How EssilorLuxotitca has been positioning itself as a medtech

Besides a Bvlgari boutique, and adjacent to the Triumphal Arc, successful the Champs-Élysées avenue, successful Paris, lies GrandOptical’s flagship, an eyewear store of 600 quadrate meters distributed done 3 floors, with implicit 3.000 frames lined connected shelves. On crushed level are marque lines and immoderate licensed products, specified arsenic Prada and Giorgio Armani. On the archetypal level are children’s collections and a VIP lounge. In the 2nd level are the much exclusive lines, specified arsenic constricted variation Dolce & Gabanna models and Cartier pieces with aureate frames that surpass the 30.000 euros.

More than a store, GrandOptical is simply a awesome for the full beingness of EssilorLuxottica. The biggest institution successful its conception has a vertical organization, which ranges from worldly probe and improvement to last merchandise sales. The institution possesses 18.000 income points dispersed astir the world, among planetary multibrands specified arsenic GrandOptical itself, too backstage marque stores specified arsenic Ray-Ban and Oakley. In Brazil alone, the radical operates successful astir 1.600 income points, among which stands retired Óticas Carol, with 1.400 establishments.

Apresentação de produtos em loja: a companhia licencia armações de 29 grifes e produz lentes das marcas Varilux, Stellest e Xperio, entre outras (lentzwill/Divulgação)

GrandOptical’s Champs-Élysées code was made to lucifer a purchasing acquisition inspired by Parisian creation de-vivre – but matching luxury with plentifulness of technology. In the store, the lawsuit tin marque instrumentality imaginativeness exams with instrumentality that usage a predictive exemplary based connected AI, with greater diagnosis accuracy. Close to the main entrance, sellers show Ray-Ban Meta, the astute goggles with a bid of audiovisual resources, successful which the idiosyncratic tin grounds the situation and perceive to a podcast, among different features, with a dependable command. Recently, Oakley and Meta person besides announced different models with akin functions but turned to performance.

Technological Innovations

In aboriginal October, EXAME visited the company’s office successful Paris, going to merchandise improvement centers and talking to executives. More than simply offering lenses and frames from iconic brands, EssilorLuxottica positions itself progressively much arsenic a planetary medtech. Besides investing successful merchandise diversification, the institution has been integrating optical devices, objective diagnoses and artificial quality into the aforesaid ecosystem. A caller division, named Helix, was precocious made to unify these fronts.

⟶ €14 cardinal successful gross successful the archetypal fractional of 2025 | 7.3% gross maturation compared to the aforesaid play of the erstwhile twelvemonth | 150 ain brands, including lenses, frames and retail networks | 27 licensed manner brands for frames | 200,000 employees successful 150 countries | 18,000 stores | 560 cardinal lenses and 116 cardinal frames produced per twelvemonth | 650 operational facilities, including much than 50 lens probe and improvement centers | 1 cardinal radical benefited by the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation, the company's philanthropic limb | 90 cardinal radical received eyeglasses done spouse companies of the programme | 36,000 entree points created by the programme to service communities worldwide

EssilorLuxottica has implicit 50 R&D units astir the world. The institution has established 4 innovation pillars: grow attraction with a absorption connected medtech, boost style, marque glasses into a gateway to caller worlds and digitalize the manufacture from the bottommost up. “Our ngo is to research the narration betwixt the latest technological innovations and the radical that volition usage it, alteration method components into usable and desirable products”, says Alexandre Gourrard, innovation manager successful R&D. His team’s occupation is to behaviour ample standard multidisciplinary studies, from objective surveys to regular tests with glasses prototypes.

Currently, the group’s portfolio includes the lenses brands Essilor, Variluz, Crizal, -Eyezen, Stellest, and Xperio, too Transitions, which darken successful effect to sunlight. The institution has partnerships with companies specified arsenic Eastman Kodak and Nikon for the improvement for caller products. Another acting country is of lenses for aesculapian and ophthalmological equipment, with backstage brands specified asEssilor Instruments, Heidelberg Engineering, -Espancione Group, Satisloh and Humanware.

After Ray-Ban and Oakley’s partnerships with Meta, EssilorLuxottica is present introducing into the marketplace different merchandise which promises to alteration behaviors. At a archetypal glance, Nuance Audio looks similar communal acetate glasses. But wrong the somewhat thicker frames lies a proceeding instrumentality that tin crook up the measurement of surrounding voices. It is adjacent imaginable to take to item the dependable of the talker to whoever the idiosyncratic is looking astatine retired of the full environment, done an app oregon a distant controller. “Nuance was made for airy to mean proceeding loss”, affirms Giulia Stocco, ExilorLuxottica’s task manager. “We cognize determination is simply a large absorption for radical against wearing proceeding aids. The glasses assistance with this feeling of embarrassment.”

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The situation of bushed eyesight

The radical was formed successful 2018 done the fusion of 2 assemblage giants. The French Essilor, a lenses specialist, besides came from the associated forces of Essel and Silor, successful 1972. The Italian Luxottica was founded successful 1961 and became the person of framework production, with backstage brands specified arsenic Ray-Ban and Oakley and licensing for luxury brans specified arsenic Burberry and Tiffany. The institution made 14 cardinal euros successful profits during the archetypal semester of 2025, with 7,3% gross maturation successful narration to the aforesaid play of the erstwhile year.

The effect is chiefly owed to the bully show of EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), and Asia-Pacific regions. With truthful galore companies from varied segments, EssilorLuxottica faces the uncertainties of Donald Trump’s import tariffs. The radical presently owns factories and labs successful 20 countries. In Brazil, determination are 2 accumulation lines. Around 43% of gross comes from the American market, said planetary CEO Francesco Milleri, successful April this year. In the occasion, the enforcement considered moving a bigger portion of accumulation to the United States.

EssilorLuxottica operates 150 backstage brands, from lenses to frames and retail networks. It counts with 200.000 employees successful 150 countries and 650 operational units. Each year, it produces 560 cardinal lenses and 116 cardinal frames. One of their better-known lenses brands is the multifocal Varilux. Launched successful 1959, it is indicated to the correction of presbyopia. The word has a well-known meaning for those going done mid-life: bushed eyesight, trouble to absorption successful abbreviated distances. This is simply a immense market. Everyone, aft 45, volition person immoderate grade of presbyopia. Today, an estimated 1.9 cardinal radical person bushed eyes. “With colonisation aging, the inclination is that progressively much radical volition person eyesight issues”, affirms Valérie Parmentier, manager of the presbyopia and aging probe team. The section nether her bid counts with planetary partners specified arsenic the World Council of Optometry. “We are ever trying to recognize behaviour models, specified arsenic the existent excessive surface usage, to found caller attraction patterns.”

A existent situation for the institution is convincing costumers of the value of capable lenses. When its clip to marque caller glasses, the inclination is galore times to favour beauteous and luxurious frames. Varilux XR Series, launched successful 2023, was the archetypal developed with AI. This month, the institution is introducing Varilux Physio Extensee with the fist lenses from the brand’s integer enactment that volition besides beryllium customized.

It is an costly product, with an introduction terms successful Brazil of 2,600 reais, connected average. One of the existent branches of EssilorLuxottica is the OneSight Foundation, with has arsenic an nonsubjective “to  assistance eradicate atrocious and uncorrected eyesight by 2050.” The philanthropic enactment has already serviced implicit 1 cardinal radical successful needy communities astir the world, helping with immoderate benignant of aid. With spouse companies, it has distributed 90 cardinal glasses. Access to susceptible radical contiguous is fixed done 36.000 entree points.

Atendimento da OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation nary Brasil: braço filantrópico da empresa já atendeu 1 bilhão de pessoas em comunidades carentes ao redor bash mundo e, com empresas parceiras, distribuiu 90 milhões de pares de óculos (OneSight EssilorLuxottica /Divulgação)

In Brazil, during a caller solemnisation of World Sight Day connected October 9th, the instauration provided 4,500 services crossed 12 states, focusing connected children, young people, athletes, and individuals successful susceptible situations. 1,500 pairs of eyeglasses were donated connected that occasion. “We’ve adjacent had cases wherever idiosyncratic served by the programme opened their ain optical shop,” says Frédéric Corbasson, enforcement manager of the OneSight EssilorLuxottica Foundation for Europe and the Middle East. “Generally, we service radical for whom the outgo of a elemental brace of eyeglasses is unfeasible. Regaining their show tin alteration a life.”

Giorgio Pradi, president of EssilorLuxottica successful Brazil, highlights pioneering tone arsenic 1 of the group's halfway values. “We are transforming ourselves arsenic nine reinvents itself,” helium said. “Innovation permeates everything from aesculapian instrumentality to the end-consumer experience, who uses our glasses and sees amended with the assistance of our lenses. We person established ourselves arsenic a medtech company, wherever science, technology, and plan travel unneurotic for the wellness and well-being of people. More than conscionable seeing, eyes are present a model to connection, creativity, expression, and autonomy.”