The Eyewear district in the Belluno area

Source: Study and Statistics Office of the Treviso-Belluno |Dolomites Chamber of Commerce.

The history of the District begins in 1878 with the first establishment of an eyeglass factory in Calalzo di Cadore, among the World Heritage of the Dolomites.

Today its extension coincides with the territory of almost the entire province of Belluno, partially spilling over into the province of Treviso. The key factor that launched the district was the production of sunglasses and the birth of designer eyewear.

Agreements between the district’s major enterprises and international fashion brands changed the industry’s production structure starting in the late 1980s and opened up production to an international market.

The district has all the necessary skills to carry out the activities of designing and manufacturing eyeglass frames, sunglasses, small parts, production machinery and equipment, galvanic treatments, cases and lenses.

According to statistical data from the Register of Companies compiled by Infocamere, at the end of 2021 , 360 business establishments and 120 dependent local units employing more than 14,200 people in the territory were active in the district’s core1 activities.

In addition, there are 249 business headquarters and 127 dependent local units operating in the other sectoral areas of the production chain, employing an additional approximately 3 thousand people in the area.

The district is home to Certottica, the Italian Institute for the Certification of Optical Products as well as a research center dedicated to eyewear. A majority shareholder of Certottica is ANFAO, the National Association of Eyewear Manufacturers, which today brings together all the major Italian eyewear companies in the entire production chain. ANFAO organizes annually in Milan “MIDO,” the International Optics, Optometry and Ophthalmology Exhibition, the premier event in the industry and by far the most prestigious eyewear showcase worldwide.

The district is also home to the Museum of Eyewear in Pieve di Cadore, which promotes the history of the district and is a source of inspiration for design, and Reviviscar, the operational structure of Confindustria Belluno Dolomiti, responsible for the provision of services for training and support to companies in the area.

The school is also an integrated actor in the district. The course of study for Opticians at the Institute of Higher Education “E. Fermi” in Pieve di Cadore is a historical reality in the Belluno area with a high standard of quality in teaching and professional training.

More recently, the three-year specialization course “Eyewear Technology” started at the ITIS “Segato” in Belluno. It was, also started the two-year post-diploma specialization course “Superior Technician for the Design and Realization of Eyewear” organized by ITS Cosmo Foundation together with Certottica.

Based on Intesa San Paolo Research Center‘s elaborations on the company balance sheets of a sample of 119 companies in the Belluno district, in 2020, the year of the Covid19 pandemic, the district’s turnover stood at just over 5 billion euros with a change compared to 2019 of -27.6% (median value). In fact, in 2019, the turnover of the sample (116 companies) was over 6.8 billion.

But the 2021 results, at the national level, show how the industry has re-entered a more than positive trend. According to ANFAO data, the value of domestic production of frames, sunglasses, and lenses (accounting for 75% of the sector’s output) was higher than even pre-pandemic levels: +4.5% over 2019. Much is due to the strong international propensity of Italian eyewear, which sells 90% of domestic production of frames, sunglasses, and lenses abroad. In 2021 these exports experienced growth of +39.2% over 2020 and +3.4% over 2019.

Looking at the Belluno district, which moves nearly 40%of the sector’s national exports and accounts for 70% of total provincial exports, foreign sales approached 3 billion euros in 2021, fully recovering over 2020 (+42.8%) and even surpassing pre-pandemic levels (+3.3%over 2019; +95 million).

Both out-of-Union sales, which account for nearly two-thirds of the total, and in-Union sales experienced a strong rebound on 2020 that allowed 2019 levels to be exceeded in both Areas.

The United States is confirmed as the main destination market and absorbed more than a third of sales (35.2%, or more than 1 billion euros). They are followed in value by France with a 10.6% share (312 million euros) and with shares between 5-7%: Germany (199 million), the United Kingdom with nearly 176 million, China and Hong Kong (154 million) and Spain (146.5 million).

In the first quarter of 2022, a more than positive trend continued for Belluno’s eyewear exports both year-on-year (+36.8%) and compared to the same period in 2019 (+16%).
However, uncertain international conditions weighed down by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, new variants of the Covid-19 virus, and high tensions on the prices of many raw materials will, according to ANFAO, lead to a settling of Italian eyewear export growth in 2022 around +4-5%.

by the Studies and Statistics Office of the Treviso – Belluno |Dolomites Chamber of Commerce

Translated by Giada Gubert

Intern at the Chamber of Commerce of Treviso – Belluno |Dolomites