By
Bloomberg
Published
October 22, 2024
EssilorLuxottica SA, the French-Italian group that dominates the global eyewear market, reached the final target its founder Leonardo Del Vecchio set before he passed away in 2022: a market value of €100 billion ($108 billion).
Del Vecchio, who over 60 years ago built Luxottica from scratch at his tiny workshop in the Dolomite mountains, and later merged it with French rival Essilor, set the lofty target as he sought to assure that his “factory,” as he called the eyewear maker, would survive him.
The French-Italian company gained about 2% to €221.9 in Paris on Tuesday, reaching a market value of €101.5 billion.
The company, the world’s biggest manufacturer and retailer of eyeglasses and contact lenses, has added over €40 billion in value since Francesco Milleri became chairman after the founder passed away two years ago.
Del Vecchio founded Luxottica in 1961, setting up shop in the village of Agordo along with a dozen workers who crafted parts for eyeglass frames sold on to bigger manufacturers.
EssilorLuxottica today has about 190,000 workers in over 150 countries. The company owns several brands including Ray-Ban and Oakley, and makes frames for luxury houses like Armani and Prada. The firm is controlled by Del Vecchio’s heirs through the Delfin Sarl holding.
Milleri confirmed in July that Meta Platforms Inc. is planning to buy a stake in the firm. The two companies have already been working together for years, and presented their first Ray Ban-Meta smart glasses in 2021.
At the time of his death Del Vecchio had the second-largest fortune in Italy — after the chocolate-making Ferrero family — with a net worth of $25.7 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
