All Eyewear Intelligence articles in Volume 22 No. 1+2
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PDF NewsletterEyewear Intelligence Newsletter: Vol 22 - 1+2
Eyewear stocks grew by 6% in 2020 | U.K. strikes trade deal with EU | EU, China reach deal on investments | Essilux names 2 new helmsmen | De Rigo to distribute DIFF Eyewear | Fielmann expands in Spain | Cecop continues U.S. growth | Mister Spex expects sales to grow | Kering probed by French prosecutor | Anfao and unions reach labor deal | Covid’s impact on trade show budgets
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ArticleEyewear industry stocks grew by 6% in 2020
We are publishing here for the first time our ranking of the main stock-listed eyewear industry companies, based on their stock market capitalization in euros at the end of 2020. The corresponding table also shows the change in market value from the previous year, both in local currency and euros. ...
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News briefs
MPG 2020 sales increase by 6%
Michael Pachleitner Group (MPG), the diversified Austrian-based optical group based in Graz, increased sales by 6 percent in 2020 and met its forecast budget. No further details were available. Top line growth was underpinned by the increase of the company’s product range with the launch of personal protective ...
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ArticleDe Rigo enters distribution deal with DIFF Eyewear in North America
De Rigo Vision has reached a multi-year agreement under which its Los Angeles-based unit De Rigo REM will be the sole distributor of DIFF Eyewear ’s sun and optical frames in the North American optical market. DIFF Eyewear is a rapidly growing American-based fashion eyewear company ...
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Article
Italy’s Anfao and unions reach labor contract agreement
The Italian eyewear trade association Anfao reached an agreement with trade union representatives on the terms of a new contract affecting the roughly 18,000 workers in Italy’s eyewear industry, including those at Luxottica , which exited Anfao in 2019. Due to the economic crisis that has hit the ...
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News briefs
Italy approves a €50 voucher for the purchase of eyeglasses, contact lenses
The Italian parliament approved on Dec. 30 the 2021 budget that includes a €50 voucher for the purchase of prescription eyewear and contact lenses for low-income people. The decree implementing the voucher still has to be issued by the health ministry, in coordination with the finance ministry. The voucher ...
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ArticleFielmann’s full-year sales slip to €1,425 million
In 2020, Fielmann ’s consolidated sales slipped to €1,425 million from €1,520.7 million, while external sales, which include value-added tax and inventory changes, totalled €1,625 million, down from €1,764.6 million a year earlier. The pre-tax profit will reach nearly €170 million, down from €253.8 million in 2019, according to preliminary ...
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News briefs
Jet Set obtains La Martina license
The Italian company Jet Set Group has obtained the eyewear license of the Argentine brand La Martina . The license agreement, which covers manufacturing and distribution, was signed at the end of 2020 and started this year. The collection will include sun and prescription frames. La Martina was ...
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News briefsNew Look Vision buys The Vision Clinic
New Look Vision has reinforced its position as Canada’s main optical retailer with the acquisition of The Vision Clinic (TVC), which has 12 retail optical clinics in Southern Ontario. The purchase price for an unspecified majority stake was 18.8 million Canadian dollars (€12.1m-$14.8m). TVC was founded in ...
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ArticleCecop continues aggressive expansion in the U.S.
Cecop , the international buying group based in Madrid, continues its rapid expansion in North America with the acquisition of the Alliance Buying Group (ABG), based in Monmouth, Illinois, from Surgery Partners . No financial details were released. Cecop entered the North American market in May with the ...
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News briefs
Bausch Health repaid $900m in debt in 2020
Bausch Health repaid some $900 million in debt in 2020 from cash on hand and cash generation. The company has no debt maturities or mandatory amortization payments until 2024. In the fourth quarter, the company repaid about $480 million in debt, the last payment being made on Dec. ...
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News briefsSpy+ takes the contactless try-on to a new level
Spy+ is using Google ’s Image Swirl and QR-code scanning to enable customers to try on snow goggles without ever touching them. The American action sports eyewear company, which was recently acquired by Bollé Brands , says the combination “overcomes the largest barriers to retail sales in the ...
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News briefsProgression will distribute Yniq Eyewear in North America
Yniq Eyewear , the Stockholm-based brand of snow goggles and other sports eyewear products, has signed up the Progression Brands Group ( PBG ) as its ”operating partner” for its winter sports business in North America. Yniq, which defines itself as “THE Sports Luxury Eyewear Brand,” already has a ...
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News briefs
FLA members cannot use products from the Xinjiang region
In an unprecedented move, the Fair Labor Association (FLA) has prohibited its member companies from sourcing from or producing in the Xinjiang region, in northwest China, because of growing concerns over violations of human and labor rights. The region is home to several ethnic minority groups, including the Uyghur ...
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News briefs
5% fewer opticians in Carte Blanche’s network
Carte Blanche , the French healthcare organization that connects consumers, health insurances and healthcare professionals, has finalized its onboarding campaign for its network of partner opticians. The company announced that 7,300 optical shops in France have been referenced this year, down from about 7,700 last year. Carte Blanche said that ...
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ArticleU.K. signs free trade agreements with Turkey, EU
The U.K. and Turkey have signed tariff-free trading arrangements and are committed to reach a ”more ambitious” agreement in the future, according to the British Department for International Trade . The free trade agreement was signed by the U.K.’s International Trade Secretary, Liz Truss and Turkey’s Minister for ...
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News briefs
SunGod supports GB Snowsport, POW U.K. and Canyon DHB cycling team
SunGod , a DTC eyewear brand launched in 2013 on crowdfunding site Indiegogo by Zoe Armstrong and Ali Watkiss from London, has announced that it will be supporting the next generation of British snowsports athletes as the official eyewear partner of GB Snowsport . Just a ...
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ArticleEU, China reach in principle an agreement on investments
After seven years of talks, the European Union and China have agreed in principle on a investment agreement after their leaders met on a conference call on Dec. 30. The parties had set the end of 2020 as the deadline to strike a deal. The European Commission said that ...
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News briefsItalia Independent to proceed with €7.8 million capital increase
Italia Independent has decided to proceed with a previously announced €7.8 million capital increase. The board has authorized the Chief Executive, Marco Cordeddu , to launch the recapitalization towards which the shareholders Lapo Elkann and Creative Ventures have already made advance payments totalling €4 million and ...
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News briefs
Optic Nerve releases self-tinting glasses
Optic Nerve Eyewear has released a variant of the FixieMax frame, which made its debut earlier this year. The Photomatic FixieMax has the same Castor Bean Resin G850 frame and technical specifications but adds a light-adjusting lens. This ranges from a nearly clear 84 percent VLT ...
