EssilorLuxottica CFO says Ray-Ban Meta glasses are a “success” in the US and the bestseller “in 60%” of Ray-Ban stores in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa
Revenue keeping a solid 4% growth — Group's revenue up 4.0% … Jack Purcher / Patently Apple : Meta has won an Orion related Smartglasses Patent covering Liquid Crystal-based Metasurfaces For Optical Systems Martin Peers / The Information : Meta Ray Bans Sells Strongly in Europe, EssilorLuxottica Says Maxwell Zeff / TechCrunch : Meta's smart glasses outsell traditional Ray-Bans in some stores, even before AI features roll out Investing.com : Earnings call: EssilorLuxottica reports 4% revenue growth, expects Q4 acceleration Antonio Vanuzzo / BNN Bloomberg : EssilorLuxottica Sales Miss Estimates on Weaker China Market Laurel Deppen / Fashion Dive : EssilorLuxottica sees slight revenue increase as it looks to solidify its position in med-tech Eugenio Catone / Seeking Alpha : EssilorLuxottica: Ray-Ban Meta Glasses Continue To Impress Andrea Figueras / Wall Street Journal : Ray-Ban Maker EssilorLuxottica Posts Revenue Increase But Misses Expectations Rory Greener / XR Today : Ray Ban Meta AR Smart Glasses Claim EU Sales Success and AI “Killer Applications” Antonio Vanuzzo / Bloomberg : EssilorLuxottica Sales Slightly Miss on Worsening China Market Reuters : Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica misses sales expectations as China slows Mastodon: Matt Birchler / @matt@isfeeling.social : Wow, Meta's Ray-Bans are the top-selling glasses in 60% of stores in the EU. At twice the ASP of normal Ray-Bans, that's pretty impressive. — https://www.uploadvr.com/... X: Alex Immerman / @aleximm : Smart glasses are becoming a thing. @andrewchen's dreams come true. The killer app is AI, and that feature for Meta's glasses is not yet available in Europe. But in 60% of Ray-Ban stores across EMEA, the Meta glasses are already the best seller. @borrowed_ideas : From EssilorLuxottica 3Q'24 call: “...it's not just a success in the US, but it's obvious. But it's also success here in Europe. Just to give you an idea, in 60% of the Ray-Ban stores in Europe, in EMEA, Ray-Ban Meta is the best seller in those stores.” $META $ESLOY Tina Debove Nigro / @tina__nigro : These glasses are amazing and I will probably never buy analog sunglasses ever again David Heaney / @heaney555 : In 2024, smart glasses are not just a quirky San Fransisco niche. This is a real hit product. Wyatt Walls / @lefthanddraft : You may not like the privacy implications, but a lot of people actually do want to wear a camera on their face LinkedIn: Antony Vitillo : This is AMAZING news: “In 60% of the Ray-Ban stores in Europe, in EMEA, Ray-Ban Meta is the best-seller in those stores.” … Forums: r/virtualreality : Ray-Ban Meta Glasses Are The Top Selling Product In Many Ray-Ban Stores
Context & Ripple Effects
This is an early retail-validation signal for EssilorLuxottica and Meta: the glasses were moving beyond a niche technology launch into Ray-Ban’s established store network, even as the group reported 4.0% revenue growth and faced weaker conditions in China.
Later coverage strengthened that arc, with Meta disclosing more than 1 million Ray-Ban smart glasses sold in 2024 and EssilorLuxottica reporting more than tripled first-half sales year over year. The initial store-level performance therefore matters as evidence that branded eyewear retail can distribute an AI-device category.
First-order effects
- EssilorLuxottica gains a concrete sales signal that the Ray-Ban Meta line can lead store assortments across parts of EMEA, while Meta gains a consumer-facing channel through a mainstream eyewear brand.
- The reported performance supports continued commercial attention to the Ray-Ban Meta range despite uneven group conditions, including the cited weakness in China.
Second-order effects
- Strong sell-through gives EssilorLuxottica and Meta a basis to expand the format into adjacent branded lines; the later Oakley Meta HSTN launch shows that the partnership could apply the model beyond Ray-Ban.
- Traditional eyewear products face more direct in-store competition for display, sales-staff attention, and customer spending where smart glasses are already bestsellers.
Third-order effects
- If retail leadership persists across markets, smart glasses could become a recurring product category within optical and fashion-eyewear distribution rather than a separate consumer-electronics channel.
- The partnership points to an AI distribution advantage: companies pairing software with trusted fashion brands and retail networks may have a stronger route to everyday wearable adoption than device makers selling standalone hardware.
The trend: AI wearables are increasingly being tested as familiar branded eyewear, with retail distribution and design legitimacy becoming as important as the underlying technology.