Essilor Has Purchased and Now Owns (Insert Company Name Here)

[MakeOptics]

Essilor bought Signet, Zeiss's suit against signet resulted in the Kodak unique being pulled and significant damages awarded to Zeiss. Zeiss turns around and gives E permission to use their patents to continue offering the Unique and other lens offerings in exchange for ARC technology. HOYA purchased Seiko Epson for the patents for freeform. Shamir was bought by E because shamir was using satis formulas for their AR stack in europe. Transitions got their hands slapped by the FTC for the way they stifle the photochromic business in the US, transitions is a joint partnership between E and PPG.

The list goes on and on and on. Use what's good for business and your patients and let the big conglomerates work out their own deals independent of your practices loyalty. Don't fall for the crap line "we are independent", its old, tired and has very little value.

[sharpstick777]

Polycore:
CHARENTON-LE-PONT, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 08, 2013-- Regulatory News:
Essilor International (Paris:EI) has announced the acquisition of a 50% stake in Polycore Optical, one of the world's leading sun lens producers.
Founded in 1976, Singapore-based Polycore develops and manufactures a wide range of plano sun lenses and prescription sun and clear lenses, which are sold in Asia, Europe and the United States. The company, which has 2,200 employees and revenue of around EUR30 million, is an Essilor supplier. It has two production plants, in Indonesia and in Malaysia, and three prescription laboratories, including an export laboratory, in Indonesia and the Netherlands.
Commenting on the acquisition, Hubert Sagnières, Essilor's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said : "This agreement is in line with our eye protection and visual health strategy. Polycore's production capacity and facilities will add to Essilor's existing sun lens capabilities, mainly located in our BNL plants in France and at Gentex in the United States. This new partnership will allow us to offer a wider, more comprehensive range of sun products and materials, and to increase the penetration of high-performance sun lenses."
Based in France, BNL manufactures premium tinted or polarized sun lenses, mainly in polycarbonate. The Gentex subsidiary has a plant in the United States that is recognized for its expertise in the production of sun lens, particularly for curved frames.
With their ability to enhance visual comfort and clarity by protecting the eye, sun lenses form an integral part of Essilor's mission of improving the vision of 4.2 billion people in the world, of whom 2.5 billion do not have corrective eyewear. The sun lens segment is growing around twice as fast as the corrective lens market.
In the prescription clear lens segment, the acquisition will also allow Essilor to step up its expansion in Indonesia, where one of Polycore's prescription laboratories serves the domestic market. With fewer than one in five Indonesian residents benefitting from effectively corrected vision, the market is one of the world's most underpenetrated. There is significant growth potential, especially for medium and high index lenses.
Polycore is fully consolidated as from July 1, 2013.
About Essilor
The world's leading ophthalmic optics company, Essilor designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of lenses to improve and protect eyesight. Its corporate mission is to enable everyone around the world to access lenses that meet his or her unique vision requirements. To support this mission, the Company allocates more than EUR150 million to research and innovation every year, in a commitment to continuously bring new, more effective products to market. Essilor's flagship brands are Varilux(R) , Crizal(R) , Definity(R) , Xperio(R) , Optifog(TM) and Foster Grant(R) . It also develops and markets equipment, instruments and services for eyecare professionals.
Essilor reported consolidated revenue of approximately EUR5 billion in 2012 and employs around 50,700 people. It operates in some 100 countries with 22 plants, more than 400 prescription laboratories and edging facilities, as well as several research and development centers around the world.
For more information, please visit
www.essilor.com.
The Essilor share trades on the NYSE Euronext Paris market and is included in the Euro Stoxx 50 and CAC 40 indices.
Codes and symbols: ISIN: FR0000121667; Reuters: ESSI.PA; Bloomberg: EI:FP.

CONTACT: Essilor Investor Relations and Financial Communication

[retep]

Next one is Classic Optical ....

http://www.visionmonday.com/ViewCont...3/Default.aspx

[bigeyejim]

Either Essilor will buy out PPG, or PPG Essilor, there is a divorce in the works after 22 years of marriage.

Guess who will probably own Transitions in whole.

PITTSBURGH— PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) announced today that it is currently in discussions withEssilor International (ESSI.PA) relating to the future of PPG’s and Essilor’s joint venture, Transitions Optical, a leading provider of photochromic lenses to optical manufacturers and a consolidated subsidiary of PPG. PPG is the majority shareholder in Transitions Optical, which was formed in 1990, holding a 51 percent interest in the joint venture companies. Essilor holds the remaining 49 percent interest and is also the largest customer of Transitions Optica

"And then that Happened!" (a quote from 5th and Main)

[sharpstick777]

Essilor Acquires Katz & Klein and VIP Optical

Friday, October 25, 2013 12:33 AM

CHARENTON-LE-PONT, France— Essilor International (Reuters: ESSI.PA) announced yesterday in its quarterly financial results that it has acquired two U.S. wholesale optical laboratories, Katz & Klein and VIP Optical.

Katz & Klein, located in Sacramento, Calif., generates annual revenue of around $4.0 million, according to Essilor. The lab, which was founded in 1937 by Harry Katz and Russell Klein, was owned by Mike Francesconi and Corrine Hood. Hood, who served as president of the lab, has retired, and Francesconi remains as vice president.

VIP Optical, located in Linden, N.J., was under private ownership. The lab generates annual revenue of $3.9 million, Essilor said.

Details of the transactions were not announced.The two lab acquisitions follow Essilor’s recent purchase of Classic Optical in Youngstown, Ohio

[sharpstick777]

Next one is Classic Optical ....

http://www.visionmonday.com/ViewCont...3/Default.aspx

Posting article in case the delete or move the post:

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio— Essilor has purchased a majority interest in Classic Optical Laboratories, a Youngstown wholesale laboratory that specializes in managing high-volume contracts for insurance organizations, managed care organizations, union organizations and trust funds, educational institutions, correctional facilities, manufacturing plants, and federal and state government programs, VMail has learned. The transaction closed July 1; the purchase price was not announced.

The Friedkin family, including company president Dawn Friedkin, retains a minority interest in Classic Optical, an Essilor spokesperson told VMail. The spokesperson said Classic Optical will be run as “an individual entity,” and the company’s management team, headed by Friedkin, will remain in place.

“Managed care is a fast-growing part of the market, as managed care continues to grow, this partnership between Classic and Essilor will further enhance our offering to this segment of the market,” the spokesperson said.

Classic Optical was founded in 1970. The company, which employs 170 people and produces more than 3,000 pairs of prescription lenses, will generate net sales of $20 million in 2013, according to Vision Monday estimates. It was ranked tenth among independent U.S. wholesale laboratories in VM’s 2012 Top Labs Report. - See more at: http://www.visionmonday.com/latest-n....w8UwYsPt.dpuf

[Judy Canty]

Deleted.

[optical24/7]

As in Costa del mar?

[EyeCare Rich]

Huh????

[LENNY]

Why would they need Costa!?!?

[braheem24]

Essilor Agrees to Acquire Costa, the Fastest Growing Performance Sunglass Brand in the United States

http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-...991.html?dsk=y

I'm embarrassed to post a WSJ link.

[braheem24]

Why would they need Costa!?!?

They're very popular in the boating community for their polarization, A foot in the door for Xperio?

[jpways]

Why would they need Costa!?!?

I'd have to assume it has to do with Costa's polarized technology and they were probably blocked from just buying those patents and were forced to buy the frame company to, but am I mistaken in saying that this is Essilor's first frame company? And what's going to happen to the frames are we going to see an announcement in the coming weeks that Marchon or Luxottica is buying that license from Essilor?

[braheem24]

am I mistaken in saying that this is Essilor's first frame company?

Essilor owns FGX

http://www.fgxi.com/brands/

[LENNY]

They also have their RX lab....

FGX quality of frames is about the same as Costa. :)

[braheem24]

This is from 2009, If someone were to make a google map of current acquisitions it would look much fuller

[sharpstick777]

am I mistaken in saying that this is Essilor's first frame company?

Essilor has made frames since 1955, Logo Paris was their big US presence for many years, but they pulled out of the US frame market (mostly) many years ago, however, they have inroads here and there with companies they own.... like Costa.

[JHilligan]

I find it really interesting that I took 95K a month worth of lab business to Walman. Essilor OSI didn't even call to enquire about it. Now the Varilux people are scrambling for us to still use their products since Walman is Essilors largest customer! No way no how will Lux/Essilor will get our business. Everyone pays Zeiss or Seiko ( now Hoya owned) for progressive designs. These are the 2 companies to use!

[LENNY]

I find it really interesting that I took 95K a month worth of lab business to Walman. Essilor OSI didn't even call to enquire about it. Now the Varilux people are scrambling for us to still use their products since Walman is Essilors largest customer! No way no how will Lux/Essilor will get our business. Everyone pays Zeiss or Seiko ( now Hoya owned) for progressive designs. These are the 2 companies to use!

Essilor is too busy cutting SV lenses into frames that they do not sell. Making pennies for lenses and edging from eyemed!

[sharpstick777]

Rumor has it Essilor has acquired Gold Optical Lab in Fayetteville NC, and will roll their operation into Essilor's nearby Premier Optical lab.

[hasheel]

Gary is denying that rumor.

[misstara007]

CSC Lab in Watsonville, CA

[sharpstick777]

Gary is denying that rumor.

its now in the news

http://www.ecpmag.com/1webmagazine/2...uires_Labs.asp

[Lee H]

its now in the news

http://www.ecpmag.com/1webmagazine/2...uires_Labs.asp

That happened about 6 years ago if I'm not mistaken:

http://photonics.com/Article.aspx?AID=31787

[optical24/7]

Just updating the list; Coastal Contacts.

http://www.essilor.com/en/Press/News...ages/Home.aspx