Luxury giant Kering announced on Monday that it owns "more than 90%" of U.S eyewear manufacturer Maui Jim, which will add to the Kering Eyewear brand portfolio. An entity dedicated to the group's eyewear brands created in 2014. The deal was announced in March.

"The acquisition of the remaining capital should take place by the end of 2022" but the group will be consolidated in its accounts "from October 1" of this year, a statement said.

On March 14, Kering Eyewear announced that it had signed an agreement to acquire the "world's largest independent sunglasses brand", founded in 1987 in Hawaii, without disclosing the amount of the transaction.

Maui Jim, which has annual sales of €300 to €350 million, has developed a range of high-end sunglasses and optical frames sold in more than 100 countries. The brand employs around 1,000 people worldwide and its headquarters are located in Peoria, Illinois.

A few months earlier, Kering had acquired the Danish company Lindberg.

Kering Eyewear designs and distributes eyewear for its portfolio of seventeen brands, which includes Lindberg, Gucci, Cartier, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Chloé, Alexander McQueen, Montblanc, Brioni, Dunhill, Boucheron, Pomellato, Alaïa, McQ, Puma and Maui Jim.

Paris, oct 3 2022 (AFP)