Latest Headlines – Page 192
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Luxottica Improves Its Forecast After A Good Second Quarter
Luxottica's management has raised its guidance for the financial results of this year following a very good 2nd quarter. Barring any major changes in currency exchange rates, earnings per share should rise to between €63 and €65 for the year. The operating margin (Ebit) of the wholesale division should grow ...
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Safilo Grows, But Taxes Eat Up Profit
Safilo posted significantly improved turnover and margins for the 1st half of 2004. The group's operating profit (Ebit) grew by 34.5 percent to €16.8 million, equivalent to 3.2 percent of turnover, but deferred taxes contributed to a hefty €16.3 million tax bill, leading to a first-half loss of €1.6 million ...
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De Rigo Signs Escada License And A First Deal With Viva
The third-largest Italian eyewear producer reports a 0.9 percent sales increase to €275.9 million for the first six months of this year, stressing that the increase would have been more like 8.8 percent without taking into account the sales of Eyewear International Distribution (EID), the joint venture with Prada that ...
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Randazzo Acquires Ottica Romani For €11 Million
Angelo Randazzo's victory in the latest auction for the 31 outlets of the bankrupt Italian retail chain, which took place last Aug. 9, raises top 90 the number of stores operated by the Sicilian-based optical retail group, making it the second-largest factor in the Italian market after Salmoiraghi & Viganò, ...
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Small Italian Eyewear Producers Set Up A Retail Chain
In Fabbrica, a name that connotess direct salling from the producer to the consumer, is going to be the banner of a new chain of optical retail stores set up by 11 small and medium-sized producers of eyewear in the Cadore district near Venice. The want to open a total ...
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Fielmann Gains Market Share
Fielmann's sales in Germany declined by only 16 percent in units and by 11.1 percent in value to €256.4 million in the first 6 months of this year. With the German market estimated to have dropped by between 20 and 29 percent due to the phase-out of government subsidies for ...
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The German Eyewear Sector Pushes Exports And Creativity
Spectaris, the German optical industry association, predicts that the German eyewear industry's domestic sales will suffer a 20 percent drop in the consumer optics sector this year, in contrast with last year's exceptional increase of 15 percent. Including optical equipment and eye pharmaceuticals, total sales in Germany may still increase ...
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Oakley Could'nt Take Full Advantage Of New Sunglass Styles
Oakley's net income declined to $15,963,000 in the 2nd quarter from $18,232,000 in the year-ago period on 5.2 percent higher revenues of $152.0 million. Production problems related to the unavailability of certain components, which were subsequently resolved, prevented the company from delivering in time some new sunglass styles, such as ...
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Essilor's Sales Growth Accelerates
On a comparable basis, Essilor's sales increased in the 2nd quarter ended June 30 by 4.9 percent in Europe, by 6.2 percent in North America, by 11.9 percent in the Asia-Pacific region and by 16.7 percent in Latin America. Excluding the German market, European sales would have risen by ...
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Hoya Sports Good Margins
The Japanese group raised its net profit by 65.6 percent to 16,222 million yen (€121.7m-$147.3m) during the company's 1st quarter ended June 30 on 17.3 percent higher total revenues of ¥74.96 billion (€562.3m-$680.4m). The results of its eye care operations improved, but most of the growth in sales and profits ...
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Sola Wants To Buy More Labs
A 19 percent increase in the revenues generated by its growing international network of prescription laboratories in the 1st quarter ended June 30 contributed to Sola International's overall revenue increase of 7.3 percent to €165.2 million in the period. Sola says it intends to acquire similar business worldwide in the ...
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Alain Afflelou Plans Further Expansion
Continuing its strong expansion, the largest franchisor of optical retail shops in France intends to open 100 new stores across the country over the next 5 years. Alain Affelou is also expanding its network in Spain. After its acquisition of 68 former Carrefour optical stores in Spain through its financial ...
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Fedon's First Half Sales Are Down
The world's leading producer of eyewear cases closed the 1st half of 2004 with turnover at €30.23 million, off 3.45 percent compared with the same period last year. Callisto Fedon, the group's chairman, claims the 6-month figure is in line with expectations as he didn't expect to match the 11.4 ...
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Type 20 Should Turn Around
Type 20, the 3-year-old Italian company that owns the Briko brand and sells some products under the Arnette brand in certain countries, is reaping the fruits of major interesting changes in brand strategy and organization implemented since the end of last year. With orders up considerably, Paola Del Vecchio, who ...
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Gifo Becomes An Umbrella Organization
GIFO, the association of French optical industries, has been restructured into a national umbrella organization encompassing also six other French interest groups on the supply side of the business. The general aim is to augment the lobbying and negotiating power of the French eyewear industry in order to respond more ...
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The Czech Republic Is A Growing Market
Many important exhibitors at last spring's Opta, the Czech optical fair in Brno, reported major sales increases in the Czech Republic for 2003, in line with the rapid evolution of the local market, which joined the customs-free European Union last May 1. The growth rates ranged from 3-5 ...
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Luxottica Will Have A New Ceo
The board of directors scheduled for July 27 is expected to endorse a proposal to appoint a brilliant 38-year-old manager, Andrea Guerra, as the new chief executive officer of Luxottica Group. Technically, he will replace Roberto Chemello, but he will have extended responsibilities, reporting to the group's chairman, Leonardo Del ...
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Important Licenses Change Hands
Luxottica has announced the conclusion of a 5-year license for the design, production and sale worldwide of Donna Karan and DKNY eyewear, starting next January, replacing Marchon whose contract expires at the end of this year. The Italian group expects to generate sales of about €70 million from these two ...
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Carrefour Sells Its Remaining Optical Stores In Italy And Eastern Europe
Fotex-Ofotert, a large Hungarian chain of over 100 optical shops trading under the Fotex, Ofotert and Vision Express banners, is entering the Czech and Polish and markets through the acquisition of 13 and 9 stores in these two countries, respectively, previously owned by Carrefour. Another 12 optical stores operated by ...
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Alain Affelou Launches Its Second Banner
Alain Affelou has finally launched its second chain of stores in France. Called Lunettes Plurielles (meaning ?plural eyeglasses?), the new format offers special prices to customers under the age of 18 and to those who purchase more than one pair. The first two stores were opened on June 24 in ...
