Latest News Luxottica to Amp Up Lens Manufacturing Facilities to Support More Store Openings By Staff Monday, May 2, 2016 12:33 AM Massimo Vian, CEO, product and operations for Luxottica Group. MILAN, Italy—Massimo Vian, CEO of product and operations for Luxottica Group (NYSE:LUX) said the company plans to increase the number and invest in new lens manufacturing facilities, located near its existing distribution centers, to support the future needs of its own stores, as the company gears up for further retail expansion. The company has started construction on three new laboratories for the production of ophthalmic lenses using advanced technology and sophisticated automation systems. Operating these labs within the group’s main distribution centers will allow the company to integrate lenses and frames at the right phase of the cycle, optimizing the level of service for its own optical retail brands, the company said. This will be in the U.S. as well as in China. Speaking to analysts following the release of the company’s Q1 results last week (see Financial story below), Vian noted, “[These openings] are in line with the strategy of putting more order into the footprint of lens manufacturing in North America, as we anticipate the opening of more than 400 LensCrafters’ stores within Macy’s in the next few years. For the same reason, we are looking at expanding our capacity in China, where we already have a state of the art lab, but are expanding that for anticipated retail expansion in Hong Kong and mainland China.” The licensing partnership with Macy’s was announced last November, as VMail reported. The opening of the first LensCrafters location inside Macy’s is anticipated at the end of May, with an additional 80 of these to open in Q3 and Q4 of this year, although Vian did not specify which markets these would be in. In addition, a new organizational leadership structure at Luxottica Retail, headed by Nicola Brandolese who is overseeing both sun and optical retailing, announced earlier this year is “providing for smoother coordination at the global level,” the company noted, as it “will help facilitate the [company’s] ambitious plan of opening more than 1,000 stores in 24 months. This plan will be supported by a new store model aimed at maximizing the productivity of the Group's network.”In an interview with Reuters and then confirmed with analysts on an investor’s call last Friday, Vian said that the company “continues to explore options” for potential mergers and acquisitions, although he ruled out specific lens companies, including Essilor and Zeiss, at this time. In response to a question about this on the call, he said, “The growth we project in our lens manufacturing is organic. Selling those lenses to our own retail is the goal; I would like to underline that our partnership with our friends, the three major lens players, has never been as healthy as it is today. We have good partnerships there, we have a good situation.” When pressed on other potential acquisitions around the world, he added, “Clearly strategically, we are targeting distribution and are interested to see what are the options in any geography to further accelerate our abilities to reach consumers, but there is nothing specifically to mention at this time.”Vian cited the development of digital, both online sales and digital tools within the store—for virtual try on of eyewear as well as a new digital eye exam approach within the doctor’s office, as promising enhancements to be implemented in the latter half of the year. He added that e-commerce sales have been particularly strong for the Sunglass Hut retail brand, but pointed to the strong success of CRM (customer relationship management) systems which have helped LensCrafters build relationships and maximize conversions of those patients coming into its stores as leading to positive performance there. Along with the statements and the release of the company’s financial results for the first quarter, Luxottica noted that it would move to a new financial reporting schedule in the future, no longer publishing first quarter and third quarter earnings release and management statements, but will continue to report half-year and full-year consolidated results. “This change in the Group’s reporting calendar allows it to better represent the evolution and health of its business,” the company said. The stockholders at the Luxottica Group general meeting approved the proposed updates to Articles 12, 19 and 30 of the company’s bylaws and confirmed Francesco Milleri as a director of the company, which was previously announced. The board on Friday also appointed Milleri as deputy charman of Luxottica, with the task of assisting the executive chairman and founder, Leonardo Del Vecchio, in carrying out the various functions associated with his current role. Milleri will cooperate with Luigi Francavilla, the other group deputy chairman, the company stated. Francesco Milleri’s profile is available here.