Oakley sales performance positive in all markets, Luxottica says

Oakley was one of the few bright spots in a tough quarter for parent company Luxottica as the challenging economy dampened demand for sunglasses, Luxottica said in an earnings press release Thursday.

Total Luxottica sales in the quarter ended March 31 declined 6.2 percent to 1.3 billion Euro at current exchange rates. In constant exchange rates, sales fell 11.6 percent.

Net income fell 22.5 percent to 80.4 million Euro.

Results were impacted by consumer attitudes, inventory reduction by wholesale accounts and a slowdown in the economy, the company said.

Luxottica sees some reasons for optimism, however, as sales stabilized in North America and improved in other markets in March and April.

In Luxottica's wholesale division, sales declined 19 percent to 501.6 million Euro after 20 quarters of growth.

Oakley's positive sales performance and the success of Ray Ban's optical collections helped offset declines, the company said. Luxottica does not breakout numbers for individual brands.

In the retail division, sales rose 4.1 percent to 810.8 million Euro at current exchange rates. In constant exchange rates, retail sales fell 5 percent.

At Luxottica's Sunglass Hut chain, same-store sales fell 10.3 percent. Sales trends were "highly positive" in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK, but negative in North America.

Luxottica Group operates 6,250 optical and sun retail stores in North America, Asia-Pacific, China, South Africa and Europe. Luxottica's optical brands include Ray-Ban, Oakley, Vogue, Persol, Oliver Peoples, Arnette and REVO. License brands include Bvlgari, Burberry, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana, Donna Karan, Polo Ralph Lauren, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Tiffany and Versace. Luxottica also manages LensCrafters and Pearle Vision in North America, OPSM and Laubman & Pank in Australasia, LensCrafters in Greater China and Sunglass Hut globally.