Luxottica Retail Honored with Presidential Award

Tuesday November 16, 4:48 pm ET

Ron Brown Award Recognizes Give the Gift of Sight Foundation


MASON, Ohio, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Today in Washington D.C., Secretary of Commerce Donald L. Evans presented the Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership to Luxottica Retail, home to multiple optical, managed vision care and retail brands, including LensCrafters. The company was recognized for its Give the Gift of Sight Foundation, a program that has provided free eye care to more than three million people in local communities and developing countries. The program aims to provide the Gift of Sight to seven million people worldwide by 2008.

Fully funded by the private sector, the Ron Brown Award is the only Presidential Award that recognizes companies for outstanding achievement in employee and community relations. Sponsored and managed by The Conference Board, one of the world's leading research and business membership organizations, the Award was established by President Clinton in honor of the late U.S. Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown.

Based on the belief that vision is a basic human right -- not a luxury -- Luxottica Retail's Give the Gift of Sight program provides free eye care and glasses to people in need around the world. To date, associate volunteers, doctors and vendors have traveled on 80 Gift of Sight international missions -- delivering recycled glasses collected and processed in LensCrafters stores to developing countries in partnership with Lions Clubs International. In North America, the program provides free eye exams and new glasses on two Vision Vans and through store voucher programs. Local charitable partners help choose candidates based on visual and financial need. One of the biggest Gift of Sight programs, Sight Night, takes place on Halloween, when Gift of Sight volunteers, community groups, students, and others collect used glasses while trick-or-treating. The glasses collected are given to people in need on Gift of Sight international missions.

"I am proud to present Luxottica Retail with the Ron Brown leadership award this year," said Secretary Evans. "Luxottica Retail has demonstrated real vision in going above and beyond what is required to serve the needs of the community. The company exemplifies what it means to be responsible corporate citizens and its efforts are to be commended." "We are honored to receive this prestigious award," said Valerio Giacobbi, Executive Vice President of Luxottica Group. "We are proud of our volunteer associates doctors and vendors who support the Gift of Sight programs. We appreciate our customers who generously donate used eyeglasses. We look forward to growing the Gift of Sight programs and providing eye exams and glasses to people in need throughout the world."