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Profile

History

World leader in ophthalmic optical products: number one in Europe, North America, and Latin America number two in Asia number two in Japan.

• One of France's most global enterprises, operating in 100 countries.

• Nearly 2 billion euros in sales, generated almost entirely from corrective lenses.

• 90% of sales evenly divided between Europe and North America.

• Partnerships with key international players such as PPG (United States) and Nikon (Japan).

• 5 billion potential combinations to personalize lenses for each customer. • High-profile brands including Varilux® progressive lenses (whose fifth generation was launched in 2000 under the name Varilux® Panamic®, Airwear® polycarbonate lenses, and Crizal® lenses.

• Varilux, a universal brand: one in two progressive lenses in the world is a Varilux. Every minute, ten consumers choose a Varilux. • One of world's leading holders of ophthalmic-optics patents, with more than 1,500 active patents around the globe. • 22,000 employees around the globe

• A unique ophthalmic-optics network, with 160 prescription laboratories backed by 18 production units.

• Continuous interaction with the world’s 200,000 eye-care professionals

Essilor was formed in 1972 following the merger of the two dominant optical products companies in France at the time: Essel and Silor.
- Essel was established as an eyeglass-makers’ gild in 1849. From the start, it combined capitalism with progressive labor policies and forged a reputation for professionalism and employee involvement.
- Silor, a company with a shorter history, was founded by Georges Lissac, who shaped the enterprise to his personality. Silor combined creativity with an active marketing strategy.

Essilor therefore descends from a long line of lensmakers who played an instrumental role in the optical products industry over more than 150 years. The Company expanded internationally in three phases, supported by two major technological innovations: the Orma organic lens and the Varilux progressive lens developed by Bernard Maitenaz, Chairman of Essilor from 1980 to 1991.

In the 1970s, Essilor was essentially an exporter, with a focus on three main regions: Europe, its home market since the late 19th century; North America, where it established operations in 1954 (primarily in New York), and Asia, its new frontier.

Throughout the 1970s, Essilor designed and manufactured most of its products in France and marketed them around the world though distributors and Essilor subsidiaries (many of which were former distributors).

In the 1980s, Essilor became an international firm. To win new markets and reduce production costs, the Company added a number of mass-production facilities and prescription laboratories to its base.

Upstream, the manufacture of standard products was re-located to regions with low production costs, such as Asia. A first organic lens production plant was inaugurated in the Philippines in 1979.

Downstream, Essilor expanded its local distribution resources by acquiring distributors in Australia and the Netherlands, among others, and by opening subsidiaries in Japan and Canada.

In the 1990s, Essilor grew into a global enterprise. From the beginning of the decade, the ophthalmic optics market was shaped by substantial concentration and rising competition. As the world leader in ophthalmic optics, Essilor focused on a global strategy to strengthen its positions.

The Company began to re-locate production of higher value-added lenses to countries with low manufacturing costs. At the same time, it developed its prescription operations—notably in the United States—often by acquiring independent laboratories.

Essilor has extended its globalization strategy through its recent alliance with Nikon of Japan. The Group now has three research centers, 18 production facilities and 140 prescription laboratories in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific Rim.

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