Why the $49 billion merger of eyewear giants Luxottica and Essilor worries some antitrust experts

  • 📰 CNBC
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 32 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 16%
  • Publisher: 72%

Ireland News News

Ireland Ireland Latest News,Ireland Ireland Headlines

Since its founding in 1961, Luxottica has transformed glasses from a necessary medical device to a fashion statement. It owns several popular brands, like Ray-Ban and Oakley, manufactures frames for dozens of luxury fashion houses, owns several glasses retail chains, and even operates the vision insurance company EyeMed. And in 2017, Luxottica announced a merger with Essilor, a French lenses manufacturer, leading some experts to question whether it has too much power.

Since its founding in 1961, Luxottica has transformed glasses from a necessary medical device to a fashion statement.

It owns several popular brands, like Ray-Ban and Oakley, manufactures frames for dozens of luxury fashion houses, owns several eyeglass retail chains, and even operates the vision insurance company EyeMed. Its vertically integrated strategy helped it pull in $10 billion in sales in 2018 and control 40% and 76% of the U.S. glasses and sunglasses market, respectively. But this strategy has also raised eyebrows among antitrust experts, who worry the company has too much power over the industry. The concern rose in 2017, when Luxottica announced a merger with the French lenses manufacturer Essilor worth $49 billion.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.

mehdimkinsi

We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 12. in İE

Ireland Ireland Latest News, Ireland Ireland Headlines