The latest news, analysis and data on topics including Financial Results, Corporate, M&A, Omnichannel, Retail & Distribution, E-Commerce & DTC, Market Statistics, Policy & Legal, Trade & Sourcing, Marketing, Products, Trade fairs & Events
Safilo looks at 2024 with confidence and hope after complex 2023
Safilo Group has reported its final full-year results for fiscal 2023, confirming the 4.8 percent year-on-year decrease in revenue to €1,025 million announced when the group released preliminary figures at the end of January. Annual sales were down by 2.4 percent at constant exchange rates versus 2023 and by 1.3 ...
Kits Eyecare topline up 31% in 2023 driven by repeat customers and eyeglasses
Canadian-based Kits Eyecare has reported a 21 percent year-on-year increase in Q4 revenue to $31.6 million, slowing down slightly from the 32 percent growth in the previous quarter. The company said that the Q4 sales uptick was driven by the eyeglasses segment (+39 percent to $4.1 million), repeat customer revenue ...
Thai Optical Group sales flattish in 2023
Thai Optical Group has announced that its total revenue inched up by 1.2 percent year-on-year to 3,015 million Thai baht (€77m) in 2023, falling short of the 5-8 percent growth target announced at the start of the fiscal year. This marks a sharp deceleration from the previous year when the ...
CooperVision raises 2024 guidance despite Q1 slowdown
As announced last December during the presentation of CooperCompanies full-year financial results, sales of CooperVision for the first quarter of its 2024 fiscal year ended Jan. 31 slowed down from Q4 2023 as the company is struggling to keep up with growing demand for contact lenses. After eleven consecutive quarters ...
Mazzucchelli takes further steps on sustainability journey
Mazzucchelli 1849 is building a new factory in its hometown of Castiglione Olona in northern Italy, set to be opened in the second half of this year. Giampietro Pedrazzini, CEO, spoke to us recently about how that facility fits into Mazzucchelli’s plans to reduce its environmental footprint, along with other ...
Hans Anders and Eyes + More owner up for sale
According to various reports in the Dutch financial press, which we could confirm with people close to the matter, the optical retail group behind the Hans Anders, Eyes + More and Direkt Optik banners has been put up for sale by 3i, its major shareholder since 2017. In its last ...
Backed by new financial partner, Opal-Demetz plans more M&A
We have learned at the recent Mido show in Milan that Opal-Demetz, the French company specializing in children’s eyewear, sports eyewear and low-cost frames known as in France a “deuxième paire” (a second pair of eyeglasses, sold at a nominal fee to customers), opened its capital to private equity at ...
Rodenstock upgrades portfolio, fine-tunes group strategy and synergies
After its participation at the opti show in Munich in January, Rodenstock presented its latest innovations at its booth during the Mido show in Milan, from Feb. 3 to 5. The German-based lens maker introduced this year its new LayR coating, which it describes as an extension of its biometric ...
Krys joins the second-hand market
Krys has become the exclusive lens supplier for Seecly, the online marketplace for the sale of second-hand, reconditioned or old frames.
South Korean e-commerce giant takes over Farftech
Coupang, the South Korean-based e-commerce group, has annoucend that it was taking over the business of Farftech, investing $500 million in the struggling luxury online retail platform. The cash injection will enable Farftech to clear its debts and continue its operations. The company, which is currently valued at around $200 ...
Fittingbox acquires main VTO challenger
Fittingbox, the global leader and a pioneer in eyewear virtual-try-on (VTO) services, has announced that it was acquiring its main challenger, Ditto Technologies, from U.S.-based Luna Solutions. It is the first acquisition by Fittingbox since the creation of the company in 2006.
E-commerce in Europe forecast to rebound in 2023
European B2C e-commerce sales increased by 6 percent year-on-year to €899 billion in 2022 according to the annual report of Ecommerce Europe, an association representing over 150,000 companies selling goods and/or services online to consumers in Europe. This marks a deceleration from 2021 when online sales were up by 12 ...
The Vision Council looks at US glasses wearers’ style preferences
US women are twice as likely as men to choose tortoise (26 percent vs. 12 percent) or multicolor frames (24 percent vs. 10 percent) when they purchase glasses. Conversely, men tend to opt more often than women for metallic frames (34 percent vs. 21 percent). These are some of the ...
Italian eyewear industry cautious on 2024 prospects after exports flatline in H2
The Italian eyewear industry association ANFAO said it remains cautious on sector prospects this year as it released preliminary figures for 2023 showing that Italian eyewear exports grew by 7.6 percent to €5,256 million. The total value of Italian eyewear production rose by 8.4 percent in 2023 to €5,515 million, ...
The Vision Council publishes new US optical-market and consumer data
Announcing the release of its Market inSights 2023, the Vision Council has estimated the total value of the US optical market for last year at $65.6 billion. The organization explains that it changed it has changed research methodology again this year, adding advanced analytics, updating its sources to include consumer ...
German eyewear industry sales inched up in 2023 as exports slowed down
German eyewear industry association Spectaris has released preliminary data for the sales of its members on both the domestic and export markets at the recent opti trade fair in Munich, based on figures for the January to September 2023 period.