LensCrafters 2009 Annual Report Download - page 28

> 26 | ANNUAL REPORT 2009
RETAIL
With a strong portfolio of retail brands, Luxottica is well positioned to reach different segments of the
market. The retail portfolio offers a variety of differentiation points for consumers, including the latest in
designer and high-performance sun frames, advanced lens options, advanced eye care, everyday value
and high-quality vision care health benefi ts.
As of December 31, 2009, Luxottica retail business consisted of 6,217 stores.
OPTICAL RETAIL
Luxottica’s optical retail operations are anchored by leading brands such as LensCrafters and Pearle Vision in
North America, and OPSM, Laubman & Pank and Budget Eyewear, which are active throughout Australia and
New Zealand. The Group also has a major retail presence in China, where it operates in the premium eyewear
market with LensCrafters. Due to the fragmented nature of the European retail market, the Company does
not operate optical retail stores in Europe outside of the United Kingdom, where in 2008 it increased its stake
in the David Clulow chain, which sells both prescription and sun products. As of December 31, 2009, Luxot-
tica’s optical retail business consisted of approximately 3,740 retail locations globally.
LensCrafters
As of December 31, 2009, the Group operated a retail network of 1,197 LensCrafters stores, of which 955
are in North America and the other 242 stores in China. LensCrafters is currently the largest optical retailer
in North America in terms of sales.
LensCrafters stores offer a wide selection of prescription frames and sunglasses, mostly made by Luxottica,
but also a wide range of lenses and optical products made by other suppliers. Points of sale are normally
in high-traffi c commercial malls and shopping centers and have an on-site optometrist (sometimes a Lux-
ottica employee) so that customers can have immediate eye examinations. Most LensCrafters stores in
North America also include a lens fi nishing laboratory, which improves the customer service level. During
the last few years, Luxottica has invested in the LensCrafters brand, adding additional elements such as
an exclusive new store concept currently being implemented in store remodeling across North America,
associate training, advertising and marketing, which together represent the premium brand and future
direction of LensCrafters.
In 2006, Luxottica began to expand the LensCrafters brand in China by rebranding its stores there, which
were acquired through the acquisition of three retail chains. As of December 31, 2009, the Company oper-
ated 242 stores in China and Hong Kong. Hong Kong is one of China’s most signifi cant luxury markets and
launching LensCrafters as a premium brand in Hong Kong was important for increasing awareness and
consumer demand for Luxottica products and services.
Pearle Vision
With the acquisition of Cole National in October 2004, Luxottica acquired Pearle Vision, one of the
largest optical retail chains in North America. Although LensCrafters and Pearle Vision address the mid- to
high-end customer bracket, their positioning is complementary. Pearle Vision focuses on the factors that
made the brand a success: customers’ trust in the doctor’s experience and the quality of service they
receive. Pearle Vision stores are mostly located in strip malls instead of the conventional malls where most
LensCrafters and Sunglass Hut stores are located.
The successful relaunching of the Pearle Vision brand in 2004 and 2005 was centered on a return to its origi-
nal values, which had made Pearle Vision the "Home of Trusted Eyecare" for generations of Americans. A
product mix increasingly geared to high quality has sought to restore strong customer relationships.
In order to centralize services and achieve economies of scale, all in-store labs were closed and their work
was transferred to nearby LensCrafters labs or to one of Luxottica’s six central lens fi nishing facilities. As of