MILAN (BRAIN) — Italian eyewear maker Luxottica Group, parent of brands including Oakley, Arnette and Ray-Ban, reported Monday that first-quarter net profit surged almost 34 percent to 210.4 million euros ($234.7 million) as sales in North America rose 29.4 percent and foreign exchange rates provided "a material tailwind." North American sales accounted for 58 percent of the company's sales during the period, up from 55 percent a year earlier.
Overall group net sales rose 19.9 percent at current exchange rates to 2.2 billion euros, but only 5.3 percent at constant rates as the value of the euro against the dollar continued to slide during the quarter.
Breaking out the company's wholesale business, which includes such brands as Oakley, first-quarter sales rose 16.8 percent at current rates (8 percent constant) to 939 million euros. Retail division sales, including the Sunglass Hut and LensCrafters chains, rose 22.4 percent at current rates (3.3 percent constant) to 1.27 billion euros.
During the quarter Luxottica began reorganizing the production systems and sales operations of Oakley, which it acquired in 2007, to give the brand the same organizational structure as the rest of the company. "This is expected to generate significant synergies in the range of 100 million euros once fully deployed," the company stated. "The Oakley retail and apparel business is also changing with new leadership and the goal of doubling both revenues and the number of 'O' stores over the next three years."
Luxottica is traded publicly on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LUX. Its stock performance is tracked on the BRAIN stock chart.
