Luxottica#Criticism

{{For|post-2018 history|EssilorLuxottica#History}}

File:Luxottica Carlos.jpg

Leonardo Del Vecchio started the company in 1961,{{cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/leonardo-del-vecchio |title= World's Billionaires Leonardo Del Vecchio |publisher=Forbes March 2011}} in Agordo north of Belluno, Veneto; today the company is headquartered in Milan, Italy.

Del Vecchio began his career as the apprentice to a tool and diemaker in Milan, but he decided to turn his metalworking skills to making spectacle parts. In 1961, he moved to Agordo in the province of Belluno, home to most of the Italian eyewear industry.{{cite web|url=http://www.luxottica.com/en/company/history|title=Luxottica Past and Present|publisher=Luxottica Group S.p.A.|access-date=2 November 2009}} The new company was Luxottica s.a.s., a limited partnership with Del Vecchio as one of the founding partners. In 1967, he started selling complete eyeglass frames under the Luxottica brand, which proved successful enough that by 1971 he ended the contract manufacturing business.{{cite web|url=http://www.borsaitaliana.it/mediasource/star/db/pdf/17895.pdf |title= Santander research |publisher= Borsa Italiana 2003}}

Convinced of the need for vertical integration, he acquired Scarrone in 1974, a distribution company. In 1981, the company set up its first international subsidiary, in Germany, the first in a rapid period of international expansion. The first of many licensing deals with a designer was struck with Giorgio Armani in 1988.{{cite web|url=http://www.pambianconews.com/The-Armani-Group-and-the-Luxottica-Group-announce-expiration-of-licence-agreement/ |title= The Armani Group and the Luxottica Group announce expiration of licence agreement |work=in Pambianco News November 21, 2002|date= 21 November 2002 }}

The company listed in New York in 1990,{{cite web |url=https://www.nyse.com/listed/lux.html |title=Luxottica Group S.p.A. |publisher=NYSE, New York Stock Exchange |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226202920/http://www.nyse.com/listed/lux.html |archive-date=26 December 2013 }} and in Milan in December 2000,{{cite web|url= http://www.borsaitaliana.it/borsa/azioni/ipo/ultime-societa-ammesse-dettaglio.html?ndg=491&lang=en|title= Luxottica|publisher= Borsa Italiana|access-date= 13 September 2011|archive-date= 14 August 2012|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120814035207/http://www.borsaitaliana.it/borsa/azioni/ipo/ultime-societa-ammesse-dettaglio.html?ndg=491&lang=en|url-status= dead}} joining the MIB-30 (now FTSE MIB) index in September 2003.{{cite web |url=http://syndication.teleborsa.it/Nis/NisViewer.ashx?file=0491-56-2003.pdf&year=2003&filetype=comunicati |title=Luxottica Group Added to MIB 30 Index |publisher=Syndication Teleborsa 22, 2003 |access-date=20 July 2012 |archive-date=8 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150108132215/http://syndication.teleborsa.it/Nis/NisViewer.ashx?file=0491-56-2003.pdf&year=2003&filetype=comunicati |url-status=dead }} The listing raised money for the company and allowed it to use its shares to acquire other brands, starting with Italian brand Vogue Eyewear in 1990, Persol and LensCrafters in 1995, Ray-Ban from Bausch & Lomb in 1999 and Sunglass Hut in 2001. Luxottica later increased its presence in the retail sector by acquiring Sydney-based OPSM in 2003, Pearle Vision and Cole National in 2004.{{cite web|url=http://www.luxottica.com/en/retail/facts_figures/ |title=Luxottica Facts and Figures |publisher=Luxottica Group S.p.A.|access-date=10 August 2011}}

Luxottica acquired Oakley in November 2007 for US$2.1 billion. Oakley had tried to dispute their prices because of Luxottica's large marketshare, and Luxottica responded by dropping Oakley from their stores, causing their stock price to drop, followed by Luxottica's hostile take over of the company.{{cite web |url=http://syndication.teleborsa.it/Nis/NisViewer.ashx?file=0491-117-2007.pdf&year=2007&filetype=comunicati |title=Luxottica Group and Oakley complete merger |publisher=Syndication Teleborsa, 2007 |access-date=20 July 2012 |archive-date=15 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415042059/http://syndication.teleborsa.it/Nis/NisViewer.ashx?file=0491-117-2007.pdf&year=2007&filetype=comunicati |url-status=dead }}

In August 2011, Luxottica acquired Erroca for €20 million.{{cite web|url=http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000671153&fid=1725 |title= Luxottica buys Erroca sunglasses chain for €20m |work=in Globes September 13, 2011|date= 7 August 2011 }} In March 2014, it was announced that Luxottica would partner with Google on the development of Google Glass and its integration into Luxottica's eyewear.[https://web.archive.org/web/20140326060726/http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-25/google-to-de-dorkify-glass-in-partnership-with-ray-ban-maker-luxottica Google to De-Dorkify Glass in Partnership With Ray-Ban Maker Luxottica], Businessweek, 25 March 2014

On 1 September 2014, a new organizational structure was announced, composed of two co-CEOs, one focusing on market development and the other overseeing corporate functions. After the exit of former CEO Andrea Guerra, Enrico Cavatorta was appointed CEO of Corporate Function and Interim CEO of Market (until new and permanent appointment to this role).{{cite web|url=http://www.visionmonday.com/latest-news/article/luxottica-announces-new-governance-structure-for-coceo-model-guerra-to-leave-group-cavatorta-named-ceo-corporate-and-interim-ceo-markets-del-vecchio-moves-to-executive-chairman-1 |title= Luxottica sets new co-CEO model, Guerra to leave, Cavatorta named CEO Corporate, interim CEO Markets |publisher= Vision Monday}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/02/business/a-management-shake-up-at-luxottica-ray-ban-maker.html?_r=1 |title= A management shake-up at Luxottica, Ray-Ban maker |work= The New York Times|date= 2 September 2014 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.luxottica.com/en/luxottica-announces-implementation-new-governance-structure-based-co-ceo-model|title= Luxottica announces the implementation of a new governance structure based on a co-CEO model |publisher= Luxottica}} Cavatorta left the company 40 days after being appointed CEO. In 2016, it was reported that Luxottica had lost its third chief executive in a year and a half, as Cavatora's replacement, Adil Mehboob-Khan stepped down one year after he gained the position.{{cite news|url=https://www.ft.com/content/ee1cc24e-cf1e-11e5-92a1-c5e23ef99c77 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/https://www.ft.com/content/ee1cc24e-cf1e-11e5-92a1-c5e23ef99c77 |archive-date=10 December 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title= Loss of another Luxottica chief is a concern for Italy Inc |newspaper= The Financial Times|date=10 February 2016 |last1=Gordon |first1=Sarah }} Upon the departure of Mehboob-Khan, Del Vecchio reclaimed executive powers and became much more active in the company.{{Cite web |title=FB Roundup: Casino Group, Luxottica, and LVMH {{!}} Campden FB |url=https://www.campdenfb.com/article/fb-roundup-casino-group-luxottica-and-lvmh |access-date=2023-10-11 |website=www.campdenfb.com}}

In January 2017, the company agreed to a merger with Essilor.{{Citation

| date =16 January 2017

| title =Ray-Ban Maker Luxottica to Merge With Lens Company Essilor, Creating $49 Billion Eyewear Giant

| publisher =Wall Street Journal

| url =https://www.wsj.com/articles/essilor-luxottica-to-merge-creating-49-billion-company-1484547562

| access-date =17 January 2017}} The deal also offered a succession plan for Leonardo Del Vecchio, the company's founder.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-38633306|title=Ray-Ban maker Luxottica agrees €46bn merger with Essilor|work=BBC News|date=16 January 2017}} Shortly before the merger completed, reporter Sam Knight wrote in The Guardian, "in seven centuries of spectacles, there has never been anything like it. The new entity will be worth around $50bn (£37bn), sell close to a billion pairs of lenses and frames every year, and have a workforce of more than 140,000 people."{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/may/10/the-invisible-power-of-big-glasses-eyewear-industry-essilor-luxottica|title=The spectacular power of Big Lens {{!}} The long read|last=Knight|first=Sam|date=2018-05-10|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-06-18|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}} On 1 October 2018 the new holding company EssilorLuxottica was founded, resulting in combined market capitalization of approximately €46.3 billion as of the date of the merger announcement.{{Cite news |last1=Bray |first1=Chad |last2=Paton |first2=Elizabeth |date=16 January 2017 |title=Luxottica, Owner of Ray-Ban, in $49 Billion Merger With Essilor |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/16/business/dealbook/luxottica-essilor-merger.html |access-date=10 November 2022 |work=The New York Times}}

File:Persol sunglasses.jpg

File:RayBanAviator.jpg's Aviators]]

Luxottica's two main product offerings are sunglasses and prescription frames. The company operates in two sectors: manufacturing & wholesale distribution, and retail distribution.{{cite web|url=http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=326054 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015073302/http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=326054 |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 October 2012 |title=Luxottica S.p.A |publisher=Bloomberg Businessweek|access-date=10 August 2011}}

The house brands include the following:{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?rpc=66&symbol=LUX |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100730002546/http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?rpc=66&symbol=LUX |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 July 2010 |title=Luxottica Group S.p.A |work=in Reuters|access-date=10 August 2011}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|

• Alain Mikli
• Arnette eyewear
• Costa Del Mar
• Eye Safety Systems (ESS)
• Luxottica
• Native Eyewear{{cite web | title=Limited Warranty | website=Native Eyewear | url=https://www.nativeyewear.com/en-us/limited-warranty | access-date=2021-10-14}}
• Oakley
• Oliver Peoples
• Persol
• Ray-Ban
• Sferoflex
• Vogue Eyewear

}}

The company also makes eyewear under license for the following designer labels:

{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|

• Giorgio Armani
• Armani Exchange
• Brooks Brothers
• Bulgari
• Burberry
• Chanel
• Coach
• Dolce & Gabbana
• Emporio Armani
• Michael Kors
• Miu Miu
• Polo Ralph Lauren
• Prada
• Ralph Eyewear
• Ralph Lauren
• Scuderia Ferrari
• Starck Biotech Paris
• Swarovski{{cite web |url=https://www.essilorluxottica.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/swarovski-and-essilorluxottica-license-agreement/ |title=Swarovski and EssilorLuxottica announce a ten-year licensing agreement |date=6 December 2022 |access-date=25 September 2023}}{{cite news |title=EssilorLuxottica: Swarovski and EssilorLuxottica announce a ten-year licensing agreement |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/essilorluxottica-swarovski-essilorluxottica-announce-ten-070000305.html?guccounter=1 |access-date=25 September 2023 |publisher=Yahoo! Finance |date=6 December 2022}}
• Tiffany & Co.
• Tory Burch
• Valentino{{cite web |url=http://wwd.com/accessories-news/eyewear/valentino-luxottica-license-eyewear-10365275/ |title=WWD: Valentino and Luxottica Sign Licensing Agreement |date=23 February 2016 |access-date=28 April 2017}}
• Versace}}

These brands are sold in the company's own shops, as well as to independent distributors such as department stores, duty-free shops, and opticians.

Luxottica Retail has about 9,100 retail locations{{cite web |url=http://www.luxottica.com/sites/luxottica.com/files/luxottica_group_relazione_finanziaria_annuale_2017_eng_20180328.pdf|title=Annual Report 2017|access-date=19 April 2018}} in the United States, Latin America, Canada, India, China, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and United Arab Emirates. The headquarters of the retail division is in Mason, Ohio, United States (North America). Their retail banners include the following:{{cite web |url=http://annualreview2014.luxottica.com/en/luxottica-group/distribution |title=Annual Review 2014 |access-date=12 June 2015 |archive-date=19 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150519072128/http://annualreview2014.luxottica.com/en/luxottica-group/distribution |url-status=dead }}

{{columns-list|colwidth=15em|

• Sunglass Hut
• Apex by Sunglass Hut
• Sunglass Outfitters by Sunglass Hut (locations within Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's stores)
• Spectacle Hut
• LensCrafters
• Clearly.ca
• Pearle Vision
• Target Optical
• OPSM
• Vision Express
• ILORI
• EyeMed Vision Care
• Optical Shop of Aspen
• Laubman & Pank
• GMO
• Oliver Peoples
• Alain Mikli
• Oakley
• David Clulow
• Glasses.com
• Econópticas
• Paris De Gaulle
• John Lewis Opticians (in Partnership with John Lewis and Partners department stores)
• Salmoiraghi e Viganò{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/luxottica-ma-salmoiraghivigano-idUSI6N1DO00J |title=Reuters: Luxottica buys remaining 63.2 pct of Salmoiraghi & Vigano |website=Reuters |date=25 November 2016 |access-date=28 April 2017}}
• Óticas Carol
• VistaSì
• Ray-Ban }}

Luxottica is the largest optical retailer in the United States, with 7.3% of US retail sales in 2015.{{cite web |url=http://mobile.visionmonday.com/CMSDocuments/2017/05/coverstory_VM051616.pdf |title=Top 50 list |date=2017 |website= mobile.visionmonday.com|access-date=2020-03-30}} With its merger with Essilor in 2018 the company owns Coastal/Clearly, an online contacts and glasses retail giant bought in 2014 that ships to over 200 countries beside its original North American market.{{Citation needed|date=February 2023}}

Luxottica also owns EyeMed Vision Care, a managed vision care organization in the United States.{{cite web|url=http://www.eyemedvisioncare.com/about/position.html |title=Our Position in the Industry |publisher=EyeMed Vision Care|access-date=10 August 2011}} As of 2014, it is the second-largest vision benefits company in the United States.[http://www.luxottica.com/en/activities/managed_vision_care/ "Activities: Managed Vision Care"], Luxottica website{{cite news|title=Sticker shock: Why are glasses so expensive?|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57527151/sticker-shock-why-are-glasses-so-expensive/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008062032/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57527151/sticker-shock-why-are-glasses-so-expensive/|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 October 2012|newspaper=60 Minutes|publisher=CBS News|date=7 October 2012|access-date=19 October 2012}}{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/agoodman/2014/07/16/theres-more-to-ray-ban-and-oakley-than-meets-the-eye/ |title=Forbes: There's More To Ray-Ban And Oakley Than Meets The Eye|website=Forbes |access-date= 31 March 2015}}

Luxottica is affiliated with the charitable organization OneSight, formed in 1988.{{Cite web |title=Charity Navigator - Rating for OneSight |url=https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/311385607 |access-date=2022-12-24 |website=www.charitynavigator.org}} In August 2018, Luxottica restored Accademia Bridge in Venice.{{Cite news |last=FashionNetwork.com |title=Luxottica completa il restauro del Ponte dell'Accademia a Venezia |language=it |work=FashionNetwork.com |url=http://it.fashionnetwork.com/news/Luxottica-completa-il-restauro-del-Ponte-dell-Accademia-a-Venezia,1009186.html#.W5dwrkYzbIU |access-date=2018-09-11}} In March 2022, EssilorLuxottica announced the launch of the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation to unify the group's philanthropic efforts, primarily providing vision services to underserved communities.{{Cite web |title= |url=https://www.eyecarebusiness.com/news/2022/launch-of-the-onesight-essilorluxottica-foundation |access-date=2022-12-24 |website=www.eyecarebusiness.com}}

The company has been criticized for the high price of its brand-name glasses, such as Ray-Ban, Oakley, and several others. A 2012 60 Minutes segment focused on whether the company's extensive holdings in the industry were used to keep prices high. Luxottica owns not only a large portfolio of brands (over a dozen{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/anaswanson/2014/09/10/meet-the-four-eyed-eight-tentacled-monopoly-that-is-making-your-glasses-so-expensive/#1d0205726b66|title=Meet the Four-Eyed, Eight-Tentacled Monopoly That is Making Your Glasses So Expensive|first=Ana|last=Swanson|website=Forbes }}) such as Ray-Ban and Oakley but also retailers such as Sunglass Hut, Lenscrafters and Oliver Peoples, the optical departments at Target, and (formerly) Sears, as well as key eye insurance groups including the second largest glasses insurance firm in the US, EyeMed. It has been accused of operating a complete monopoly on the optical industry and overcharging for its products; for example, temporarily dropping then-competitor Oakley from its frame design list, then, when the company stock crashed, purchasing the company, then increasing the prices of its Ray-Ban sunglasses. In addition, it has been argued that, by owning the vision insurance company EyeMed, it also controls part of the buyers' market as well.

The company has said that the market is highly competitive, and that their frames account for ≈10% of sales worldwide and ≈20% in the United States.{{cite web|url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/does-luxottica-own-80-of-the-eyeglass-industry/|title=FACT CHECK: Does Luxottica Own 80% of the Eyeglass Industry?|date=20 September 2016 }} In 2017, their share of the prescription lens market was 41%.{{cite web |last1=Pollock |first1=Ian |title=Why the merger of Essilor and Luxottica matters |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-38899892 |website=BBC News |access-date=23 October 2024 |date=16 February 2017}} Euromonitor International estimated that Luxottica's market share was 14% worldwide, with the second-largest company in the industry, Essilor, holding a 13% market share. The third-largest player was Johnson & Johnson, with a 3.9% market share. In October 2018, Luxottica and Essilor merged into a single company, EssilorLuxottica, which now occupies nearly 30% of the global market share and represents almost a billion pairs of lenses and frames sold annually.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/may/10/the-invisible-power-of-big-glasses-eyewear-industry-essilor-luxottica|title=The spectacular power of Big Lens | The long read|first=Sam|last=Knight|newspaper=The Guardian |date=10 May 2018|via=www.theguardian.com}}

Despite not owning most of the market, the company has considerable price-setting power. It uses "spiff money", financial incentives to reward other industry players who co-operate with it, and has repeatedly driven companies that competed with it on price out of business, crashing their market share and stock price, then buying them out. It has used a variety of techniques, including compelling retailers to drop suppliers and making imitations of competitor's products. It also funds university chairs of opthamology and is influential in professional associations.{{cite news |last1=Knight |first1=Sam |title=The spectacular power of Big Lens |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/may/10/the-invisible-power-of-big-glasses-eyewear-industry-essilor-luxottica |access-date=23 October 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=10 May 2018}}

The HBO series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver has criticized the company as a prominent instance of corporate consolidation,{{cite web|url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=00wQYmvfhn4

|date=24 September 2017

|title=Corporate Consolidation: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

|website=YouTube

}} as has the TruTV series Adam Ruins Everything.{{Cite web |last=Cave |first=James |date=2016-09-14 |title=Turns Out A Single Company Controls Several Of The Outlets Where You Buy Eyeglasses |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/luxottica-monopoly_n_57d98fd4e4b0fbd4b7bce1d3 |access-date=2022-08-30 |website=Huffington Post}}

In 2019, LensCrafters founder E. Dean Butler spoke to the Los Angeles Times, admitting that Luxottica's dominance of the eyewear industry had resulted in price markups of nearly 1,000%. In the interview, Butler noted "You can get amazingly good frames, with a Warby Parker level of quality, for $4 to $8. For $15, you can get designer-quality frames, like what you'd get from Prada." When told that some eyeglasses cost as much as $800 in the United States, Butler remarked, "I know. It's ridiculous. It's a complete rip-off."{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-glasses-lenscrafters-luxottica-monopoly-20190305-story.html|title=How badly are we being ripped off on eyewear? Former industry execs tell all|last=Lazarus|first=David|website=Los Angeles Times|date=5 March 2019 |access-date=2019-06-18}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/3/6/18253555/eyeglasses-cost-lenscrafters-essilor-luxottica|title=Glasses can have a markup of 1,000%. Two former LensCrafters executives revealed why.|last=Lieber|first=Chavie|date=2019-03-06|website=Vox|access-date=2019-06-18}}Engineering a Monopoly: How to not get ripped off on your next pair of eyeglasses https://interestingengineering.com/how-not-to-get-ripped-off-on-your-next-pair-of-eyeglasses

The list of Luxottica shareholders with more than 2% of holdings, December 2014.{{Cite web|url=http://www.consob.it/mainen/documenti/assetti_proprietari/semestre2-2014/112887_Az.html?filedate=23/12/2014&sem=/documenti/assetti_proprietari/semestre2-2014/112887_Az.html&docid=0&link=Pie-chart+Capitale+ordinario%253D%252Fdocumenti%252Fassetti%252Fsemestre2-2014%252F112887_TOrdDich.html%253B+Pie-chart+Capitale+votante%253D%252Fdocumenti%252Fassetti%252Fsemestre2-2014%252F112887_TVotDich.html&nav=false|title=Azionisti rilevanti di LUXOTTICA GROUP SPA|publisher=Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa|access-date=27 December 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227170940/http://www.consob.it/mainen/documenti/assetti_proprietari/semestre2-2014/112887_Az.html?filedate=23%2F12%2F2014&sem=%2Fdocumenti%2Fassetti_proprietari%2Fsemestre2-2014%2F112887_Az.html&docid=0&link=Pie-chart+Capitale+ordinario%253D%252Fdocumenti%252Fassetti%252Fsemestre2-2014%252F112887_TOrdDich.html%253B+Pie-chart+Capitale+votante%253D%252Fdocumenti%252Fassetti%252Fsemestre2-2014%252F112887_TVotDich.html&nav=false|archive-date=27 December 2014}}

• Delfin S.à r.l. a company controlled by Leonardo Del Vecchio 66.485%
• Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas (as ADR depository) 7.466%
• Giorgio Armani 4.955%

• Essilor
• Safilo

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