Episode summary
Macron’s Blue Aviators Spur 70% Surge in Tiny Italian Firm | Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek Daily
· · Hosts: Carol Massar, Tim Stenovec · Guests: Stefano Fulchir
Summary
Macron’s blue aviator sunglasses turned into an unexpected sales catalyst for iVision Tech’s French luxury brand Henry Jullien. Stefano Fulchir said the effect was a “wow effect,” with the company’s website crashing multiple times, phone calls flooding in, and orders arriving so fast that the firm sold in one day roughly the same quantity it normally makes in a year for that model. He said demand reached more than 200 pieces in a single day and forced the company to keep restoring the site and blocking PayPal.
Fulchir said the glasses had already been ordered in 2024 through the Élysée for a gift to a minister, and that the French presidency wanted them made in France. He described Henry Jullien as a historic brand and said the frames are gold-laminated, priced at about €650 or €659, with production done in a niche, handcrafted process.
He also framed the surge as validation of iVision Tech’s broader growth strategy. After buying the Safilo plant in Udine in 2020 and later acquiring Henry Jullien in 2023, the company has combined French heritage with Italian manufacturing scale. Fulchir said the family business is also moving into technology, including a patent project for blind people and smart eyewear, rather than trying to become a direct rival to giants like Luxottica.
Key takeaways
- Fulchir said Macron’s appearance created a demand spike that led to more than 200 orders in one day for the aviator model.
- He said the company sold in one day about the same quantity it normally produces in a year for that model.
- Fulchir said Henry Jullien frames are gold-laminated and priced around €650 to €659, positioning them as a niche luxury product.
- He said iVision Tech’s long-term plan is to build around smart eyewear and other technology, not just standard glasses.
- Fulchir said the company’s French production is intentionally small, handcrafted, and tied to the brand’s historical identity.
Notable quotes
“the effect is like a wow effect. Uh it was amazing because from Tuesday uh our website went in crash different times”
“we have sold in one day like the same quantity of one year of production of this model”
“We are not talking about a very big numbers because we are a a luxury brand”
“our idea is to develop a different type of company”
“we want to produce something technological. So we are following smart device, smart eyeware and I believe that in this field we can do more”
How the episode opens
Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio, news. — You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser and Tim Stenc on Bloomberg Radio. — Okay, Davos. It's a place to see and be seen. — Yes. Or Yeah, it is. I mean, listen, it's where the world's billionaires go, right? Global leaders gathered this past week at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting. It was also where a pair of blue aviators made headlines and were talked up around the globe. Those glasses became a hot item and demand according to the company that makes them.
For more, we head to Italy and to Stfano Fulchier, the CEO of Eye Vision Tech. Uh it's the parent company of the French luxury brand Henry Giulian, which made the glasses. Stefano, good to have you on the program. Take us through what happened since President Mcronone wore those glasses. What did you see in terms of demand? What did you see in terms of people buying them? Tell us everything.
Yeah, good evening and thank you to have invited me. So I think that the effect is like a wow effect. Uh it was amazing because from Tuesday uh our website went in crash different times.
We have received a lot of phone calls uh because everybody want to buy something like that you know and so they have realized that the the ivory is from Julian and so we are cover for full of request and now we have immediately start to make powerful the production of this model because everybody all over the world wanted. So you know the sales impact reaction was also amazing and uh we have sold in one day like the same quantity of one year of production of this model.
Wow. — Which is which is how many?
From the episode’s captions: roughly the first two minutes, lightly cleaned. Keep watching on YouTube →
Topics
- luxury eyewear sales
- davos fashion attention
- italian tech firm growth
- us trade policy
- macron sunglasses spotlight
Companies and tickers mentioned
- iVision Tech SpA
- Henry Jullien
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Summary, takeaways and quote selection by Octagon. Quotes are short excerpts; the full conversation is in the episode.
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