Blog

March 24, 2021March 24, 2021

Update on Proposed Acquisition of GrandVision

EssilorLuxottica confirms that the European Commission has cleared the acquisition of GrandVision after a long in-depth review largely impacted by consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The clearance is conditioned to the divestment of some optical retail businesses in Belgium, the Netherlands and Italy for an overall number of approximately 350 stores.

In particular:

In Belgium, the GrandOptical chain and its 35 stores will be sold but without the brand name. The purchaser will have a license while rebranding these stores to its own choice of name.
In Italy, the merged entity will divest a total of 174 stores, which includes the whole of EssilorLuxottica’s VistaSì chain together with 72 stores from the “GrandVision by” chain. The VistaSì brand will be transferred and the “GrandVision by” stores will either be rebranded to VistaSì or to the purchaser’s own brand.
In the Netherlands, 142 stores from the EyeWish chain will be sold, together with the brand name. The merged entity will keep some stores from this chain and will have to rebrand them under a new name.

The outcome of the proposed transaction is still depending on the sign off from the competition authorities in Chile and Turkey, as well as the decisions regarding on-going litigations.

Click HERE for the full press release.

Georgian Helps Fill Urgent Need for Guide Dogs

The CNIB Foundation announces that Georgian has responded to the urgent need for guide dogs in Canada caused by the COVID-19 pandemic by sponsoring a dog for its entire working life.

With a strong sense of social responsibility to the community, Georgian and its employees nominate and vote on charitable organizations they’d like to support each year. CNIB Guide Dogs was chosen as a recipient in 2021.

Since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place last year, CNIB Guide Dogs has seen a 375% increase in interest and application for dogs. Travel restrictions have halted access to guide dogs from the United States, so Canadians who would normally travel to an American guide dog facility are no longer able to do so.

People with sight loss who have received guide dogs say the experience is nothing short of life changing. With a guide dog by their side, a Canadian who is blind or partially sighted can safely and confidently navigate the world – whether that means going to the grocery store to get essentials, travelling to and from work, or visiting family and friends when it’s safe to do so.

Click HERE for the full press release.

The New Blend Collection from Silhouette

Features smooth, minimalistic designs and a striking combination of high-end titanium and SPX^®+. The two high-tech materials blend effortlessly to create a look that is as exciting as it is charming. The frames come in a range of designs, combining expressive, classic style and casual flair.

Featured model: Blend 5555

Distributed by COS: canadianoptical.com

March 22, 2021March 22, 2021

Safilo North America Announces SAFILO LIVE Spring Expo

Safilo North America announces its next SAFILO LIVE virtual event entitled SAFILO LIVE Spring Expo. The new 30-minute virtual product showcase and selling event, focuses on some of Safilo’s most coveted Spring 2021 collections. It will premiere on Tuesday, March 30^th at 2pm EDT, with 24/7 “on demand” viewing access for days through April 9^th.

This is the company’s fourth installment of SAFILO LIVE, Safilo’s new online channel offering innovative virtual programming to its customers across the U.S., and now also Canada. Filmed in Safilo North America’s Secaucus, NJ headquarters using all Covid-19 proper safety protocols, these SAFILO LIVE “broadcasts” are produced with the aim of providing eye care professionals with unique content while providing a safe virtual shopping environment.

Formatted like a home shopping program, the episode will feature several Safilo hosts who will provide informative brand and product content, live models to showcase the eyewear, as well as a Q&A session to answer viewer questions. Once viewers sign up to watch the episode, the registration link can be used to watch the program live or at their viewing convenience through April 9th.

Safilo North America customers can register to watch this episode via www.mysafilocanada.com.

Click HERE for the full press release.

March 22, 2021May 19, 2026

MIDO 2021 Goes Digital

Today the President of MIDO, Giovanni Vitaloni, met online all the stakeholders of the trade show – exhibitors, buyers, visitors, opticians and journalists –to announce that, at the moment, the situation does not allow MIDO 2021 to go ahead as planned and that from June 5 to 7, MIDO will move online. The in-person edition of the show is postponed to 2022, from February 12 to 14.

“It’s now more than a year since the beginning of the pandemic in Italy and regrettably, the public health situation, not only in our country, is still critical – began Vitaloni. The infection rate is still high, and the variants and the problems related to vaccine production and distribution have caused additional difficulties. International travel is currently limited; last October we were optimistic about the coming months, but the reality is proving to be very different. Trade shows, at present, are still banned”.

“We have therefore decided – continued the President – not to wait any longer and to make another tough decision, dictated by our sense of responsibility towards exhibitors and visitors, because we believe that MIDO must continue to be an event that stands out on the world stage as unique, aware of its role as the driving force of the economy in this sector. Our main objective is to safeguard the international character of the event and the show itself, to promote and enhance the eyewear industry and to create important business and meeting opportunities”.

Talking about the next in-person edition in February, Vitaloni stated: “MIDO 2022 will at last be an occasion for sharing the reconstruction, enthusiasm and energy which we are all striving to set in motion. (…) Obviously, once it is possible to hold in-person events again, we will not hesitate to do so.”

Lastly, Vitaloni recalled the event scheduled for June 5 to 7, 2021, which the team is working on to create a digital MIDO. In addition to the platform dedicated to exhibitors and buyers, this will also be a great event for the world industry, providing the opportunity to share projects and proposals, reassess the sector, analyze economic and social themes, discuss trends and new developments through high-profile figures and interactive events.

Click HERE for the full press release.