Retail & Distribution
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Amazon enters the prescription eyewear segment in Germany
After years of rumors and speculations, the e-commerce behemoth is entering the prescription eyewear market for good, starting with Germany, where its subsidiary announced earlier this week that it has started selling prescription eyeglasses. Amazon Optics, as the service is branded, is offering on amazon.de a wide selection of branded ...
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Kits CEO: 'We are building an eyewear business for the customer of tomorrow'
On its Investor Day last September, Kits Eyecare concluded its presentation with a bold and somewhat cryptic claim: “Setting our sights on 500 in 5.” This made for an obvious first question when we had to opportunity to sit down with Roger Hardy, co-founder and CEO of the Canadian-based pure ...
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Switching to a direct distribution model, Revo announces several appointments in Europe
As part of its switch to a direct distribution strategy worldwide, Revo has announced several appointments of seasoned managers in key European markets. Filippo Valentini, Managing Director of Dido Agency, already representing Imago Eyewear in Italy will represent the sunglasses and goggles brand in this market. Eric Gonguet, who ...
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Zoff first public financial results show double-digit growth pace and higher margins
Reporting its financial results for the first time since its Initial Public Offering (IPO) last month, Japan-based retail group Zoff has announced a 11.8 percent year-on-year hike in revenue to 33.6 billion Japanese yen (€255.5m) for the first nine months of fiscal 2024. For the third quarter alone, total sales ...
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Japan optical retail market value inch up on cautious price hikes
The IOFT eyewear trade show, which took place in Tokyo from Oct. 15 to 17, was the opportunity for us to assess the dynamics of the Japanese eyewear market, in collaboration with Gankyo Publishing, a local B2B eyewear publisher and research company. The eyewear show itself was this year again ...
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Solid organic growth and US acquisitions keep Fielmann in double-digit growth gear
International markets have come to account for over a third of the German-based optical retail group. The US is already the second-largest market for the group, with annual sales projected at over €250 million.
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Zenni, Eyebot using automation to remove eye-test obstacles
The companies have teamed up to field eye-scanning kiosks.
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French opticians’ association challenges health insurances’ proxy on optical network tender call
The Rassemblement des Opticiens de France (ROF) points at some possible irregularities, both in terms of commercial relations and of personal data protection, in the last tender call by Santéclair for French opticians to join its optical network. The dispute illustrates one specificity of the French optical market.
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US business propels Fielmann topline over €1bn in H1 while price mix effects bolster margin gains
Driven by its US acquisitions and price-mix improvements, Fielmann Group has reported a double-digit revenue increase and significant margin improvements in H1 2024.
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Synsam posts record earnings in Q2
Nordics optical retail leader group Synsam has posted record earnings on a return to double-digit revenue growth for Q2 2024, driven by fast-growing eyeglasses and contact lenses’ subscriptions.
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National Vision downgrades outlook after mixed Q2, announces stores fleet review and new president
Following lower-than-expected results for Q2 2024 and a downgrade of its full-year outlook, National Vision has announced a series of initiatives aimed at driving future profitable growth.
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Mister Spex founder and CEO steps down, former Luxottica manager takes key role
Effective July 31, 2024, Dirk Graber, founder of German-based retail group Mister Spex, is stepping down from his role as CEO of the company after the supervisory board accepted his request to be relieved from his duties. The announcement, which comes only a few months after the departure of former ...
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Private equity fund about to invest in Lunettes Pour Tous
Quilvest Capital Partners, a global investment fund with over $7 billion in assets under management, is in advanced talks for the acquisition of a significant share in French-based optical retail group Lunettes Pour Tous, according to a recent article by L’Informé, a French independent business news website. This followed an ...
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Double-digit growth puts Specsavers above the £4 bn annual revenue mark
Publishing its annual business review for its fiscal year ended Feb. 29, 2024, Specsavers has reported group revenue of £4.01 billion, up by 10.3 percent year-on-year at constant exchange rates. This marks a strong improvement from the previous fiscal year when sales were up by 5.6 percent. The performance also ...
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Backed by new investor, Vision Group aims for more acquisitions
London-based alternative asset manager ICG has agreed to purchase a 49.4 percent stake in the leading Italian eyewear retailer Vision Group as part of a management buyout, acquiring the roughly 46 percent stake held by former private equity group backer Arcadia along with shares from other unnamed investors. ICG will ...
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Fielmann banks on US business and vision care services for mid-term growth
The final annual results for fiscal 2023 released yesterday by Fielmann Group confirm all preliminary results announced in February, notably the double-digit increase in external sales and consolidated sales versus 2022 and a significant rebound in profitability (see table below). Please refer to our previous report for more details on ...
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New owner for Nexeye retail group
Global investment firm KKR will become the new majority shareholder of Nexeye, the Dutch-based retail group operating the Hans Anders, Eyes + More and Direkt Optik chains, acquiring it from 3i, another investment fund that owned the company since 2017. The agreement is subject to regulatory approval, but it does ...
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Two top-ten German optical retailers join forces to take over Edel-Optics
Optiker Bode and ROTTLER, two family-owned and historical optical retail chains respectively based in Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia, are joining forces to take over Edel-Optics, an online optical retail pionneer in both Germany and Europe. Founded in 2009, the company had filed for insolvency proceedings in February. Edel-Optics has ...
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EssilorLuxottica expands retail partnership with Reliance Brands in India
EssilorLuxottica is expanding the scope ot its partnership with India’s Reliance Brands, which is taking over the development of the LensCrafters banner and the managing of its franchising network in the country. The development of the LensCrafters franchise was previously in the hands of DLF Brands and a first store ...
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EssilorLuxottica acquires Japanese retail chain
EssilorLuxottica is about to deploy its full-scale vertical-integration business model in Japan. We have learned that the Italo-French group has acquired the business of Washin Optical, a Japanese mid-size optical retailer founded in 1951, through its Luxottica Japan subsidiary. The information has not been officially announced by the group yet, ...