Sales strong at Luxottica

The manufacturer of the Prada and Dolce & Gabbana eyewear brands has announced first-quarter results for 2006.

Luxottica reported a 40 per cent increase in operating income to €192m, slightly below expectations. Retail sales grew 18 per cent to €891m, while wholesale grew 39 per cent to €456m. Andrea Guerra, chief executive, said: 'Our strong results for the first quarter represent a particularly encouraging beginning for 2006.

'Sales were up significantly in both wholesale and retail, by 39.4 per cent and 17.7 per cent, respectively, reflecting continued strength in our wholesale business and strong execution on our retail strategy  both in North America and Asia-Pacific.'

He added that Ray-Ban had had another strong quarter, 'after the spectacular growth experienced in 2005 and three consecutive years of 20 per cent growth'.