
Essilor grows online distribution with acquisition of Coastal.com
The Internet as a new opportunity to improve growth and level of public information in the optical sector On February 27 Essilor International announced that it had signed a binding contract for the acquisition of all available ordinary shares in Coastal Contacts (Coastal.com), one of the leading retailers of optical products. Coastal.com is based in Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada) and is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and NASDAQ; on October 31, 2013, it closed its financial year with profits of 218 million Canadian dollars. Set up in 2000, the company distributes one of the widest online selections of optical products including contact lenses, prescription and non-prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses and various accessories. Products are sold through various local websites, mainly in North America, the Asia-Pacific region, in Brazil and, to a lesser extent, in Europe. The company has over 5 million customers, worldwide. Commenting on the acquisition, Hubert Sagnières, president and CEO of Essilor International, said: "Internet can make a significant contribution to the achievement of our corporate objective of enabling people to live a better life thanks to better eyesight. The first step toward good eye health is a complete eyesight checkup. But in our sector, and in many others, the buying process is becoming increasingly diversified. If used correctly, the Internet can help to guide market growth by educating consumers and guaranteeing more possibilities for enjoying good eye health. With the acquisition of Coastal.com, Essilor has gained a recognized online platform dedicated to eyesight and we undertake to contribute to molding this distribution channel to the advantage of the entire sector and consumers". Current online sales represent only 4% of the global optical market, but two-figure growth is forecast for the near future. For many years now, Essilor has been active in online distribution through its FramesDirect and EyeBuyDirect subsidiaries and MyOnlineOptical, an e-commerce engine that allows American professionals in the sector to integrate their store and online offers. Given the growing importance of the internet, it is essential that the industry exerts the correct influence over the development of the channel: this is why Essilor continues to increase partnership opportunities and intends to operate to the advantage of the entire industry and eye care professionals. Essilor means to promote online distribution to improve the quality of eye care information and access to it by an increasingly wider target. It also wants to increase access to vision correction solutions for people who wear glasses and for the 2.5 billion potential wearers throughout the world. Moreover, Essilor's objective is to orientate the development of the Internet in the best way possible: shape online experiences by enhancing the role of the eye care professional and redirect consumers to outlets when necessary.