New York, Nov 24: The Armani Group and sunglass manufacturer Luxottica terminate their license agreement for the distribution of the designer's eyewear collection by the first half of 2003. Calling it an amicable split, Giorgio Armani attributed his company's success in eyewear to the Luxottica Group, who has manufactured glasses for the Italian designer since 1988. Armani said his company is currently "considering alternatives for the future manufacture and distribution of our eyewear collections." "I have the utmost respect for [chairman of Luxottica] Leonardo Del Vecchio. In addition, being a shareholder of Luxottica Group has always been rewarding and the expirations of the license agreement do not have a bearing on my shareholding in the company," Armani said.
Luxottica helped lead Armani into the forefront of eyewear in the late 80's, first with the Giorgio Armani collection and later with the launch of the more casual Emporio Armani line. Del Vecchio echoed similar sentiments regarding the expiration of the license between the two companies.
"Unfortunately, during the discussions for the renewal different strategic priorities emerged and, as a result, it was not possible to find common ground for the respective interests of each group," Del Vecchio said.

Bureau Report