CNJ Cole National

Luxottica Group Comments on Cole National's Announcement MILAN, Italy, July 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Luxottica Group S.p.A. (NYSE: LUX; MTA: LUX) announced that it has been informed of the revised non binding proposal received by Cole National Corporation (NYSE:CNJ) from Moulin International Holding Ltd. for the acquisition of Cole National Corporation by merger. Luxottica Group noted that Cole National's announcement indicated that its Board had only decided to review Moulin's revised proposal before undertaking any decision and that the Board has not withdrawn, modified or amended its recommendation that Cole National's stockholders approve the January 2004 Luxottica Group-Cole National merger agreement. Luxottica Group noted that its Board of Directors has not deemed it necessary to take any action in connection with the revised proposal made by Moulin International Holding and that it will be reviewing such matters in due course. In addition, Luxottica Group noted that, under the terms of the Luxottica Group - Cole National merger agreement, Cole National's Board of Directors cannot withdraw its recommendation of the Luxottica Group merger unless it first gives Luxottica Group three business days within which Luxottica Group may revise or modify the terms of the merger. Finally, Luxottica Group noted that it has cooperated fully with the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) review of its proposed acquisition of Cole National and that it expects to complete its required submissions by the end of this week. In addition, Luxottica Group stated that it has committed to the FTC not to close the transaction before September 30, 2004, without its consent. About Luxottica Group S.p.A. Luxottica Group is the world leader in the design, manufacture, marketing and distribution of prescription frames and sunglasses in mid- and premium- priced categories. The Group's products are designed and manufactured in its seven facilities in Italy and one in the People's Republic of China. The lines manufactured by Luxottica Group include over 2,450 styles in a wide array of colors and sizes and are sold through 20 wholly-owned subsidiaries in the United States, Canada, Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Switzerland, Mexico, Belgium, Argentina, South Africa, Finland, Austria, Norway, Japan and Australia; two 75%-owned subsidiaries in Israel and Poland; a 70%-owned subsidiary in Greece; three 51%-owned subsidiaries in the Netherlands, Turkey and Singapore, one 49%-owned subsidiary in the Arab Emirates and one 44%-owned subsidiary in India. In September 2003, Luxottica Group acquired OPSM, the leading eyewear retailer in Australia. In March 2001, Luxottica Group acquired Sunglass Hut International, a leading sunglass retailer with approximately 1,900 stores worldwide. This followed the acquisitions of Bausch & Lomb sunglass business, which includes the prestigious Ray-Ban(R), Revo(R), Arnette(TM) and Killer Loop(R) brands, in June 1999, and LensCrafters, the largest optical retail chain in North America, in May 1995. For fiscal 2003, Luxottica Group posted net sales and net income respectively of euro 2,824.6 and euro 267.3 million. Additional information on the company is available on the web at http://www.luxottica.com/. DATASOURCE: Luxottica Group S.p.A. CONTACT: Sabina Grossi - Director, Investor Relations, Alessandra Senici - Investor Relations, or Luca Biondolillo - Director, Corporate Communications, all for Luxottica Group S.p.A., +39(02)8633-4665 or ; In the U.S. - Alexander Fudukidis of Breakstone & Ruth International, +1-646-536-7012, , for Luxottica Group S.p.A. Web site: http://www.luxottica.com/

Copyright