Etro, Safilo Ink Eyewear Licensing Agreement
MILAN — Etro and Safilo Group have inked a 10-year licensing agreement for the design, manufacturing and distribution of eyewear collections. The deal was revealed on Tuesday at the end of trading in Milan, where Safilo is publicly listed.
The first Etro sun and optical collection will bow for spring 2024. The Safilo license succeeds a previous agreement with Marchon.
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“The partnership with a leading company like Safilo represents a further step in the expansion of Etro’s offer to the market, making it increasingly complete and broad,” said Etro chief executive officer Fabrizio Cardinali. The new category joins the existing ready-to-wear, home, fragrance and the recently announced Etro Kids collection. “I have always considered Etro a 360-[degree] lifestyle brand and I’m very pleased to achieve this new milestone to complete a global and integrated vision dedicated to different product categories and consumer types.”
Etro’s collections are designed by creative director Marco De Vincenzo, who joined the brand in June last year. In May, the Italian fashion house signed a licensing agreement with manufacturing company Simonetta for the development and production of the Etro Kids line, which is set to include newborn, baby and junior collections.
“We are very proud to start this new collaboration with a business that represents fashion and textile excellence,” said Safilo Group CEO Angelo Trocchia. “Our creative team is in harmony with Marco De Vincenzo, with whom we are working to create a distinctive collection, able to enhance the brand potential in the eyewear category to the fullest. Etro is a luxury brand that boasts a rich history in reinterpreting beauty standards and it is recognized for its iconic patterns. Furthermore, Etro is fully integrated into our portfolio strengthening, consequently, our offer.”
Safilo produces eyewear collections under licensing agreements for brands ranging from Chiara Ferragni, Isabel Marant and Jimmy Choo to Marc Jacobs, David Beckham, Hugo Boss, Carolina Herrera, Tommy Hilfiger, Missoni and Moschino, to name a few.
Etro has been controlled by private equity L Catterton since July 2021.
Cardinali joined Etro in September 2021 from Dolce & Gabbana with the mission to grow the brand’s customer base, expand into new categories, enhance its digital presence and drive global expansion, with a focus on the opportunities offered by Asia. In an interview with WWD last year, Cardinali said the goal is to reach 500 million euros in sales in five years.
As reported, Safilo closed 2022 with sales surpassing the 1 billion euro threshold two years ahead of plan and concluding four years of turnaround, which contributed to a remodeling of the Italian eyewear company. Proprietary brands represented an important driving force behind the group’s overall performance, in particular Smith, Carrera and Polaroid. Revenues in the first quarter of the year amounted to 287.2 million euros, up 1.6 percent from the same period last year.
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