Donna Karan International, one of world's leading fashion design houses, and Luxottica Group S.p.A., worldwide leader in the eyewear sector, announced today the signing of a five-year licensing agreement for the design, production and worldwide distribution of Donna Karan and DKNY prescription frames and sunglasses. The initial agreement, which will begin on January 1, 2005, is renewable for an additional five years through December 2014.
“Eyewear is an integral part of my head-to-toe philosophy,” states Donna Karan. “It's also a personal passion. Partnering with Luxottica Group – a proven global leader in the industry – will allow me to further explore the latest design and technological innovations out there.”
“We're grateful to Marchon for the past amazing four years and now look forward to expanding on our eyewear wardrobe with Luxottica Group.”
Leonardo Del Vecchio, chairman of Luxottica Group, commented: “The agreement with Donna Karan, a leading fashion brand and part of the LVMH group of companies, is part of a process started in 2003 of refreshing and rebalancing of our portfolio with the signing of other similarly important agreements.”
“Today our portfolio is more balanced than in the past. Sales to third parties of our Wholesale Division for the first five months of this year, up by approximately 9 percent year-over-year, confirm the renewed strength of our portfolio. Donna Karan and DKNY are brands that are truly global, particularly strong in key English speaking markets worldwide.”
The first new Donna Karan and DKNY eyewear collections will be presented early next year. During the first twelve months since their commercial launch, Luxottica Group expects to generate sales from the new collections of approximately Euro 70 million.
Reflecting the design sensibility and spirit of the Donna Karan Collection and DKNY brands, the lines will offer men and women styles that are sophisticated, with a modern and lightweight range of materials. The collections will be available worldwide to Donna Karan Collection and DKNY accounts and select specialty sun and optical stores. They will also be sold in Donna Karan Collection and DKNY domestic and international free standing boutiques.
The current licenses for the Donna Karan and DKNY eyewear collections with Marchon Eyewear will expire at the end of 2004.