All Corporate articles – Page 3
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ArticleMeta takes 3% share in Essilux – with more to come?
What seemed like an only-a-matter-of-time thing since July last year is now a done deal, according to Bloomberg. Meta has acquired a minority stake in EssilorLuxottica, its smart glasses partner. “People familiar with the matter” told the US financial news outlet that the US tech giant had invested around €3 ...
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ArticleBrand building, distribution and portfolio expansion keep Izipizi in the fast lane
Double-digit revenue growth is a common feature of many startups in their very early years, but, as businesses scale up, the fast pace naturally becomes harder to sustain. However, some achieve to keep the double-digit momentum going well into their teenage years. IZIPIZI, the French-based company “doing everyday glasses that ...
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Bausch + Lomb completes bond issuance and partial refinancing of its debt
Bausch + Lomb confirmed last week the successful completion of the refinancing plans announced a few days before. The contact lens and eye care group said that its Bausch+Lomb Netherlands B.V. and Bausch & Lomb Incorporated subsidiaries have closed the offering of $675 million senior secured floating rate notes maturing ...
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Founder family increase stake in Afflelou to 38%
The family of Alain Afflelou, founder of AFFLELOU, is increasing its share in the group from 29 percent to 38 percent following two separate financial operations. Lion Capital remains the controlling shareholder of the company with a 62 percent stake. In detail, AFFLELOU has placed €50 million in ...
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SDC Technologies among investors in flō Optics
SDC Technologies, the specialty coatings subsidiary of Mitsui Chemicals, announced yesterday that is was one of the industry companies that invested earlier this year in flō Optics, an Israel-based startup specializing in the additive manufacturing of lens coatings. As reported then, the $35 million financing round was led by “leading ...
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ArticleDelfin shareholders reportedly seek exclusive focus on Essilux investment
A majority of shareholders in the Del Vecchio family holding company Delfin would like Delfin to focus exclusively on its investment in EssilorLuxottica and dispose of non-core investments in financial companies, according to a report in the Italian financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore. Delfin is the largest investor in ...
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Safilo keeps buying own shares for “future investment opportunities”
Safilo Group has appointed Keppler Chevreux as broker to implement its latest share buy-back program, which was approved by shareholders a few weeks ago. As reported then, a maximum of 15 million shares, or 3.6 percent of the outstanding shares, and a maximum cash amount of €18 million have been ...
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Bausch + Lomb announces refinancing plans update
Bausch+Lomb Netherlands B.V. and Bausch & Lomb Incorporated have increased the size of their senior secured floating rate notes due 2031 from the initially planned aggregate of €600 million to €675 million, the group has announced. The notes will be sold to investors at a price of 99.5 percent of ...
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Google reportedly planning to invest $100m in Gentle Monster
Google is about to invest 145.9 billion Korean won ($100m) in iiCombined, the mother company of South Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster, according to a press report by The Korea Economic News Daily. Both companies are reportedly in the final negotiation stages for a deal that would give Google a ...
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Conant invests in Japan production to mitigate US tariffs exposure
Shanghai Conant Optical is planning to invest $54 million in the building of a new automated RX lens production line in Japan through its Asahi-Lite subsidiary, the group said in a statement last month. The new facility will focus on the production and sales of high-end customized lenses and will ...
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Vuzix secures Quanta investment second tranche
Vuzix has announced that it has received the $5 million tranche investment from Taiwanese-based tech group Quanta Computer, bringing its total investment to date to $15 million. As reported then, Quanta and Vuzix announced a $20 million partnership in September last year, with an initial $10 million investment and two ...
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ArticleDEG takes over MENRAD’s house brand and three license deals
Design Eyewear Group is acquiring the MENRAD brand as part of the German eyewear group’s “unfortunate insolvency,” announced at the end of last month. The Danish-based group is also taking over three license agreements that MENRAD had with the Jaguar, JOOP! and Morgan brands. The four brands, for ...
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Lenskart prepares for IPO
Indian-based optical retailer Lenskart changed its registered name from Lenskart Solutions Private Limited to Lenskart Solutions Limited on May 30 during a special board meeting. According to several Indian business news outlets, the official name change will allow the company to launch its initial public offering. However, no detailed schedule ...
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EssilorLuxottica issues €1bn bond
EssilorLuxottica successfully launched a bond issuance for €1 billion yesterday, with the order book peaking at €2.5 billion and attracting quality institutional investors, the group said. The bond, which will mature in January 2030, carries a coupon of 2.625 percent with a yield of 2.76 percent. The group said that ...
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ArticleAerial Vision invests in 'plug-and-play' eyewear e-commerce startup
GoHub, an Israeli-based tech startup aiming to open the online optical market to more retail players, is joining forces with AVI. The tech-and-logistics partnership is boosting GoHub’s offering and reach.
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Topcon Healthcare invests in AI health tech company
Topcon Healthcare is making a strategic investment in Pangaea Data, a health tech and artificial intelligence (AI) company specializing in the automatic identification of untreated or under-treated patients for health care practitioners. Pangea Data operates offices in San Francisco, London and Hong Kong. The company’s platform, already deployed in several ...
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Inspecs founder to step down from the company’s board
Inspecs Group has announced that Robin Totterman will step down from his role as executive chairman at the company’s annual general meeting on June 3. Christopher Hancock, the group’s senior independent director will take over the role until a new non-executive chairman is appointed, no later than the end of ...
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ArticleMenrad Germany to close after over 125 years of business
Insolvency proceedings for the assets of Ferdinand Menrad GmbH + Go. KG started at the end of May, appointed administrator PLUTA Rechtanwalts announced in a press release yesterday, adding that it was currently in negotiations with several companies that have expressed interest in Menrad’s trademark rights and, in one case, ...
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British DTC eyewear brand raises £3m to support international expansion
Bloobloom – a UK-based brand of “designer eyewear at a fair price,” by its own description – has raised £3.0 million (€3.6m) in a second funding round with Pembroke VCT, a London-based investment fund, as main investor. Pembroke accounted for over half of a £4.8 million (€5.8m) round in 2022. ...
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Mister Spex CEO buys €100,000 worth of company shares
Mister Spex announced last week that Tobias Krauss, its recently appointed CEO, has purchased 70,000 shares of the company for a value of approximately €100,000. Krauss is underscoring his long-term confidence in the strategic direction and growth potential of Mister Spex with this share purchase, the company said. As ...
