Essilor International SA Agrees to Acquire Signet Armorlite

CHARENTON-LE-PONT, France, January 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Essilor International announced today that its US subsidiary, EOA Holding Co. Inc., has signed a share purchase agreement whereby it has offered to acquire the entire capital of Signet Armorlite, a manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses. The agreement is subject to certain standard conditions precedent, including approval by competition authorities in Signet Armorlite's main host countries. The acquisition is expected to be completed in the first half of the year.

Headquartered in California in the United States, it has revenues of over $130 million, approximately 900 employees, one manufacturing plant in Mexico, four prescription laboratories in the United States and Europe, and three distribution centers in Canada, Portugal and the Netherlands.

Signet Armorlite specializes in entry-level and mid-range products for independent eyecare professionals and integrated retailers. It also manufactures lenses under the Kodak brand, for which it is the exclusive licensed manufacturer and distributor. Led by its current management team, Signet Armorlite will continue to produce, market and distribute ophthalmic lenses under the Kodak brand.

Essilor International is the world leader in ophthalmic optical products, offering a wide range of lenses under the flagship Varilux(r), Crizal(r), Essilor(r) and Definity(r) brands to correct myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia and astigmatism. Essilor operates worldwide through 15 production sites, 270 lens finishing laboratories and local distribution networks. The Essilor share trades on the Euronext Paris market and is included in the CAC 40 index. (ISIN: FR 0000121667; Reuters: ESSI.PA; Bloomberg: EI:FP).

CONTACT: Investor Relations and Financial Communications, Veronique Gillet
- Sebastien Leroy, Phone: +33(0)1-49-77-42-16