Vision Express parent company GrandVision has announced plans to float on the Amsterdam stock exchange – predicting growth in the global optical market.
The initial public offering would consist of a secondary offering of 20-25 per cent of the shares by GrandVision’s founding shareholder HAL Optical Investments, a statement said.
Announcement the IPO this week, GrandVision said it expected the optical retail market to continue to expand due to a growing and ageing global population, under-penetration, and the emerging middle class.
GrandVision forecasted the global eyewear market to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 6.5 per cent over the period from 2014 to 2019, with highest growth anticipated in emerging markets.
It said the demand for contact lenses was also growing, mainly due to shorter repurchase cycles of the growing disposable contact lenses sub-segment.
The group also commented on regulatory changes in some markets.
‘Market regulations in many countries have decreased over the past decades, a trend which is expected to continue. GrandVision as an efficient and full-service optical retailer expects to benefit from this easing of restrictions on eye test and eye measurement services and from more cooperation between optometrists and opticians,’ the statement added.
In addition to Vision Express, GrandVision operates under 33 optical banners in 43 countries, with over 5,600 stores in total. Last year the company also acquired online contact lens retailer Lenstore.co.uk (News 09.01.14).
Theo Kiesselbach, CEO of GrandVision, said: ‘Starting in 1996, GrandVision has, at an incredible pace, grown to become the global leader in optical retail. We believe that this IPO now marks a milestone in the history of GrandVision. With this we feel the responsibility to work even harder to bring high quality and affordable eye care to more and more people around the world.’
