What Safilo does

Safilo Group S.p.A. is a heritage Italian eyewear manufacturer and global brand house headquartered in Padova, Italy, founded in 1878 and publicly listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (SAF.MI) since 2005. The company operates an integrated value chain spanning in-house design, manufacturing, and worldwide distribution of optical frames, sunglasses, and sports eyewear, organized around a portfolio of more than 30 brands: a proprietary cluster (Safilo, Carrera, Polaroid, Smith, Blenders, Privé Revaux, Seventh Street, and the agreed acquisitions SPY+ and Serengeti) alongside a large designer licensing portfolio covering Hugo, Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Kate Spade, Carolina Herrera, Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Missoni, Dsquared2, Etro, Fossil, Isabel Marant, Juicy Couture, Kurt Geiger, Levi's, Liz Claiborne, Pierre Cardin, Ports, Under Armour, Stuart Weitzman, David Beckham (perpetual license since 2024), and Victoria Beckham (10-year license signed July 2025).

The business generates revenue through three streams: B2B wholesale of optical frames, sunglasses, and sports eyewear to independent opticians, chain stores, department stores, and travel retail across ~100,000 points of sale in 70+ countries via 40 direct subsidiaries and 40+ distribution partners; licensing royalties from global fashion houses; and direct-to-consumer sales through proprietary e-commerce platforms and Internet Pure Players (representing ~16% of total revenue per H1 2025). Notable technical components include the You&Safilo B2B platform, a CRM system for opticians, proprietary 3D-customization technology under the Smith brand (IMPRINT 3D, launched 2021), Econyl® regenerated nylon in the collection since 2019, and the Carrera Smart Glasses with built-in Amazon Alexa (launched 2023 via Amazon partnership). FY2024 preliminary net sales were €1.075 billion across a 3,600+ employee base, with FY2025 forecast at approximately €1.01 billion.

Safilo is actively reshaping its production footprint and brand mix: in 2025 it divested its Lenti Srl lens subsidiary to Kering Eyewear and its Longarone metal-frames plant to LVMH's Thélios, while building a 29.99% strategic stake in UK-based Inspecs Group (December 2025-February 2026) and signing an exclusive agreement in April 2026 to acquire SPY+ and Serengeti from Bollé Brands. The company has articulated a strategic target to grow proprietary brands to over 50% of revenue by 2027, indicating a deliberate rebalancing from manufacturing-heavy operations toward higher-margin owned-IP and digital channels.

Name

Safilo

Legal name

Safilo Group S.p.A.

Website

https://safilo.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1878

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Safilo Group S.p.A. is an Italian eyewear manufacturer and global brand house operating a portfolio of 30+ proprietary and licensed designer brands, serving independent opticians, chain stores, department stores, and travel retail across ~100,000 points of sale in 70+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Eyewear Manufacturing

NAICS

Optical Goods Retailers (456130), Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers (42346), Ophthalmic Goods Merchant Wholesalers (423460), Health and Personal Care Retailers (456)

SIC

Ophthalmic Goods (3851)

akta.pro primary industry

Eyewear Manufacturing & OEM/ODM (Frames & Sunglasses) (CRAAAKAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sunglasses (Non-Prescription) (CRAAAKAB)

Keywords

• Eyewear manufacturing
• Designer eyewear licensing
• Optical frames wholesale
• Sunglasses distribution
• Sports performance optics

Headquarters

HQ city

Padova

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Eyewear design, manufacturing and wholesale distribution: Integrated value chain spanning design, manufacturing and worldwide distribution of optical frames, sunglasses and sports eyewear; primary revenue stream selling to independent opticians, chain stores, department stores and travel retail accounts.
2. Brand licensing royalties: Long-term licensing agreements with global fashion houses (Hugo, Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, Kate Spade, Carolina Herrera, Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Missoni, Dsquared2, Etro, Fossil, Isabel Marant, Juicy Couture, Kurt Geiger, Levi's, Liz Claiborne, Pierre Cardin, Ports, Under Armour, Stuart Weitzman, David Beckham, Victoria Beckham) generating royalty revenue; perpetual license for David Beckham secured in 2024 and 10-year Victoria Beckham license signed in 2025.
3. Direct-to-consumer (D2C) and Internet Pure Player sales: E-commerce sales through proprietary B2C platforms and partnerships with Internet Pure Players; online sales consistently representing approximately 16% of total revenue per H1 2025 disclosures.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion5 records

Core offering

Safilo Group designs, manufactures, and globally distributes optical frames, sunglasses, and sports eyewear across a portfolio of 30+ proprietary brands (Carrera, Polaroid, Smith, Safilo, Seventh Street, Blenders, Privé Revaux, SPY+, Serengeti) and licensed designer/fashion brands (David Beckham, Victoria Beckham, Tommy Hilfiger, Hugo, Boss, Carolina Herrera, Kate Spade, Marc Jacobs, Moschino, Missoni, Dsquared2, Etro, Fossil, Isabel Marant, Juicy Couture, Kurt Geiger, Levi's, Liz Claiborne, Pierre Cardin, Ports, Under Armour, Stuart Weitzman). The company sells through wholesale distribution, direct-to-consumer e-commerce, and Internet Pure Player partnerships, reaching ~100,000 points of sale across 40 direct subsidiaries.

Product overview

Safilo Group operates as a brand-house architecture: a single integrated eyewear platform (design, manufacturing, and global distribution of optical frames, sunglasses, and sports eyewear) that licenses and houses a portfolio of 30+ brands, organized into proprietary brands (Carrera, Polaroid, Smith, Safilo, Seventh Street, Blenders, Privé Revaux, and the newly acquired SPY+ and Serengeti) and licensed designer/fashion brands (David Beckham, Victoria Beckham, Tommy Hilfiger, Under Armour, Hugo, Boss, Carolina Herrera, Kate Spade, Dsquared2, Etro, Fossil, Isabel Marant, Juicy Couture, Kurt Geiger, Levi's, Liz Claiborne, Marc Jacobs, Missoni, Moschino, Pierre Cardin, Ports, Stuart Weitzman). The platform combines wholesale distribution, direct-to-consumer e-commerce, and Internet Pure Player channels. Specialty lines such as the Carrera Smart Glasses (with embedded Amazon Alexa) and Smith's IMPRINT 3D customization technology extend the core eyewear offering into connected and 3D-customized products. Safilo is pursuing a strategy to grow proprietary brands to over 50% of revenue by 2027.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Safilo: House proprietary brand of the Safilo Group.
• Carrera
• Polaroid
• Smith
• Blenders Eyewear
• Privé Revaux
• Seventh Street

Products and services

• Carrera Eyewear Proprietary sports and fashion eyewear brand acquired in 1996, including the Carrera Smart Glasses line with built-in Amazon Alexa voice assistant launched in 2023.
• Polaroid Eyewear Polarized lens and eyewear brand acquired in 2012, specializing in polarized optical lens technology.
• Smith Eyewear Performance sports optics brand acquired in 1996, including the IMPRINT 3D custom-fit technology launched in 2021 for customised sport/snow goggles and sunglasses.
• Blenders Eyewear Lifestyle and action sports eyewear brand founded by Chase Fisher and acquired by Safilo in 2020, operating as a direct-to-consumer brand.
• Privé Revaux Celebrity-affiliated eyewear brand acquired by Safilo in 2020 as part of proprietary brand portfolio expansion.
• Seventh Street Eyewear Seventh Street by Safilo proprietary eyewear brand targeting lifestyle and contemporary fashion consumers.
• Safilo Eyewear Corporate namesake proprietary brand of Safilo Group, representing the heritage Italian eyewear maker (founded 1878, brand established 1934).
• SPY+ Eyewear California-based brand specializing in outdoor sports eyewear, acquired by Safilo via an exclusive agreement with Bollé Brands in April 2026.
• Serengeti Eyewear California-based high-end frames brand, acquired by Safilo alongside SPY+ from Bollé Brands in April 2026 to strengthen presence in high-value-added segments.
• David Beckham Eyewear Eyewear brand for David Beckham, transformed from a partnership into a perpetual license in 2024.
• Victoria Beckham Eyewear Luxury eyewear line under license from Victoria Beckham's fashion brand; 10-year license signed in July 2025.
• Tommy Hilfiger Eyewear Eyewear line under license from the Tommy Hilfiger American fashion brand.
• Under Armour Eyewear Performance sports eyewear under license from the Under Armour athletic brand.
• Hugo Eyewear Eyewear line under license from the Hugo (Hugo Boss) fashion brand.
• Boss Eyewear Eyewear line under license from the Boss (Hugo Boss) fashion brand.
• Carolina Herrera Eyewear Luxury eyewear line under license from the Carolina Herrera fashion house.
• Kate Spade Eyewear Lifestyle eyewear line under license from the Kate Spade New York brand.
• Carrera Smart Glasses with Amazon Alexa Smart eyewear launched in 2023 via partnership with Amazon, integrating the Alexa voice assistant into Carrera-branded smart glasses.
• You&Safilo B2B Platform Proprietary B2B digital sales platform enabling opticians to place orders, manage customer relationships, and access product catalogs as part of Safilo's multi-channel approach.

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• Kering Eyewear: Captive eyewear division of French luxury group Kering (Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga). Recently acquired Safilo's Lenti Srl subsidiary. Acts as both a competitor (for designer licenses) and a strategic supplier/buyer relationship to Safilo.
• Thélios (LVMH): In-house eyewear manufacturer for LVMH (Dior, Fendi, Celine, Loewe, Givenchy, Rimowa). Recently acquired Safilo's Longarone metal-frames plant and 247 employees. Represents vertical-integration competition for designer-frame production and licensing.

Emerging players

• Zenni Optical: Online-only value eyewear retailer with rapidly growing scale. Competes with Safilo's value-tier offerings and Internet Pure Player partners in the price-sensitive consumer segment, particularly in the US.
• Warby Parker: US-based direct-to-consumer eyewear brand vertically integrating into retail. Represents the DTC disruptor model that Safilo's Blenders and Privé Revaux brands are positioned to counter, particularly in North American online channels.

Direct peers

• Marcolin Group: Italian eyewear manufacturer headquartered in Longarone with a comparable licensed-brand portfolio (Tom Ford, Ermenegildo Zegna, Guess, Bally, Swarovski). Most direct competitor to Safilo in designer/fashion licensing with similar wholesale distribution model.
• Marchon Eyewear: US-based eyewear manufacturer with licenses for Nike, Lacoste, Calvin Klein, DKNY, Longchamp, and others. Competes with Safilo in sport and fashion-licensed eyewear globally through wholesale and specialty retail.
• EssilorLuxottica: World's largest eyewear company combining lens manufacturing (Essilor) with frames and retail (Luxottica — Ray-Ban, Oakley, Sunglass Hut). Directly competes with Safilo across licensed designer eyewear and through the Meta-Ray-Ban smart-eyewear partnership that parallels Safilo's Carrera Alexa line.
• De Rigo S.p.A. Italian eyewear group with licensed brands (Police, Loewe, Fila, Tommy Hilfiger in some markets) and proprietary brands (Lozza). Competes head-to-head with Safilo in mid-market designer eyewear sold through independent opticians and chain retailers.
• Inspecs Group plc: UK-listed eyewear designer, manufacturer and distributor; Safilo built a 29.99% stake by Feb 2026. Comparable UK-based mid-market eyewear operator with proprietary and licensed brands; serves as both competitor and strategic affiliate.

Regional players

• Charmant Group: Japanese eyewear manufacturer with strong Asia-Pacific distribution and licensed lines (Puma, Elle, Disney). Comparable in licensed-brand model but concentrated in Asia; competes with Safilo in select global accounts and travel retail.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/safilo1934
• Facebookfacebook.com/safilo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/safilo-do-brasil-ltda

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Safilo