Latest Headlines – Page 108
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Essilor targets sales of €8 billion by 2018
Keeping its annual compound growth rate above 10 percent, including the effect of acquisitions, Essilor sees it annual revenues rising from €5.1 billion last year to a new target of €8.2 billion, with 40 percent of the growth coming from stronger expansion in the sunwear segment and in online retailing. ...
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Salmoiraghi pulled out of serious trouble
We have repeatedly asked Salmoiraghi & Viganò, Italy's largest optical retail chain, to provide its latest financial figures, but we have been unsuccessful. We have now obtained the data for the company's last financial year, ended Sept. 30, from a document filed with a Chamber of Commerce in February.In the ...
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New U.K. manager, partnerships and services at Cecop
Cecop has announced the appointment of Lee Woodward as sales director for the U.K. market, where the international Spanish-based buying group has almost doubled its presence over the past three years. His appointment follows the resignation of Cecop's former local country manager, Dominique Gastaldi, who left a few weeks ago ...
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Gatto Astucci goes back to its original owners
The De Silvestro family is back in control of Gatto Astucci, Italy's second-largest firm for eyewear cases after Fedon. Sviluppo Impresa, a private equity fund run by Centrobanca Sgr, which took a majority stake in Gatto at the end of 2006, has failed in its attempt to develop the company's ...
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Europa International acquires Frieze Frames and Anvi Frieze
Europa International has announced the acquisition of two brands of U.S.-made eyewear, Frieze Frames and Anvi Frieze. The purchase includes Full Spectrum Global and American Eyes Manufacturing, the California-based companies which owned the two brands, and these will be combined to form a new entity, Independent Eyewear Manufacturing (IEM).IEM will ...
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Italian exports up by 9.5% in the quarter
While the domestic market is not looking any better – in 2013 it dropped by a further 2.3 percent – Italy's eyewear exports have confirmed the positive performance of the previous year, when they had risen by 7.2 percent, with a particularly good score in the final quarter. In the ...
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Venice shows the world’s first sunglasses
Sunglasses were invented three centuries ago in Venice. The glassworks on the island of Murano – where the city's glass-making industry was transferred in 1292, partly because of the fire risk – produced the first lenses to protect the eyes from the sun. The city is now paying tribute to ...
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The U.S. optical business improved in May
The overall rating of the U.S. optical business environment showed a slight increase in May, up to a rating of 3.73 as compared to rating of 3.70 in April, according to the Optical Business Barometer (OBB) compiled by Jobson Optical Research. The rating also improved against a May 2013 rating ...
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Interesting data from the first VisionWatch Europe study
Average retail prices for all kinds of eyewear tend to be higher in Europe than in the U.S., judging by the first VisionWatch survey conducted by the Vision Council on the Old Continent. The survey also shows, among other things, relatively strong demand for corrective sunwear in France and a ...
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Mitsui acquires SunSensors
Mitsui Chemicals is moving into the rapidly growing photochromic lens market with the acquisition on May 15 of the SunSensors business of Corning Inc. The Japanese company, which is already one of the major suppliers of ophthalmic lens materials, says that it will “aggressively develop and sell competitive new photochromic ...
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New products by Hoya
Hoya Vision Care announced in the last few days the introduction of several new products including a more reactive photochromic lens, Hoya Sensity. It became available in Europe and South Africa on June 2 in bronze brown and silvery grey tints, replacing the company's Suntech Intense offer.The Japanese company, which ...
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Hoya steps up production
Hoya Corp. has decided in principle to start up a new manufacturing facility for ophthalmic lenses before the end of this year in the Philippines, where Seiko Epson already has its own plant, investing in the new facility in various stages. Hoya bought a 30 percent stake in its Seiko ...
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Zeiss' vision care sales go down
Zeiss reported last month a drop of 8 percent to €384 million for its vision care business group, which essentially consists of Carl Zeiss Vision Care, in the first six months of its financial year, ended on March 31. On a comparable basis, taking into account changes in exchange rates, ...
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China fines lens firms for anti-trust behavior
Following an investigation across the lens industry, the National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China has imposed fines amounting to one or two percent of sales on some major foreign suppliers of ophthalmic lenses that enjoy high market shares, alleging that they have effectively controlled the ...
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Optic 2000 wants to service 18% of the French stores
Optic 2000 reported last month a 9.3 percent increase in its revenues to €456 million in 2013, thanks in part of higher purchases of private label items by the retailers affiliated to the French voluntary group. The cooperative generated a profit of around €8 million, down from €12 million in ...
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Boots Opticians posts a 4.2% sales increase
Boots Opticians reported a 4.2 percent revenue increase to £349 million (€429.77m-$584.88m) for the year ended March 31, with comparable revenues from company-owned stores up by 4.3 percent. The British chain of ophthalmic and dispensing optician stores, which is a subsidiary of Alliance Boots, attributed the improvement to good growth in ...
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Google Glass works with Marchon, names a new boss
Luxottica will not be the only supplier of stylish Google Glass frames. Marchon Eyewear has announced the launch of a limited edition of enhanced reality Google Glass frames signed by Diane Von Furstenberg, the American fashion designer with whom it has a long-standing eyewear license.Called Goggle Glass DVF, the line ...
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Menrad is distributing Revo in Europe
Menrad, the German producer of ophthalmic frames and sunglasses, has signed a long-term agreement for the distribution in Europe of Revo sunglasses with B. Robinson Optical of New York, the brand's exclusive licensee for eyewear, covering all sales channels including specialty outdoor. Menrad knows this brand of performance eyewear well ...
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Electric tuns into a lifestyle brand
Electric, the Californian brand of sunglasses co-founded by Kipp Arnette 14 years ago, is running a temporary store across from the entrance of the huge Citadium lifestyle store in downtown Paris until tomorrow, featuring its new logo and an expanded line of products being developed under the same brand. Other ...
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Spy becomes more optical, more international
Sales were up by 2.0 percent to $9,192,000 at Spy Optic in the first quarter ended March 31. They included closeout sales of around $400,000, lower than before, and were driven by a 97.3 percent jump in sales of Spy's new line of prescription frames to around $1 million. They ...
