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Summary
The global eyewear market, which encompasses glasses, sunglasses and contact lenses, has experienced significant growth driven by factors such as an aging population, fashion trends and rising disposable incomes. In 2022, the market was valued at US$169.9 billion, and is expected to reach US$326.3 billion by 2030, with an average annual growth rate of 8.5%. Europe would lead the market in 2022 with 37% of global sales, followed by North America with a 33.8% share. Consumer trends show a penchant for eco-friendly products, the adaptation of technology by the elderly and the emergence of the metaverse, influencing market positioning. Italy's eyewear market has also seen robust growth, with domestic optical market output set to rise by 24% to 5.17 billion euros by 2022.
Exports dominated trade, with the United States the leading consumer of Italian eyewear products. Corrective eyewear is the largest segment in Italy, and demand drivers include the prevalence of visual impairment and changes in digital lifestyles. There are several active companies in the market, with sole traders being the most common legal form. Distribution channels include both online platforms and physical optical stores, with an increasing number of jobs in the sector :
The Italian eyewear market: a close look at demand dynamics
In recent years, the Italian eyewear market has shown a robust growth trajectory, attributed to several trends and demographic factors shaping consumer demand. In particular, the market is segmented into non-corrective and corrective eyewear, with the latter dominating the industry. Corrective eyewear, which includes glasses and contact lenses, accounts for a significant share of the market, representing over four-fifths of its total value. Within this segment, a considerable market share of around 50% comes from ophthalmic lenses, followed by prescription glasses and contact lenses. The Italian market has been growing steadily, increasing by around 3% between 2018 and 2022. One of the main demographic factors influencing this demand is the country's aging population, where people over 60 account for almost a quarter of the total. As age-related vision problems become more prevalent, this segment is expected to fuel future spending on eyewear. Another factor driving demand is the growing number of visually impaired people - some 15 million Italians - particularly among children and young adults, where lifestyle changes have contributed to an increase in cases of myopia.
This trend is linked to prolonged exposure to electronic devices, highlighting a potential growth sector for corrective eyewear. In addition, regular eye examinations play a crucial role in maintaining eye health, with around 60% of the population undergoing regular checks. This health-conscious behavior underpins sustained demand for corrective and non-corrective eyewear products. In addition, there is a growing sensitivity to superior quality and luxury accessories, particularly among millennials, leading to a trend known as "premiumization" in the sector. In summary, the Italian eyewear market continues to grow, driven by an ageing population, an increase in visual impairments due to lifestyle changes, health awareness and consumer inclination towards high-quality luxury items. Despite challenges such as the international economic landscape and rising costs, the industry persists, strengthened by constant consumer demand
The Italian eyewear market is a tapestry woven by a group of leading players who have carved out distinct niches within the industry. These entities range from legendary fashion houses to established retail chains to emerging online platforms, each playing a crucial role in shaping market dynamics.
- The Luxottica Group: Italian eyewear cannot be mentioned without a nod to the Luxottica Group, a pillar of the global eyewear industry. This company is synonymous with high-end eyewear, with prestigious brands such as Ray-Ban and Oakley in its portfolio. Luxottica is famous not only for its iconic models, but also for its extensive retail network, which includes the famous Sunglass Hut chain.
- Safilo Group: Alongside Luxottica, the Safilo Group is another heavyweight in the eyewear sector. With a rich heritage of craftsmanship, the Safilo Group supplies the market with a diverse range of high-end products and is known for its partnerships with fashion titans such as Dior and Jimmy Choo to produce licensed eyewear that epitomizes luxury and style.
- Marcolin S.p.A.: Marcolin S.p.A. reinforces Italy's dominant position in the eyewear sector, with a history of creating elegant, fashionable frames for a variety of high-end brands. It brings a blend of tradition and innovation, securing a strong market position through strategic partnerships with brands and a keen eye for evolving fashion trends.
- De Rigo: De Rigo, which is both a design house and a distributor, is another figurehead. The company prides itself on its efficient distribution network and global market coverage. It retails renowned brands such as Police, Lozza and Escada.
- Essilor: Venturing beyond Italy's borders, we discover Essilor, a company that merged with Luxottica, but deserves a separate mention as the world's leading lens manufacturer. Its contribution to the value chain through its expertise in optical innovation enriches the industry's offering.
- GrandVision: The GrandVision retail chain makes its presence felt by bridging the gap between industry and consumers. This global optical retailer operates numerous stores around the world, offering a friendly face to the eyewear industry with a vast selection of products ranging from entry-level to high-end eyewear.
- Vega Optic and Salvatore Piazza: Vega Optic and Salvatore Piazza, well-known names among local opticians, represent the specialized distribution channel.
These distributors have a significant impact on the optical market.
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Inforamtion
- Number of pages : 30 pages
- Format : Digital and PDF versions
- Last update : 25/10/2023
Summary and extracts
1 Market summary
1.1 Definition and presentation
The eyewear market includes items and accessories worn on or over the eyes. Eyeglasses are worn for a variety of reasons, the most common of which include use as fashion adornment, for lack of visual ability, or for protection.
The three largest categories in the eyewear industry are in fact:
- Glasses
- Sunglasses
- Contact lenses
The industry thus encompasses all the players and processes involved in the design, production, and retailing of eyewear. Globally, there are promising projections for market growth. The aging population and the consequent development of life expectancy worldwide is one of the variables responsible for the positive forecast of increasing numbers of people needing eyewear. In developed countries, estimates are growing even more, with about 70 percent of adults needing corrective lenses. The latter figure is reinforced by rising disposable income, which should continue to drive premiumization of the eyewear industry in all segments, especially among noncorrective eyewear. The Italian market specifically should also be influenced by demographic changes, channel proliferation (e.g., GDO, internet), and emerging fashion trends.[Safilo].
1.2 The global market
The global eyewear market is growing significantly due to the presence of various factors, including: evolving fashion trends, increasing consumer awareness of eye health, and the adoption of luxury accessories, particularly among millennials. The global eyewear market was valued at US$***.* billion in **** and is expected to reach US$***.* billion in ...
1.3 The Italian market
The **** industry pre-consensus, presented at the MIDO trade show, attests to an Italian optical market production of *.** billion euros, registering a ** percent growth over ****. The total balance of Italian manufacturers includes *** companies employing **,*** people.
Since more recent data regarding the local optical market is not available, the value of the domestic ...
1.4 Imports and exports
Foreign trade is characterized by a preponderance of exports over imports. This results in overall market welfare, which has declined slightly in **** (***). Specifically, it is noted that the growth from **** to **** of exports is ** percent; taking into consideration the same time range, it is evident how the value of imports remained ...
1.5 Impact of COVID-19
In **** , there were signs of a slowdown in global exports , as well as the attestation of a worrisome employment situation, portending a possible contraction related to the performance of some specific companies. With the release of Covid-**, the eyewear sector loses its main international trade show, MIDO, which is postponed for ...
1.6 The Russian-Ukrainian conflict
The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has suddenly changed the global economic outlook, which was already greatly shaken by uncertainty related to new variants of the Covid-** virus. While the global economy is unabated in its search for a new equilibrium after two years of the pandemic, the attack is bringing the two states ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1 Overview of demand
The eyewear industry has numerous sub-segments, a relevant distinction in demand analysis is based on the purpose of eyewear:
Non-corrective use (***) Correctiveuse (***)
Corrective eyewear (***) made up more than four-fifths of the Italian market. However, sunglasses constituted the second largest independent segment. The breakdown of sales by product type is shown below; ...
2.2 Determinants of demand
Corrective eyeglasses
Population and visual defects
Specifically, within the glasses sub-segment, undoubtedly the number of Italians with optical deficiencies is a determining variable. There are about ** million myopic people in Italy, and the problem is sharply increasing, registering the highest number of cases among the very young, where more than * out ...
2.3 Cyclic question: sunglasses
The graph represents the proportion of searches for a given term in a given region during a given time period, compared to when it was searched for the most (***).
Thus, a value of ** means that the keyword was used less often in the region concerned, and a value of * means that ...
2.4 Geographical distribution of demand
As for the distribution of the expenditure item for optical items, it can be seen that the highest value is in the North, followed by the Center and the South.
3 Market structure
3.1 Market organization and dynamics
The Italian eyewear market is the flagship for the domestic economic sector, for reasons that can be traced back to the historical past and the industrial present. Half of the licensed manufacturers are in Italy, thus covering ** percent of the world license production and ** percent of the world market.[***]
The number ...
3.2 Value Chain
The value chain of the analyzed market takes in various players, from the production of materials to the sale of finished products.
Material suppliers: this first stage involves companies that produce primary materials for optical lens production, such as glass, plastic, and anti-reflective coatings. Lens production: lenses are manufactured using the ...
3.3 Distribution channels
Before getting into the details of how the product is distributed, it is essential to note that there is a distinction between the distribution of prescription eyeglasses and that of sunglasses; in fact, the latter are perceived as a fashion product and therefore require less specialized assistance at the time of ...
3.4 Made-in-Italy conquers the eyewear industry
Both the global and domestic markets are governed by an oligopoly in two specific product categories: lenses and frames. Essilor dominates contact lens production with a ** percent market share globally, while Luxottica owns ** percent of the global optical frames market[***].
The production of high-end eyewear is essentially in the hands of ...
3.5 The industry giant: EssilorLuxottica
Luxottica
Luxottica is a giant in the eyewear industry, with a dominant position that looks set to last for the foreseeable future; despite a generally positive picture, the **** market closed with a *.** percent decline . This is driven by the slowdown in the fourth quarter, with revenues, however, up *.*% thanks to good ...
4 Supply analysis
4.1 The offer
Sales
Category segmentation identifies three major sectors within the eyewear industry:
Eyewear (***) Sunglasses Contact lenses
Sales value of the eyewear market, by category Italy, ****, in % ANFAO
Sunglasses classification
Analyzing the sunglasses segment, it is possible to define the different characteristics of the product, dividing it into various categories:
Category *: These lenses ...
4.2 Prices
The average price of eyewear, over the past decade, has been particularly fluctuating. Forecasts, until ****, estimate a steady increase in the average price, until it reaches €**.**, always lower than the peak reached in **** when the average price was €**.**. Prices are very different within the different product categories of the eyewear industry. ...
4.3 Supply trends
Current trends are making the coming eyewear season characterized by conscious innovation, the search for sustainable beauty, modern vintage and visionary minimalism. Details, colors, materials and shapes, the eyewear of the **** season will be revolutionary. The trends in the offering are divided into three basic macro trends:
Design-Wise: products made with ...
5 Rules and regulations
5.1 Regulations on the sale of all categories of eyeglass products
Because of the special nature of the product categories, all eyewear, whether worn for corrective or noncorrective purposes, is subject to specific and strict regulation at the national and international levels.
In Italy the distinction is between:
*Medical devices, which include frames and ophthalmic lenses.
Commercial sale is regulated by ...
5.2 Bonus View
Since April **, ****, the web platform to apply for the sight bonus, which provides a financial contribution for the purchase of prescription eyeglasses and corrective contact lenses, has been activated. The subsidy was introduced by Law No. *** of December **, ****, and is disbursed for those who meet the requirements established in the Decree ...
6 Positioning of actors
6.1 Market segmentation
- Safilo Group
- Oftalmica Galileo
- De Rigo
- Carl Zeiss Group
- Essilor Luxottica groupe
- Marcolin (LVMH Groupe)
- Kering Eyewear
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Latest news
BBGR boosts Seine-et-Marne capacity by 30% to keep pace with growth in Nikon optical lenses - 30/03/2024
- - BBGR is a subsidiary of EssilorLuxottica.
- - The company has specialized in optical lenses for over 170 years.
- - BBGR will increase capacity at its Provins site by 30% from April.
- - The Provins site employs 235 people.
- - The aim of this capacity increase is to meet strong demand for Nikon lenses, produced at Provins since 2016.
- - Since 2016, volumes of Nikon lenses manufactured at Provins have increased 15-fold.
EssilorLuxottica passes the €25 billion sales mark - 15/02/2024
- In 2023, the company spent 1.7 billion euros on R&D between 2020 and 2022, in particular to develop connected and/or hearing glasses. Before the summer, the company will inaugurate an optics laboratory (300 employees) in Wissous (Essonne). In the second half of 2024, its first hearing glasses will be marketed in the United States.
- The product potentially concerns the 1.25 billion people affected by mild hearing loss.
- To integrate a miniature hearing aid into a pair of glasses, the company acquired the Israeli start-up Nuance in 2022.
- Its brand portfolio has expanded to include Moncler, Jimmy Choo, Brunello Cucinelli and Ferrari licenses.
- 18,000 directly-operated stores in 150 countries, including 1,000 in France.
EssilorLuxottica integrates a hearing aid into its glasses - 09/01/2024
- Launch of "Nuance" glasses that act as hearing aids.
- Microphones camouflaged in the frames enable the wearer to concentrate on and amplify the voice of the person speaking
- First equipment with virtually invisible hearing aids
- While 1.6 billion people worldwide suffer from hearing loss, this figure is expected to rise to 2.5 billion by 2050
- Nuance Audio glasses, which will be available in three models, will be sold by hearing aid practitioners, in EssilorLuxottica's distribution network (18,000 stores) and on the Internet.
- Acquisition of Israel-based Nuance Hearing, which has developed a small tabletop device that amplifies sound
In the heart of the Meuse region, Essilor breaks records to produce special ophthalmic lenses - 11/08/2023
- Essilor's SL Lab site merged in 2018 with Italian eyewear manufacturer Luxottica.
- It employs 81 people in the special lenses production unit.
- Each year, they produce around 80,000 ophthalmic lenses, half of which are shipped for export.
- In France, around 1 in 1000 people suffer from extreme visual defects such as myopia or hyperopia.
- It takes three years of compulsory training for employees to become autonomous.
- Since the unit was set up in 2014, 300,000 special lenses have been produced.
Optics: EssilorLuxottica accumulates records - 23/02/2023
- Optical giant's sales to grow by 13.9% in 2022
- North America, its leading market, grew by 4% at constant exchange rates, to almost 11.5 billion euros.
- European momentum is even stronger: +11.2% to 8.7 billion euros
- Asia remains solid
Zeiss invests 33 million euros in the extension of its Périgny plant - 03/02/2023
- 33 million euro investment to extend Zeiss Périgny plant
- 14,000 m2 building under construction
- First extension in 2020: 8 million euros
- 2,000 m2 of office space in the new building
- Extension will create over 300 jobs
- Work to start in January 2023
- Handover scheduled for January 2025
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