All Eyewear Intelligence articles in Volume 26 No. 15+16
View all stories from this issue.
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ArticleEssilux acquires lens inspection expert A&R
EssilorLuxottica has announced the acquisition of Automation & Robotics (A&R), the Belgium-based supplier of equipment and software for ophthalmic lens laboratories. The group said that the acquisition would bring deep expertise across the value chain, including R&D, software development, manufacturing, distribution and deployment. “Sharing a commitment to innovation, ...
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PDF NewsletterEyewear Intelligence: Vol 26 - No 15+16
10% CAGR forecast to bring Fielmann’s topline up to €4bn by 2030 | Essilux maintains strong topline growth in H1 but tariffs and wearables slightly dilute margins | Essilux acquires producer of lens monomers | Essilux acquires lens inspection expert A&R | HOYA posts 11% increase in Q1 eyeglass lens revenue, discusses smart glasses strategy | Lenskart files for IPO, acquires a Spanish DTC sunglass brand | Lenskart revenues up 17% for FY25 | Italy Q1 eyewear exports fall 1.5% as industry braces for higher US tariffs | Kering reports flattish Q2 sales and slightly lower H1 margins for Kering Eyewear | Safilo Group topline slightly down but margins reach record highs | Marcolin maintains margins on flattish sales as EMEA becomes sole growth engine | Trump‘s tariffs - A timeline (excerpt) | Italian eyewear industry warns companies risk survival with hefty US tariffs | Unclear US ‘Transshipping’ tariff rate scope keeps Vietnam on its toes | Half of eyewear companies’ stocks fully recovered since US ’reciprocal tariffs’ announcement | Meta takes 3% share in Essilux – with more to come? | China’s e-tail giant to produce smart glasses | Inflation keeps driving the Brazilian optical market as eyeglasses volumes drop | Large-scale and “real-life” French study confirms Miyosmart and Stellest efficiency | New five-year plan at Groupement Optic 2000 | Brand building, distribution and portfolio expansion keep Izipizi in the fast lane
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ArticleHOYA posts 11% hike in Q1 eyeglass lens revenue, discusses smart glasses strategy
HOYA Corporation’s Life Care business unit sales rose by 1.7 percent year on year to 137.2 billion Japanese yen (€803m) for the first quarter of fiscal 2025-26, ended June 30. At constant exchange rates, the division’s revenue was up by 6.4 percent versus Q1 2024-26 driven by sales of eyeglass ...
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ArticleSafilo Group topline slightly down but margins reach record highs
Safilo Group’s Q2 revenue declined by 1.1 percent year on year to €251.9 million, but it was up 2.3 percent in constant currencies with the differential mainly reflecting the 5 percent depreciation of the US dollar against the euro. Half-year revenue amounted to €537.6 million, also down 1.1 percent in ...
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News briefs
Xiaomi sells 50,000 AI smart glasses within three days of launch
The South China Morning Post and several other Asian news outlets have reported that consumer electronics group Xiaomi sold 50,000 units of its AI smart glasses within the first three days following the product’s launch on June 26. As we previously reported, Xiaomi’s glasses have a 12 megapixel, ultra-wide camera; ...
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ArticleMarcolin maintains margins on flattish sales as EMEA becomes sole growth engine
Marcolin revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 declined by 2.4 percent year on year in reported terms to €148.4 million as a continuous solid performance in the EMEA market could not offset declines in other regions, we have calculated from the company’s H1 and Q1 data. Q2 ...
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News briefs
Specsavers almost doubles Canadian footprint overnight with grocery deal
Specsavers will add 111 stores to its Canadian retail network through a deal with Loblaw Companies, a large food and pharmacy retailer with a total of 2,800 shops in the country, both companies have announced. Starting this September, the Specsavers locations will replace Theodore & Pringle, an optical retail brand ...
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News briefs
Inspecs announces H1 sales decline, puts lens unit up for sale
Communicating a trading update ahead of its full half-year results announcement in September, Inspecs Group said that its sales were down by 2.9 percent year on year to £100.0 million (€116m) in H1 2025. At constant exchange rates, the decline was limited to 1.3 percent. In terms of profitability, adjusted ...
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News briefsTopcon acquires retinal-scanning company
Topcon Healthcare has acquired Intelligent Retinal Imaging Systems (IRIS), producer of a system that scans the retina for pathology, and for signs of diabetes in particular. The system is compatible with electronic medical record (EMR) integration and with many cameras. It also uses AI to help in diagnosis. IRIS was ...
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News briefs
Bausch + Lomb Q2 contact lens sales jump 9%
Bausch + Lomb said it posted contact lens sales of $258 million in the second quarter of 2025, up by a reported 9 percent compared to the year earlier and 7 percent higher at constant-currency rates, with growth led by its daily disposable silicone hydrogel, daily disposable Biotrue and Ultra ...
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ArticleLenskart files for IPO, acquires a Spanish DTC sunglass brand
Lenskart’s long-rumored initial public offering (IPO) is one big step closer to becoming a reality as the Indian-based optical retailer group has just filed its so-called draft red herring prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The 761-page document is now available on the group’s corporate website. ...
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ArticleKering reports flattish Q2 sales and slightly lower H1 margins for Kering Eyewear
Half-year results announced yesterday by Kering confirmed Kering Eyewear’s growth pace slowdown as well as the company’s slight profitability deterioration already seen in fiscal 2024. Nonetheless, the eyewear unit remains a relative bright spot for the French luxury group, whose revenue and operating income kept declining at a fast double-digit ...
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ArticleChina’s e-tail giant to produce smart glasses
Alibaba Group Holding has introduced its first pair of AI smart glasses, as we’ve learned from the South China Morning Post (which Alibaba owns). The Quark AI Glasses, as they’re called, made their debut at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), an annual event in Shanghai since 2018, held this ...
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ArticleEssilux maintains strong topline growth in H1 but tariffs and wearables slightly dilute margins
EssilorLuxottica revenue amounted to €7,175 million in Q2, up 7.3 percent year on year at constant exchange rates and exactly in line with the group’s Q1 performance. In reported terms, however, the topline rose by 3.2 percent in the quarter, decelerating from the 8.1 percent growth pace in Q1, mainly ...
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ArticleItaly Q1 eyewear exports fall 1.5% as industry braces for higher US tariffs
The value of Italian eyewear exports in the first quarter of 2025 fell by 1.5 percent compared to the year earlier to €1,427 million, as the market’s contraction deepened following a 0.6 percent fall in exports in 2024, according to data from eyewear trade association ANFAO. Italian exports of sunglasses ...
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ArticleLenskart revenues up 17% for FY25
Optical retailer Lenskart, of India, generated revenues of about 6,415 crore Indian rupees (€633m) for its financial year 2025, ended in March. This represents a year-on-year increase of about 17 percent – less than the 43 percent increase from FY23 to FY24, when operating revenue was Rs 5,610 crore (€554m). ...
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News briefsTopcon investing in vision measurement app company
Topcon Healthcare is investing in Okko Health, company in the UK that develops home-monitoring smartphone apps for vision measurement. As the company itself puts it, Okko embeds the “deep vision science behind simple games on smartphones and tablets,” yielding applications for clinical practice, research and the development of drugs and ...
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ArticleNew five-year plan at Groupement Optic 2000
Optic 2000 is embarking upon a five-year plan called COOP 26/30, the name no doubt a reference to the cooperative structure of parent company Groupement Optic 2000. In short, the group’s objective is to have 3,000 points of sale and a 20 percent share of the French market by 2030. ...
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News briefs
Gentle Monster enters the Canadian market
Gentle Monster, the South Korean eyewear brand best known for its unconventional stores, will open its first location in Canada at the end of this year. The shop will be located in Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Center and spreads over 1,600 square meters. The company, in which Google has reportedly invested, ...
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ArticleEssilux acquires producer of lens monomers
EssilorLuxottica has agreed to acquire all of the “assets and entities involved in the development, manufacturing and sale of monomers used in the production of high index ophthalmic lenses” of SK PUcore, of South Korea. Among these assets is an R&D unit, a factory, a sales office in Korea and ...
