ANNUAL REPORT 2004 - Luxottica Group

WHOLESALE
BRAND PORTFOLIO
Luxottica Group will continue to work to optimize its
brand portfolio so that, while also perfecting its pre- and
post-sale services, it continuously increases its ability to
best serve even the most demanding markets.
House Brands – With the launch of the Ray-Ban
Ophthalmic and Ray-Ban Junior lines, the Group
demonstrated how it can further strengthen even an
extremely well-developed brand, in fact the best
selling sunglass brand in the world, thus creating new
opportunities that were well received by the market.
Luxottica Group intends to similarly develop other key
house brands which show potential for further growth,
such as Vogue, Arnette, Persol and Revo.
License Brands – Luxottica Group will continue to look
for brands that are strong in markets strategically
important for the Group, or brands that cover
segments of the market where the present portfolio
shows margin for improvement.
DISTRIBUTION
Notwithstanding its presence in 120 countries, in 28 of
which through a direct presence, Luxottica Group
sees further potential both in markets where it already
has a presence and in new markets. In particular, the
Group sees opportunities in several areas, among
which Eastern Europe (including Russia), Latin
America and China, all showing great potential for
development.
MANUFACTURING
STRATEGY
Luxottica Group is and will continue to be fully
committed to Made in Italy in eyewear, thanks to the
quality and style of its product, so recognizable and
sought after in the premium segment in which it is
leader. For this reason, the Group will continue to
invest in new technology, production systems, and
generally research and development, to maintain the
consistently high added value of its products and
service.
Luxottica Group’s growth in the retail segment in North
America, especially in terms of volumes in the licensed
brand segment, and in Asia Pacific, is increasing the
demand that the Group must be able to meet. To this
end, Luxottica Group intends to maximize the
manufacturing and logistical advantage of being the
only premium eyewear manufacturer in the world with
a wholly-owned plant in China, for manufacturing lines
that do not require to meet consumer demand the
added value provided by the Made in Italy. This, in
turn, will provide greater manufacturing flexibility at the
Group’s Italian plants for producing the more
sophisticated, complex designs, increasingly in
demand in the wholesale and retail sectors served by
Luxottica Group.
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