Essilor Strengthens its Positions in Italy - Three New Acquisitions in the United States

CHARENTON-LE-PONT, France, April 4, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- ESSI | news | PowerRating | PR Charts -- Essilor is pursuing its external growth strategy in Italy and the United States.

The Group has stepped up its development in Italy with the acquisition of Galileo, a major player in the Italian market. The company sells prescription and stock lenses under its own brand, which is widely recognized in the optics industry and among Italian consumers. Galileo operates a prescription laboratory in Milan and generates EUR13 million in annual revenue.

Essilor of America, a subsidiary of Essilor International, has strengthened its prescription laboratory network in the United States with the acquisition of a majority stake in Empire Optical of California, Inc., located in North Hollywood. A distributor of Varilux(R) lenses, the company has 168 employees and US$23 million in full-year revenue. Empire has major potential for developing Essilor lenses and enables the Group to increase its market share in the nation's most populous state.

Lastly, Essilor of America has also acquired a majority stake in two prescription laboratories: Advance Optical Sales Co., Inc. in Rochester, New York, with revenue of US$6.1 million, and Future Optics Inc. in Jackson, Tennessee, with revenue of US$3.3 million.

Essilor International is the world leader in ophthalmic optical products, offering a wide range of lenses under the flagship Varilux(R), Crizal(R), Essilor(R) and Definity(R) brands to correct myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia and astigmatism. Essilor operates worldwide through 15 production sites, 270 lens finishing laboratories and local distribution networks. The Essilor share trades on the Euronext Paris market and is included in the CAC 40 index. Codes and symbols: ISIN: FR 0000121667; Reuters: ESSI.PA; Bloomberg: EF:FP

Investor Relations and Financial Communications Veronique Gillet - Sebastien Leroy Phone: +33-1-49-77-42-16 http://www.essilor.com

SOURCE Essilor

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