Milestones

1960-1970’s

1961- Cole Licensed Brands adds Sears Optical to its portfolio, acquiring valuable lab and manufacturing facilities

1961- Dr. Stanley Pearle opens the first Pearle Optical in Savannah, Georgia

1976- Cole National begins actively developing third party vision care plans

1979- The concept of a niche market for premium sunglasses catches on quickly and SGH expands across North America

1980’s

1983- LensCrafters opens its first store in Florence, Kentucky

1983- Cole Vision opens the Salt Lake City Manufacturing facility, processing plastic and glass prescription lenses in one shift

1983- Cole Licensed Brands opens its 500th location with annual sales exceeding $100 million

1988- Gift Of Sight begins as a used glasses collection drive in conjunction with a voucher program allowing stores to donate new glasses in their community

1988- Sunglass Hut launches international stores in Europe, entering the market as the first sunglass-only retailer

1990’s

1991- The first GIFT OF SIGHT international mission is launched

1993- The number of Sunglass Hut stores triples to 1,724 stores

1994- GIFT OF SIGHT wins the prestigious President’s Volunteer Action Award sponsored by the Points of Light Foundation and presented by President Clinton

1995- Luxottica purchases the LensCrafters organization

1995- Cole National sales exceed $300 million and the number of departments topped 1,000

1996- Sunglass Hut opens first sunglasses only retail store in Europe in U.K.

1998- FORTUNE magazine names LensCrafters on its list of the “Best 100 Companies to Work for in America”--beginning five consecutive years ('98, '99, '00, '01, '02) of placement on the list

1999- A used eyeglass-recycling center opens in the Cincinnati Service Center

1999- One millionth GIFT OF SIGHT recipient is helped in Seattle
 

2000’s

2001- Sunglass Hut enters the Luxottica Group

2002- Luxottica Retail opens its new corporate headquarters in Mason, Ohio

2004- Luxottica acquires Cole National, enhancing it leadership position in the North American optical market

2007- Luxottica opens state-of-the-art manufacturing facility opens in Columbus, Ohio; facility becomes IARC certified to process Hydrophobic AR Coating (EZ-AR)

2008- Luxottica launches OneSight, combining Give the Gift of Sight, Pearle Vision Foundation and Community I Care into one, new, global organization

2009- The seventh millionth OneSight recipient helped in Australia.