News Release: Essilor realigns its organization with its growing businesses

Essilor realigns its organization with its growing businesses

Charenton-le-Pont, France (December 7, 2016 - 7:00 a.m.) - Over the past several years, Essilor's core businesses have seen sustained growth while new activities such as sunwear and online have undergone increasingly rapid development. In parallel, the Company's geographic expansion has opened up extensive new markets in Latin America, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
In this context, Essilor has decided to realign its organization to meet the growing operational needs resulting from this expansion and respond to the related strategic and managerial challenges.

At the December 6, 2016 Board of Directors' meeting, Hubert Sagnières, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Essilor, proposed strengthening the Company's executive management by appointing
Laurent Vacherot as President and Chief Operating Officer. Laurent has been Co-Chief Operating Officer since 2010.

In his new role, Laurent Vacherot will take direct responsibility for Essilor's operations with all operational executives reporting directly to him. The Finance, Human Resources, Corporate Mission, Communications and Strategy will report to the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

After consulting the Nominations Committee and the Executive Officers and Remunerations Committee, the Board of Directors unanimously approved the proposal. It also proposed to appoint Laurent Vacherot as director, subject to the approval of shareholders at Essilor's next Shareholders' Meeting to be held on May 11, 2017.

Commenting on these changes, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Hubert Sagnières said: "As industry leader, Essilor has been able to associate key strategic decisions with operational efficiency to carry out its mission of "improving lives by improving sight". The exciting range of our key day-to-day operational challenges includes innovating, expanding in market segments complementary to our core businesses and gaining footholds in vast countries with extensive markets.
The realignment of our organization will help us accelerate the implementation of our strategy and lay the groundwork for the Company and our teams to achieve meaningful and value-adding growth over the long term. I am delighted at the prospect of working even more closely with Laurent at the head of Essilor's operational management, in carrying out our mission on behalf of our customers and in the interests of our shareholders and employees."

About Essilor
The world's leading ophthalmic optics company, Essilor designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of lenses to improve and protect eyesight. Its mission is to improve lives by improving sight. To support this mission, Essilor allocates more than €200 million to research and innovation every year, in a commitment to continuously bring new, more effective products to market. Its flagship brands are Varilux®, Crizal®, Transitions®, Eyezen(TM), Xperio®, Foster Grant®, Bolon(TM) and Costa®. It also develops and markets equipment, instruments and services for eyecare professionals.
Essilor reported consolidated revenue of more than €6.7 billion in 2015 and employs 61,000 people worldwide. It markets its products in more than 100 countries and has 32 plants, 490 prescription laboratories and edging facilities, as well as five research and development centers around the world. For more information, please visit www.essilor.com.
The Essilor share trades on the Euronext Paris market and is included in the Euro Stoxx 50 and CAC 40 indices. 
Codes and symbols: ISIN: FR0000121667; Reuters: ESSI.PA; Bloomberg: EI:FP.

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LAURENT VACHEROT'S RESUME