Latest News Briefs – Page 5
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News briefsMPG is closing its Belgian retail operations
Following reports from the Belgian retail trade press, Michael Ksela, CEO of Retail Optical Stores Netherlands, the company operating the Eye Wish retail chain, has confirmed that Retail Optical Stores Belgium, the entity behind the 35 Grand Optical stores in the country, has filed for bankruptcy proceedings. The two structures ...
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News briefsBlackfin partners with Barberini for AirGlass lenses
The Italian eyewear company Blackfin has partnered with mineral-glass lens producer Barberini, part of the EssilorLuxottica group, to introduce AirGlass lenses. The polarized lenses in ultra-thin glass will be paired with Blackfin’s titanium frames and make their debut on Blackfin’s new MAVERICKS eyewear. The lenses make use of Blackfin’s ultra-HDR ...
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News briefsKering aims at Maui Jim’s “global refresh” with new campaign
Maui Jim’s new advertising campaign features its global ambassador Evan Mock, an American actor, skateborder and model with Hawaiian roots. Dubbed “Color You Can Feel,” the campaign accompanies the launch of a new collection, Ekahi, the brand’s first to be designed and produced by Kering Eyewear. According to the group, ...
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News briefsUS designer eyewear collective donates over $50,000 through Pride Eyewear program
Five US designer eyewear companies in the CFDA collective – Blake Kuwahara Eyewear, Christian Roth Eyewear, Krewe, l.a. Eyeworks and Selima Optique – have donated $53,600 to the TransLatin@ Coalition, a service and advocacy organization supporting the transgender, gender-nonconforming and intersex community. The funds derive from sales of limited editions ...
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News briefs
Essilux officially inaugurates two industrial sites in Mexico
EssilorLuxottica officials were busy cutting ribbons in Mexico last week as the group officially inaugurated two industrial sites in Tijuana and Chihuahua. The new facility in Tijuana is expected to produce an additional 10 million pairs of optical lenses per year once fully operational and will ship up to 25 ...
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News briefs
Blackfin switches to direct distribution in the U.S.
Italian eyewear brand Blackfin is switching to a direct distribution model in the U.S. as of next March 1, putting an end to its multi-year distribution partnership with Villa Eyewear. The new subsidiary, Blackfin Eyewear, will be headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company stressed that the move would enable it ...
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News briefs
French eyewear industry association elects new president
Prûne Marre, managing director of Essilor France, was elected as the new president of GIFO, the French eyewear industry association, last week. She succeeds Eric Lefort, managing director of Marcolin France, who led the organization since April 2022. Jean-Michel Lambert (HOYA Vision Care), Matthieu Lafont (Lafont) and Sandra Timon (Minima) ...
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News briefs
MIDO announces revamped conference program
MIDO has announced the program of conferences for the next edition of the trade fair (Feb. 3 to 5, in Milan). ANFAO, the Italian eyewear industry association, will present the results of its female leadership program on Saturday morning and its new Certified Sustainable Eyewear product certification on Sunday afternoon. ...
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News briefs
National Vision signs distribution partnership with DTC brand
National Vision has announced the signing of a distribution partnership with Pair Eyewear, a U.S. direct-to-consumer brand that offers eyeglasses - starting from $60 with single-vision lenses - and sunglasses with customizable fronts for children and adults, including capsule collections with brands such as NBA, Harry Potter or Coca-Cola. The ...
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News briefs
E.U. tightens rules on CO2 offsetting-based sustainability claims
After months of negotiations, members of the European parliament have officially approved a new directive that will effectively restrict the use of certain terms frequently used by companies in their sustainability claims from 2026. In particular, the European Union is taking aim at the use of such wordings as “climate ...
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News briefs
VSP Vision announces management changes in supply chain team
VSP Vision has announced the appointment of Scott Hopeck to the new role of chief commercial officer. Prior to joining VSP, Hopeck has been a division president at iHeart Media, a U.S. group of radio networks, for almost twenty years. In his new position, he will lead VSP’s commercial strategy, ...
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News briefs
Vuzix announces wide-ranging cost cutting program
Smart glasses company Vuzix has announced the start of a significant cost reduction program that is expected to result in a 25 percent reduction of cash annual expenses, corresponding to approximately $8 million. The changes will include job cuts across the company’s major divisions on a global scale, notably in ...
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News briefs
Morel opens three new international branches
MOREL has announced the opening of three new international subsidiaries in Turkey, Croatia and Australia. Located in Melbourne, the latter will service the Australian and New Zealand markets and operate with a dedicated logistics center. In recent years, the French eyewear company has been progressively switching to a direct distribution ...
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News briefs
Sharp attendance increase at opti
Organizers of opti have announced that a total of 21,500 visitors from 70 countries and 390 exhibitors from 28 countries took part in the 2024 edition of the show that took place in Munich, Germany, from Jan. 12 to 14. The figures mark a significant improvement from last year’s edition ...
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News briefs
Safilo announces two early licence renewals
Safilo Group has announced a few days apart the early renewals of two of its global eyewear licences, with HUGO BOSS and Aeffe. The agreement with HUGO BOSS, started in 2006, is renewed until 2030 for the BOSS and HUGO eyewear collections. The partnership with Aeffe covers the Moschino and ...
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News briefs
Topcon settles U.S. lawsuit with Carl Zeiss Meditec
Japanese-based equipment maker Topcon has announced that it would incur an extraordinary loss of 3,341 million Japanese yen (€21 m) to settle a lawsuit filed against its U.S. subsidiaries, Topcon Medical Systems and Topcon Healthcare Solutions, by Carl Zeiss Meditec. According to the German company’s statement, Topcon U.S. branches made ...
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News briefs
Jins Q1 revenue up 6.5 %
Japanese-based retailer JINS has reported a 6.5 percent year-on-year increase in quarterly revenue to 18.2 billion Japanese yen (€114 m) for the first quarter of its fiscal year ending August 2024. The group’s topline growth pace slowed down from the 16.0 percent hike reported for the previous quarter. Q1 sales ...
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News briefs
Krys Group launches full OFG lens range
KRYS GROUP has announced that CODIR, its industrial and logistics subsidiary located outside Paris, was launching a complete range of Origine France Garantie (OFG)-certified lenses. More rigorous than the Made in France marking, the OFG certification guarantees that at least 50 percent of the product’s added value was acquired in ...
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News briefsNew Salmoiraghi & Viganò store highlights Essilux retail sustainability program
EssilorLuxottica has announced that its new Salmoiraghi & Viganò store opened in Milan at the end of last year was being considered for the WELL certification, a standard that “creates and certifies spaces that advance human health and well-being” according to the organization’s website. The new shop, located in the ...
