Blog

April 1, 2020April 1, 2020

Trading Update on COVID-19, Outlook 2020 Withdrawn and Suspension of Share Buyback Program

EssilorLuxottica announces that in light of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the Company’s outlook for 2020 published on March 6, 2020 is no longer valid.

In January and February, the company delivered solid growth, in line with its full year targets. Business conditions began deteriorating in March as the virus shifted from impacting predominantly China to entire regions of Europe and North America. During the second quarter, the Company expects revenue to further decelerate with a material impact on profitability. At present, the Company has insufficient visibility to provide an assessment of the full scope of COVID-19 impact, as the situation remains volatile.

Essilor has temporarily closed all its industrial sites in France. Production continuity is ensured thanks to the company’s worldwide network of interconnected plants and laboratories. This includes all production facilities in China, which are now back to full speed and have spare capacity. E-commerce activities are growing with no back orders.

Luxottica’s manufacturing plants have temporarily suspended their activity in Italy and other smaller locations, while they are back to normal levels in China. Stores in Europe and North America are complying with the temporary lockdown measures that local governments are putting in place, while Company’s e-commerce platforms continue to operate globally.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the likelihood of prolonged uncertainty, EssilorLuxottica has decided to stop the implementation of its share buyback program announced on March 17, 2020.

Since March 17, 2020, 1.55 million shares for an average price of Euro 102.54 have been repurchased.

For the full trading update press release, click HERE.

Click HERE for the press release on the suspension of the share buyback program.

April 1, 2020May 20, 2026

Lode 2 from Morel: Studied Design with a Clean Style

Lode 2, the new concept of the Öga Collection, will delight the most demanding users by offering them eyewear with a contemporary style and fluid, clean lines. These prim-looking frames are, in fact, very carefully engineered. They pay tribute to functional design, the DNA of the Öga Collection, featuring a special hinge construction, double-coloured wire and stepped tip connection.

Distributed by Lanctôt: www.rlanctot.com

March 30, 2020March 30, 2020

FYidoctors Provides Support to Members for Online COPE-accredited CE

FYi doctors and CRO JOURNAL are pleased to announce a new program that supports optometrist members of the FYidoctors network to achieve Category A COPE-accredited CE hours at a member discount through the CRO (Clinical & Refractive Optometry) online CE platform (www.crojournal.com).

The FYidoctors member discount program is available immediately and will be in effect until August 31, 2020.

FYidoctors are the first optometry group to take advantage of CRO’s member network affiliation program. Through a simple member sign-on process, FYIdoctors will be automatically enrolled in the program to achieve the discounts.

FYidoctors Chair and CEO, AL Ulsifer, said, “I cannot help but feel tremendous pride that in times where doctors are now wondering how they will pay the bills, that many want to use this time to improve their skills as optometrists. We are pleased to work with CRO Journal to provide a timely support system for our doctors to continue to improve their skill set and meet their regulated CE requirements.”

“We are honoured to be working with the FYi doctor group as the first optometry network to leverage CRO member program benefits. Our online CE technology platform makes it easy to scale up and integrate member networks. We are pleased to make this contribution to the profession during these trying times.” said David Pietrobon, Publisher of CRO (Clinical & Refractive Optometry) Journal.

What Does CRO JOURNAL Offer?
CROJOURNAL.com offers category A COPE-accredited CE courses starting at $17.50 per 1-hour course. There are also a several complimentary courses available. A member account is free and no credit card is required to register. Members may purchase pre-paid packages of 5 or 10 CE credit hours at value prices or purchase a premium subscription.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW CRO Online.

CRO Group Membership inquires may be addressed to:
David Pietrobon, B.Sc. (Hons), MBA, CRO Publisher

EMAIL: dpietrobon@vuepoint.ca
PHONE: 1 (226) 780 6871

March 29, 2020March 29, 2020

Webinar Series Provides Expert Advice to Practices

Eye Care Business Canada (www.eyecarebusiness.ca) is pleased to announce a collaboration with BMO Bank of Montreal and ROI Corporation to bring expert advise to eye care practices experiencing difficulties created as a result of the COVID-19 crisis and related shut-down orders.

The webinar series is entitled, “It’s Time to Mend the Nets”, and builds from the notion that when seas are stormy and its not possible to set out to sea that there are plenty of tasks that can be attended to so that you can return stronger than ever, ready to meet the challenges ahead.

For more information visit Eye Care Business Canada.

The three webinars will bring experts in the fields of Human resources, financial/banking and legal field to discuss how practitioners can address some of the critical concerns. The webinars will be live and the experts will take attendee questions.

Keeping Employees Engaged and Motivated: (April 2nd 3PM EDT)
Nava Sarooshi, President of MDP Personnel, will discuss culture and actions required to keep teams calm and motivated.

Managing the Practice’s Financial Health During Troubled Times (April 6th 3PM EDT)
Romal Bryce, Head of Healthcare Initiatives BMO Bank of Montreal and Jackie Joachim, COO or ROI Corporation will help attendees understand the potential impact on the practice value and and tips on managing the financial risk associated with office closures.

Key Legal Issues Affecting Practice Owners (April 8th 3PM EDT)
Artem Kobzev, of TaxChambers LLP will look at all the legal factors that affect your clinic. This session will discuss the importance of key documents such as associate and employee agreements, partnerships, incorporating and leases.

The webinar series will be co-hosted by Eyes Wide Open Podcast host, Dr. Glen Chiasson and Jackie Joachim.

Full details and links to register for the webinars are available at eyecarebusiness.ca.

March 26, 2020March 24, 2020

Recycling Project Sets Sights on Eyeglasses

Seneca has taken another stride towards sustainability by launching an initiative that not only prevents used eyeglasses from ending up in landfills, but also allows them to be repurposed as an educational resource, recycled and then donated to those in need.

iSight, a student-led eyeglass recycling initiative from the Opticianry diploma program, was unveiled Tuesday at the Optical Trade Show 2020 at Newnham Campus. Under the pilot project, which is supported by Sustainable Seneca with plans to expand to all campuses, students are asked to bring in glasses they no longer use and drop them in designated collection bins on campus.

“I realized that most of my friends had four to five pairs of eyeglasses sitting uselessly at home while more than one billion people around the world lack access to these resources,” said Opticianry student Phi Au Thi Tran, who spearheaded iSight. “These people include children with the risk of missing their education, the elderly who have lost their sight as they age and countless others who are unable to attain success at work as they don’t have proper vision aides.”

In addition, Ms. Tran says changing needs and fashion trends often leave people with unused eyeglasses, which are difficult to recycle as they are made with a combination of materials.

“The project is an opportunity for us to make an impact on other people’s lives by paying it forward and to give the gift of sight to those who can’t afford to buy eyeglasses,” she said.

iSight is the brainchild of Opticianry student Phi Au Thi Tran, who says eyeglass recycling is an opportunity for students to give the gift of sight.

The discarded eyeglasses will be used by Opticianry students to get more hands-on experience in areas such as reading prescription numbers. After that, they will be collected by a voluntary organization, sorted out for sizes and labelled to be sent to India and Africa free of cost for distribution among those in need.

“This project is very close to my heart as my own father had lost his eyesight. It is a phenomenal idea,” said Prof. Shan Khan, who has worked closely with Ms. Tran on the project. “It is great to have our students get involved in initiatives that help them in their education while at the same time helping others.”