Latest Headlines – Page 176
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Cooper's New Product Hits Japan And Europe Too Late To Save 2nd Quarter
Cooper Companies continues to disappoint the financial analysts who follow the company. It has once again lowered its sales projections for the current financial year from $785-810 million to $755-785 million because of new delays in the shipment of certain products to certain destinations by its contact lens subsidiary, CooperVision ...
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Service Pays Off For Contact Lenses In Europe
An independent survey sponsored by CooperVision shows that many European contact lens buyers in look for good service, solid advice and better value for money as reasons to continue buying from the same optician. When contact lens wearers were asked why they continue to buy from the same source, 45 ...
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More Soft Lens Market Data For Europe Show Varying Trends
The soft contact lens market is growing in some regions and dropping in others, according to a study done by EUROMCONTACT, a group of major international contact lens producers that assesses quarterly shipment data for the Nordic countries, the UK and Ireland, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg, France, Germany, Italy, the ...
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Esa Launches A Movie To Promote Sunglass Usage
The European Sunglass Association has produced a short entertaining film intended to warn consumers about the dangers of exposure to UV radiation and blue light, the variety of techniques to bloc them through sunglass filters and coatings, and the possibilities that sunglasses offer for personalization. It is addressed particularly at ...
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Optigen Defends Its Superelastic Frames
Optigen, a small Italian company that has developed an alternative method to make memory metal alloys for eyewear, is feeling freer than before to sell its ?superelastic? products in this rapidly growing market niche. Company officials and their advisors are particularly bullish after the ruling last June 21 of a ...
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Thai Optical Goes Public
Thai Optical Group, one of the world's largest independent manufacturers and distributors of optical lenses, began trading on the Bangkok Stock Exchange last May 16, floating 68 million new shares that represent 17 percent of its equity. The initial offer, which was underwritten by Aynolhaya Securities, was oversubscribed. After trading ...
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Safilo's Net Profit Grows By 163%
Safilo's revenues increased by 7.5 percent in the 1st quarter to €302.1 million, but they grew by 3 percent in local currencies. Orders were up by 15 percent at the beginning of the period, and they continued to increase through April, but the group was unable to respond to a ...
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Marcolin Plans Equity Increase On The Road To Recovery
To help support its present recovery, Marcolin's board of directors is expected to vote at its next meeting on a proposal to increase the company's equity by up to €50 million over the next five years. The Della Valle and Marcolin families will probably retain their equal shares. The proceeds ...
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Visibilia Turns Around And Targets €50 Million In Turnover
Dan Emanuel Levi, president of Visibilia and member of the Mevorach family that has run the group for many years, has become the company's majority owner, with a 70 percent controlling stake. The 36-year-old executive, who worked previously for KPMG Corporate Finance, expects the Italian group to recover from its ...
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Eurovista Takes Vision Service Up To 761 Outlets
Eurovista, an Italian buying group with 97 affiliated optical stores in the North of the country, has merged into Vision Service, making it a clear leader with a total of 761 outlets. The group had already begun a phase of strong organic expansion, growing from 609 in 2004 to 664 ...
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Half Of Global Trade In Sunglasses Is Italian
Italy's eyewear production, consisting mainly of sunglasses and frames, made a strong recovery in 2005 after three flat years, raising its revenues by 10.3 percent to €2,104.75 million, according to the final figures reported by ANFAO, the country's eyewear industry association, confirming its global primacy if China and Hong Kong ...
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Eye Infection Outbreak Envelops Two More Companies While B&L Uses And Abuses The Media
Bausch & Lomb has ordered a permanent worldwide retraction of its ReNu with MoistureLoc solution, which continues to be under investigation by the U.S. Federal Drug Administration on suspicion that it has been connected with a recent outbreak of an eye disease, Fusarium keratitis. The solution generated about $100 million ...
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Luxottica Attains Leadership In Canada
Luxottica is acquiring Shoppers Optical, a Canadian chain of 74 optical stores operating in eight different provinces, with its base in Ontario. After the closing of the transaction, which is expected next month, all the stores will be converted to the Pearle Vision format, which is very similar. With a ...
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Highmark Is Becoming A Small Luxottica
The comparison may sound a little far-fetched, but it's true. Like Luxottica, which is far bigger, Highmark owns a large branded eyewear company, Viva International, bought in February 2005 after its owner, Harvey Ross, failed to agree on a merger with De Rigo's wholesale operations. Highmark has a big managed ...
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Marchon Invests In Computer Power And Fashion
Marchon, the biggest American supplier of prescription frames and sunglasses and one of the largest ones in the world, continues to stay out of the retail sector, but it has bought Office Mate Software Solutions, boosting a computer division which is now the largest supplier of dedicated software for U.S. ...
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Signs Of Recovery In The Belluno District
The last quarter of 2005 produced significant signs of recovery in the Italian eyewear manufacturing industry located in the Belluno region, with positive indicators for both turnover and employment, according to a survey conducted by the local industry association, SIPAO. There were also further signs of concentration around the industry's ...
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Luxottica Posts Strong Results In Quarter
The group's total consolidated sales increased by 21.7 percent to €1,262 million in the 1st quarter ended March 31, with growth of 14.2 percent on a currency-neutral basis. Boosted by a stronger dollar, Luxottica's retail sales increased by 17.7 percent to €890.9 million, while wholesale revenues from sales to third ...
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Safilo Continues To Grow
Safilo Group has announced that its licensing agreement with Max Mara, which was due to expire at the end of 2006, has been extended to 2013, as it has already done with the Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent licenses. Safilo and Max Mara, two companies which are similar in size, ...
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Shift Towards Eyewear Begins To Show In Oakley's First Quarter
In the 1st quarter ended March 31, the company's optics sales had strong growth of 12.3 percent to $107.0 million, underlining the recent announcement by Oakley's new management that it would shift its focus away from apparel and footwear and more to its core optical business. Several factors ...
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Ppg Buys Intercast
PPG Industries, the world leader in the production of optical hard resins, has bought Intercast Europe, the leading Italian manufacturer of hard-resin plano lenses and solar filters for sun and sports eyewear, along with its manufacturing facilities in Thailand. Intercast had invested €12 million in the latest of its Thai ...
