Sunglass Hut International
Current logo
|
|
Sunglass Hut in Vaughan Mills, a Canadian shopping mall
|
|
| Public | |
| Industry | Retail - specialty |
| Founded | 1971 in Miami, Florida, USA by Sanford L. Ziff |
| Products | Sunglasses, watches, sunglass accessories |
|
Number of employees
|
9,200 |
| Parent | Luxottica |
| Website | www |
Sunglass Hut is an international retailer of sunglasses and sunglass accessories founded in Miami, Florida, United States, in 1971. Sunglass Hut is part of the Italian-based Luxottica Group, the world’s largest eyewear company.
As of December 31, 2008, the Luxottica Group operated 2,286 stores worldwide, most of those as part of the Sunglass Hut brand.Sunglass Hut stores are located in the United States, Mexico, Canada, the Caribbean, Brazil, continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa, the Middle East including Israel, and India.
The first Sunglass Hut store opened in 1971 when optometrist Sanford L. Ziff set up in a freestanding kiosk in Miami's Dadeland Mall. The success of this kiosk prompted Ziff to open other Sunglass Hut locations in Miami, and by 1986, Ziff had opened approximately 100 Sunglass Hut outlets, achieving sales of $24 million a year.
Sunglass Hut continued to grow,and in 1986 Ziff sold a 75% stake in Sunglass Hut to Connecticut investment firm Kidd, Kamm & Co. for $35 million.Ziff retained the company’s existing management team and shifted part ownership to his son, Dean. Following the partial acquisition, the business was incorporated under the name Sunglass Hut International, Inc.
Ziff retired from Sunglass Hut in 1989. He and his family retained a 25 percent stake in the business, but were no longer involved in its day-to-day operation. They retained the stake until 1991, when the company's annual sales surpassed $100 million, and the Ziff family sold the portion of Sunglass Hut that remained in their control.
In 1993, Sunglass Hut International, Inc. became a public company, with an initial public offering of US$70-million,and by 1996, Sunglass Hut possessed a 30 percent share of the sunglass market in the United States.The company also began selling watches under the names Watch Station, Watch World, and as combined Sunglass Hut-Watch Station stores.
...
Wikipedia