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May 30, 2016May 19, 2026

Safilo and Jimmy Choo Renew Licence Agreement Through 2023

Safilo Group and Jimmy Choo, the luxury fashion brand, announce the early renewal of their agreement for the design, manufacturing and distribution of the Jimmy Choo Eyewear collection.

The agreement has now been extended to December 31, 2023.

The new agreement also includes the launch of a Jimmy Choo men’s collection, with a first capsule edition to be presented in the brand’s boutiques and in a global selection of the most prestigious optical stores, starting from January 2018.

Click HERE for the full press release.

May 30, 2016April 24, 2018

Dr. Michael Chaiken is the New President of IRIS The Visual Group

IRIS The Visual Group appointed Dr. Michael Chaiken as president at a shareholders’ meeting held Friday, May 27, 2016.

The new president himself confirmed the news, of which he was informed the day before, in a phone interview with clipinfo.ca. Since the sudden death in July 2014 of Dr. Francis Jean, founder and president of the IRIS Group, the company was operating under the leadership of a committee of seven vice-presidents.

“I’m honoured by this appointment and intend to ensure that IRIS continues to grow according to the values that Dr. Jean believed in,” says Dr. Chaiken. “Our objective is to hold 20% of the market share in Canada, which is about 400 to 500 stores.” IRIS presently has about 150.

Dr. Michael Chaiken joined IRIS in 2008 and held the position of Vice-President of Regulatory Affairs. He is a former president of the Quebec Order of Optometrists and a former Chairman of the Canadian Optometric Regulatory Authorities (CORA), which he helped found in 1995.

For the full press release, click HERE.

May 27, 2016May 20, 2026

Stand Out from the Rest with Finch

Vinyl Factory launches Finch. This vintage frame combines acetate and stainless steel, and features ceramic nosepads and Vinyl Factory signed flat mirror lenses. A precious model, issued in limited edition.

www.optimaninc.com

May 27, 2016May 19, 2026

Marcolin and Dsquared2 Renew Licence Agreement

Marcolin Group and Dsquared2 announced on May 24^th the early renewal of an exclusive license agreement for the design, manufacture and worldwide distribution of Dsquared2 sun and optical eyewear.

The agreement extends the current partnership duration until 2021.

Click HERE for the full press release.

May 26, 2016April 24, 2018

First Successful Skin-To-Eye Stem Cell Transplant

Researchers from RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe, Japan, presented results for a patient one year after the first ever skin-to-eye stem cell transplant at the Association for Research in Vision and Optometry (ARVO) Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington.

The 70-year-old patient had wet AMD that was unresponsive to other treatment methods. Skin from the patient’s arm was modified into induced pluripotent stem cells, which are stem cells generated directly from adult cells, then transformed into retinal pigment epithelium. This sheet of RPE cells were then transplanted into the back of the patient’s eye.

One year out from the surgery, the patient’s visual acuity was maintained at the same level (18/200) without the use of anti-VEGF treatments, and the patient’s Visual Function Questionnaire (VFQ-25) score improved from 40.7 to 58.3.

Further information:”Transplantation of Autologous induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Derived Retinal Pigment Epithelium Cell Sheets for Exudative Age Related Macular Degeneration : A Pilot Clinical Study”

Safilo and Jimmy Choo Renew Licence Agreement Through 2023

Dr. Michael Chaiken is the New President of IRIS The Visual Group

Stand Out from the Rest with Finch

Marcolin and Dsquared2 Renew Licence Agreement

First Successful Skin-To-Eye Stem Cell Transplant

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