Once again, the Group participated in MIDO, the world's premier eyewear industry exhibition which took place in Milan with over 1,300 exhibitors and 58,000 global visitors in attendance.

Serving as a hub for global industry players, Mido 2025 kicked off in Rho Fiera Milano this year from February 8–10, highlighting the entire sector: from lenses to machinery, frames to cases, materials to technologies, through to furniture and components.

The EssilorLuxottica booth drew visitors to a new realm of innovation as they discovered Ray-Ban I Meta, Nuance Audio, Transitions, Stellest, the Kids Frames category, as well as a selection of luxury eyewear brands. As a preview for the Italian market, the Group presented:

Varilux Physio extensee: The Company’s first Varilux lens developed using a dynamic replica of the human pupil to offer high vision intensity in any light for extra visual sharpness and contrast¹ Powered by Varilux lens AI twinning technology and pupil-variation predicting, the Varilux Physio extensee lens is designed to provide optimized correction for each wearer’s pupil dynamics to reduce high-order aberrations and offer extra visual sharpness and contrast.

The new Nikon Z-Suite progressive lens range, designed to optimize and improve contrast perception. Ushering in a new era in progressive lens design, Nikon presents the Z suite progressive, its new portfolio of progressive lenses, meticulously designed to curate the progression zone and accentuate the experience of contrast through the lens. Building on a unique Modulation Transfer Function methodology used for cameras and lenses, Nikon introduces a groundbreaking evaluation methodology for spectacle lenses.

Nuance Audio, the groundbreaking open-ear hearing software seamlessly integrated into stylish eyewear, took center stage as B2B clients showed tremendous interest ahead of its launch. A true reflection of EssilorLuxottica’s vision to revolutionize the underserved hearing solutions market, Nuance Audio removes the barriers that have long stood in the way of traditional hearing aid adoption.

The Company also took the opportunity to showcase its full range of Ray-Ban | Meta glasses and their innovative features, ranging from built-in cameras to open-ear audio and Meta AI-powered solutions.par With its high quality, 12MP camera, users have since tagged thousands of hands-free photos and videos sharing their unique POV around the world. Ray-Ban Meta feature open ear speakers so people can listen to their favorite podcast, book or album.

Other highlights included the latest technologies from Shamir, Essilor Instruments, Heidelberg Engineering as well as Espansione. Certain brands from the Group’s portfolio such as Persol, Alain Mikli and Satisloh had dedicated stands in other areas of the fair.

Leonardo In Conversation: A Stage for the Future of the Industry

At MIDO 2025, the spotlight this year was on Leonardo in Conversation, a new format powered by Leonardo which brought that saw the participation of hundreds of people, bringing together internal and external experts through a series of talks to discuss the future of optics through the lens of vision, fashion and technology. Celebrating innovation, education, and dialogue, the experts offered unique perspectives and provided a clear vision of the challenges and opportunities within the industry. The Group’s learning ecosystem, Leonardo, was also highlighted throughout the event as it offers a vast universe of curated educational content available 24/7 to the Company’s employees, partners and customers.

Reflecting on the Group’s continuous investment in research and development to address global eye health challenges, various internal and external experts presented key insights on presbyopia, cognitive functions, and extensive customization of progressive lenses and the latest developments in dynamic light management. Paolo Nucci, Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Milan, brought to the audience's attention a new concept: pre-myopia in children, where collaboration between the medical and optical-optometric fields is even more strategic.

Vision extends beyond the industry and applies to transversal fields. In the world of music, Linus, editor-in-chief of Radio DJ, and Albertino, art director of m2o, shared their views on the evolution of music and radio in recent years. Alessandro Del Piero, 2006 World Cup football champion, Max Sirena, Luna Rossa Team Director and Skipper, and Nausicaa Dell’Orto, an athlete from the Italian National American Football player, talked about the importance of vision in sports. Leonardo In Conversation also hosted “Persol meets Pierfrancesco Favino,” an exclusive conversation between the celebrated actor and Riccardo Pozzoli, Creative Director of Persol as they explored the true essence of Italian identity and its expression through cinema and the arts. The celebration of Italian identity was also the guiding theme of Domenico Dolce's speech.

_{1. Varilux® Physio® extensee™ – in-real life consumer study - Eurosyn – 2024 – France (n=79 progressive lens wearers)}