Latest News Briefs – Page 358

  • News briefs

    Eschenbach Optik of America has appointed Ken Bradley as its...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Eschenbach Optik of America has appointed Ken Bradley as its new president. Bradley, who was formerly president of the ophthalmic division, will have overall responsibility for both the ophthalmic and commercial divisions of the company. Geoffrey Moss, the former president and CEO, will assume the newly created position of founder. ...

  • News briefs

    Tommaso Bruso has been appointed by Giorgio Fedon & Figli...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Tommaso Bruso has been appointed by Giorgio Fedon & Figli to replace Francesco De Lucia as general manager of the company's wholly owned US subsidiary, Fedon America. Bruso previously served as a partner in an Italian retail consultancy, ER, and acted as retail operations manager of Benetton USA.

  • News briefs

    Transitions will launch a new TV spot in Europe this...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Transitions will launch a new TV spot in Europe this coming Spring that has been developed by Saatchi & Saatchi, highlighting the benefits of its photochromic lenses for a family in Australia. It will support the launch of a new Generation 5 line of photochromic lenses that already had a ...

  • News briefs

    Optic 2000 of France is launching a big advertising campaign...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Optic 2000 of France is launching a big advertising campaign over €6.63 million to support its newest two-for-the-price-of-one deal, whereby consumers will be able to buy a prescription frame and a pair of sunglasses, both in titanium, for only €199, with a choice among 60 different models. The corrective glasses ...

  • News briefs

    VidiVici has set up a subsidiary in Zagreb, capital of...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    VidiVici has set up a subsidiary in Zagreb, capital of Croatia, called Danzi d.o.o.. It currently employs a sales manager and two agents to promote the company's brands and develop sales in the Balkan countries, in particular Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia. The Italian eyewear company had already opened subsidiaries ...

  • News briefs

    Allergan has announced its decision to shut down by the...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Allergan has announced its decision to shut down by the end of this year the R&D facilities of its French subsidiary, which moved to a new high-tech site in 2002. The measure, which will lead to the layoff of 126 of the company's 195 employees on the premises, has been ...

  • News briefs

    Oakley and Motorola have announced a new joint venture for...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Oakley and Motorola have announced a new joint venture for the development of Blootooth-enabled wearable wireless communication devices. Details and designs of these products, which will incorporate Oakley's advanced eyewear concepts, will be unveiled in mid-2005. Oakley stepped into the promising sector of hands-free consumer electronics late last year with ...

  • News briefs

    Jobson Publishing is to acquire Access Media's OptiStock group of...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Jobson Publishing is to acquire Access Media's OptiStock group of publications, which provide market intelligence to vision care investors, hoping that it will add another dimension to Vison Monday and Vmail. Launched in 1997, OptiStock's initial publication was as a special section in Forbes magazine, marking the first time that ...

  • News briefs

    Eyewear imported into the European Union will not be subject...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Eyewear imported into the European Union will not be subject to mandatory labeling for the country of origin. The Italian government had been lobbying for its inclusion into a list of product categories, including clothing and footwear, that would be subject to the new measures, but Adolfo Urso, the top ...

  • News briefs

    A new ?super district? in the Veneto region will forge...

    2005-01-27T00:00:00Z

    A new ?super district? in the Veneto region will forge strong links between the eyewear producers of Italy's Belluno region and the footwear manufacturers of the Brenta River area. The objectives are to conquer new markets in the Far East, to gain strength in the USA and to launch a ...

  • News briefs

    Five buying groups from different European countries have decided to...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Five buying groups from different European countries have decided to work together to exchange pricing information, experiences and know-how among each other in order to augment their bargaining power with major suppliers. They will also cooperate in training, the development of marketing models and shared services. The agreement was struck ...

  • News briefs

    Apollo Optik is taking over the 48 German stores of...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Apollo Optik is taking over the 48 German stores of Synoptik, the Danish chain in which Pearle Europe, parent company of Apollo, acquired a controlling interest a few months ago. The stores will be converted to the Apollo banner, raising to about 420 the number of its doors. They include ...

  • News briefs

    Guildinvest, the French buying group comprising Krys, Lynx, Vision Plus,...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Guildinvest, the French buying group comprising Krys, Lynx, Vision Plus, Vision Originale and Entendre, has opened a new headquarters of 2,200 square meters at Nanterre Préfecture, just north of Paris, in order to be nearer its clients and to house all the five companies under the same roof. In ...

  • News briefs

    Sight Resource, the bankrupt American optical retail chain, has hired...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Sight Resource, the bankrupt American optical retail chain, has hired the assistance of SSG Capital Advisors, an investment bank, to look in to the possible sale of all or a part of its assets or operations. The Cincinnati-based company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last June 24. It has ...

  • News briefs

    Essilor International has been finally admitted to the CAC 40...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Essilor International has been finally admitted to the CAC 40 index of the major companies listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, with a market capitalization of more than €5.4 billion. The company had a record operating margin of 18 percent in the 1st half of 2004. Its sales reached ...

  • News briefs

    Carl Zeiss Meditec, a subsidiary of the Carl Zeiss group...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Carl Zeiss Meditec, a subsidiary of the Carl Zeiss group that trades on the German stock exchange, has signed an agreement to take over Ioltech, a French specialist of intraocular implants and ophthalmic surgery instruments trading on the Paris Bourse, for a total of about €110 million. It will pay ...

  • News briefs

    Advanced Medical Optics of California plans to acquire VISX in...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Advanced Medical Optics of California plans to acquire VISX in a deal worth $1.27 billion in cash and shares that assigns very high multiples to the value of this leading laser surgery company. VISX had net profit of $23.2 million on revenues of $143.9 million in 2003, but AMO says ...

  • News briefs

    The Compass Group International LLC, a private US investment firm...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    The Compass Group International LLC, a private US investment firm that provides equity capital to small and private middle market companies, has acquired SDC Technologies Inc, a California-based global supplier of functional surface technologies, coatings and materials and a leading developer of proprietary, high-performance coating systems for application to plastic ...

  • News briefs

    Menicon will have exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and market...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Menicon will have exclusive rights to develop, manufacture and market certain disposal contact lenses of 1-800-Contacts and its ClearLab subsidiary in Japan. The deal, which will be worth a total of $18 million in licensing fees over a period of between 3 and 5 years, allows the US company to ...

  • News briefs

    Luxottica and Oakley have announced a new contract, running through...

    2004-12-28T00:00:00Z

    Luxottica and Oakley have announced a new contract, running through Dec. 31, 2005, that sets forth the terms of their relationship for next year, but they did not disclose the details. Describing it as the first step toward obtaining an anticipated longer-term agreement between the two companies, their joint statement ...