The European Commission will warn eyeglass giant EssilorLuxottica that the acquisition of optical company GrandVision, known from the Pearle chain, may face competition concerns. This is reported by news agency Reuters on the basis of insiders. The European market watchdog will send that warning to the French-Italian company in the coming days.
A so-called statement of objections from the European Commission usually increases the pressure on companies. They can then make concessions to allow an acquisition to continue, such as divesting parts.
When EssilorLuxottica acquires the optical chains from GrandVision, the company has 7000 stores worldwide. In the Netherlands, GrandVision has chains such as Pearle and Eye Wish. In the GrandVision stores, the company already sells its Varilux lenses and glasses from brands such as Ray-Ban.