksson, Jonas Eriksson and partner Fredrik Hanson. The brothers initially started off with ...
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ArticleNew owners for Cébé
Bollé Brands has announced the divestment of its Cébé brand, which will be acquired by D.MO/RACER a new entity formed for the occasion. Born in the French Jura region in 1892, Cébé develops a range of outdoor sport products including sunglasses, ski goggles and helmets. The brand, along with Bollé ...
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ArticleBacked by private equity fund, Cosium eyes international expansion
CAPZA, a European private investment fund with €7.4 billion of assets, announced in September the acquisition of a minority stake in NeoX, a newly created entity bringing together a number of tech companies in the medical field, in particular suppliers of practice management software. NeoX was formed around Cosium, the ...
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ArticleUnder new ownership, DEG acquires William Morris
Design Eyewear Group (DEG), the group of designer eyewear brands, has just announced the expansion of its portfolio with the acquisition of William Morris London. DEG said that the investment was one more step in the direction of the group’s target of becoming one of the world’s leading multi-brand suppliers ...
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ArticleJimmy Fairly to boost retail network, enter 3 new countries
Jimmy Fairly, the French-based and vertically integrated eyewear brand, has announced plans to more than double its number of stores in France and the U.K. by 2025 and to enter three new European countries in the coming months. Founded in 2011 by two young French entrepreneurs, Antonin Chartier and Sacha ...
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ArticleMaterialise sees its eyewear volumes triple within 5 years
Created in 2014, the eyewear division of Materialise, the Belgian-based 3D printing specialist, has introduced several innovations for 3D-printed glasses and has established itself as the market leader in the field. Ahead of the Silmo trade show, we sat down with Alireza Parandian, the unit’s manager, to reflect on the ...
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ArticleFielmann invests €65 m in high-tech facility in Czech Republic
The Fielmann Group announced a €65 million investment for a new high-tech eyewear manufacturing and logistics facility in Chomutov in the Czech Republic to support its European growth efforts. The company said that it would produce customised, refined prescription lenses at the new site and mount them into frames sourced ...
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ArticleWalmart enters partnership with Waldo
Walmart has established a partnership with Waldo, a company in London that delivers contact lenses by subscription. The deal with Walmart concerns in particular Waldo’s Hydra Boost Daily lenses, which deliver vitamins such as B12 to the eye of the wearer. On July 26 Walmart began selling a pack of ...
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ArticleM&A, organic growth, digital and training fuel CECOP Group
Just a few days after CECOP entered the German market through an agreement with Optic Society, we talked with Jean de Contades, global managing director of the fast-growing Spanish-based buying group. Founded in 1982, Optic Society is the second largest buying group in Germany with close to 700 members according ...
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ArticleEssilux partners with Polimi on €50 m smart eyewear R&D center
EssilorLuxottica and Politecnico di Milano, or Polimi as it is often called, have announced the launch of a joint R&D partnership focusing on the development of smart glasses and related technologies. Dubbed Smart Eyewear Lab and located in Milan, Italy, the project will initially last five years and will eventually ...
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ArticleZEISS invests in liquid crystal tech eyewear start-up
ZEISS Ventures, an entity of the ZEISS Group, has announced that it was the main investor in a new financing round of over €10 million in Morrow Eyewear, a Belgian-based start-up company specializing in autofocal glasses. Other investors included New Science Ventures as well as current shareholders such as imec.xpand, ...
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ArticleJulbo is changing hands
Christophe and Matthieu Beaud, co-owners and respectively CEO and general manager of Julbo, and Peugeot Frères Industries have announced an agreement for the acquisition of a majority share of the family eyewear company by Peugeot Frères Industry. The Beaud family, unrelated to Jules Beaud, the founder of the company ...
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ArticleLenskart accelerates in Asia with Owndays’ takeover
Lenskart, the fast-growing Indian retail group, has announced the acquisition of a majority share in Owndays, a Japanese-based DTC eyewear brand with 460 stores and e-commerce operations in 13 Asian countries, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. Lenskart acquired the shares in Owndays from L Catterton, an investment company affiliated ...
