De Rigo Vision and Nina Ricci have entered into a licence agreement for the design, production and worldwide distribution of Nina Ricci-branded optical and sun collections.
The agreement comes into force in September this year and will see the launch of a Nina Ricci collection. This will be offered to consumers through optical outlets, department stores and Nina Ricci boutiques.
Michele Aracri, CEO of De Rigo Vision S.p.A., said he was delighted to welcome Nina Ricci to De Rigo’s portfolio. ‘I believe in the strategic value of this partnership which has tremendous potential for growth both in the French market and in the international market, thanks to the unique and extraordinary heritage of the brand that Guillaume Henry [artistic director] reinterprets with a contemporary and personal touch.’
De Rigo has interests in a range of optical retail businesses with its own chains General Optica (Spain), Mais Optica (Portugal), Opmar Optik (Turkey) and its affiliate company Boots Opticians (UK).
Nina Ricci was founded in 1932 by Maria Nielli and her son Robert Ricci, the French Haute Couture brand is currently lead its new Artistic Director, Guillaume Henry. The brand seeks to symbolize luxury, natural elegance, femininity and sensuality.
De Rigo’s products are distributed in approximately 80 countries through 13 companies and over 100 independent distributors. Its owned brands include Lozza, Police and Sting, and it has a portfolio of licenced brands including Blumarine, Carolina Herrera, Chopard, Escada, Furla, Lanvin, Loewe, Tous and Zadig&Voltaire.