All M&A articles
-
News briefs
Nikon president offers prudent reply to EssilorLuxottica question
Asked by Nikkei Shinbun about EssilorLuxottica’s growing stake, Nikon President Yasuhiro Omura largely echoed the Italo-French group’s official stance: “As Essilor has publicly stated, it is a long-term pure investment and we are not in a position to answer this question.” He nevertheless highlighted potential synergies: “There are optical challenges ...
-
ArticleRevenio completes Visionix takeover, revamps board and leadership
Finnish Revenio Group has completed the acquisition of LT International, the parent company of Visionix, following the transaction agreement first announced in April. The consolidation of Visionix into Revenio took effect on May 28, 2026. As noted at the time, the deal values the acquired business at €290 million, with ...
-
News briefs
US-based VTO company changes hands
Veero AI, the US tech company operating the AI-powered Eyesize virtual eyewear try-on platform, has been acquired by Shirah Technologies, a newly formed SaaS and AI services company focusing on e-commerce and direct-to-consumer brands. Described as “the industry leader in AI and computer-vision technology for vision eyewear,” Veero AI currently ...
-
News briefs
Magrabi Retail Group signs third M&A deal in as many years
Magrabi Retail Group has announced its third M&A transaction in as many years: the planned acquisition of a 51 percent stake in Baraka Optics Group, a premium optical retailer operating 23 stores in Egypt under the Baraka Optics, C&Co., and People banners. This move follows the acquisitions of Rivoli Group ...
-
ArticleMaterialise transfers eyewear unit to management
Materialise has announced that it has agreed to transfer its eyewear business to the unit’s management team, as disclosed last week during its Q1 2026 financial results. The division will continue to operate as a stand‑alone entity, with Patrick Swinnen, currently Business Line Director, at the helm. The transaction, for ...
-
News briefs
EssilorLuxottica acquires Italian CNC machinery company
EssilorLuxottica is further advancing its vertical integration through the acquisition of Faro, a Venice-based manufacturer of high-precision CNC machinery for milling and diamond cutting. Founded 20 years ago, Faro focuses on the jewelry and eyewear industries. Its capabilities extend to complete eyewear production, including “complex edging and processing of lenses ...
-
ArticleSafilo in exclusive talks to acquire Spy+ and Serengeti from Bollé Brands
Safilo Group appears set to acquire the SPY+ and Serengeti brands from Bollé Brands, after the signature of an exclusive agreement between the two companies was announced earlier this week. Although no transaction has been finalized at this stage as discussions are still ongoing, the deal seems very likely to ...
-
ArticleRevenio Group acquires Visionix in €290m deal
Revenio Group, a Finnish-based public company supplying eye care devices and software, announced yesterday the acquisition of Visionix, the French-based group specializing in eye care diagnostics and measurement instruments. The transaction valued the business at €290 million, including a payment of €250 million to the selling parties, of which about ...
-
ArticleZeiss acquires Vivior’s assets
Zeiss Vision Care has acquired “key assets” of Vivior AG, the Swiss developer of a device whose data stream helps recommend or customize lenses and other products. Source: Vivior/Businesswire Image of Vivior’s VBM that accompanied a company press release form 2018. Called the Vision Behaviour Monitor (VBM), ...
-
News briefs
EssilorLuxottica gradually increases its stake in Nikon
EssilorLuxottica has been steadily building up its stake in Nikon Corporation, since the Japanese authorities greenlighted an up-to-20-percent stake for the Franco-Italian group in October last year. The authorization was necessary as several Nikon businesses – lenses, sensors, and lithography – are considered “core” to the national security. ...
-
ArticleLeading electronics ODM and Ray-Ban Meta supplier to form lens JV with Asahi Lite
Goertek Optical, a subsidiary of Goertek, a leading Chinese original design manufacturer and components supplier for smart hardware, is about to form a joint venture with Asahi Lite, as we have just learned. The announcement was made a few weeks ago by Conant Optical, the Chinese-based lens manufacturer that fully ...
-
News briefs
Bidco’s offer to acquire Inspecs becomes unconditional
Bidco, the consortium led by British entrepreneurs Luke Johnson and Ian Livingstone, has declared that its offer to acquire Inspecs Group has become unconditional, meaning that all conditions required for the acquisition have been met. Having received valid acceptances for 31.2 million shares out of the 32.4 million that were ...
-
ArticleSafilo comments FY 2025 solid performance, M&A targets
Confirming preliminary results released at the end of January, Safilo Group announced yesterday that its Q4 revenue declined by 4.6 percent to €225 million. At constant exchange rates, the topline inched up by 0.4 percent, with both North America and Europe growing at a low single-digit margin rate (see table). ...
-
ArticleBidco is set to acquire INSPECS but may have to compose with Safilo
Bidco, the consortium led by British entrepreneurs Luke Johnson and Ian Livingstone, is changing tactics for its planned acquisition of INSPECS Group, which appears to be contested by Safilo Group. On Friday last week, INSPECS officially said that Bidco was switching from the court-sanctioned scheme announced in December last year ...
-
News briefs
Ace & Tate takes over small Spanish DTC brand
Ace & Tate, the Dutch-based eyewear company, is acquiring Project Lobster, a Spanish direct-to-consumer omnichannel eyewear brand that filed for bankruptcy at the end of 2025. Ace & Tate will take over five of the seven Project Lobster stores located in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, and keep operating them under ...
-
ArticleBidco builds up stake in INSPECS amid stalled takeover process
The acquisition process of INSPECS Group by Bidco 1125, a new company created by British entrepreneurs Luke Johnson and Ian Livingstone, seems to have stalled as the eyewear company announced last Friday that the proxy shareholders’ votes received so far, if unchanged, would not enable the acquisition. Therefore, INSPECS is ...
-
News briefs
Fielmann acquires a small retail chain in Luxemburg
Fielmann Group has reportedly acquired Opti-Vue, an optical retail chain with 11 stores and approximately 80 employees in Luxemburg. According to Paperjam, a local news outlet that reported the news, Opti-Vue will continue to operate independently. The retailer is positioned on the premium segment of the eyewear market with mostly ...
-
ArticleThe European eyecare sector remains an attractive M&A market
There were 28 company transactions – including full takeovers and acquisitions of minority stakes – in the eyecare and eyewear sector in Europe in 2025, according to a recent report by Houlihan Lokey, a global investment bank monitoring the sector and other consumer markets. The company was involved last year ...
-
News briefs
VSP Vision completes Marcolin’s acquisition
VSP Vision announced on Dec. 23, 2025 that it has completed the acquisition of Italian eyewear group Marcolin from PAI Partners, which held a 78 percent stake in the company since 2012, and other minority shareholders. The combination of Marchon Eyewear, the eyewear unit of VSP Vision, and Marcolin gives ...
-
News briefs
STAAR shareholders reject Alcon merger agreement
The shareholders of STAAR Surgical, a California-based refractive surgery company that specializes in Implantable Collamer Lenses (ICLs), voted against the proposed merger agreement with Alcon yesterday. The agreement, which was contested from the start by Broadwood Partners and other key investors in the company, was recently upgraded in price to ...
