1. Company Overview & Business Model

Fielmann Aktiengesellschaft (Fielmann Group) is a German-based, family-controlled enterprise that has established itself as a dominant force in the European optical and hearing aid retail sectors. The company’s operations are built on an integrated business model that encompasses the design, manufacture, and retail of a wide range of vision and hearing products. As of its most recent reporting, Fielmann serves approximately 28 million active customers through a sophisticated omnichannel platform that combines digital sales channels with a physical network of over 1,000 retail stores across 16 countries.¹

Core Business Segments and Revenue Streams

Fielmann’s revenue is primarily generated from two core business areas: vision care (optics) and hearing care (acoustics).

Vision Care (Optics): This is the company’s foundational and largest segment. It includes the sale of prescription glasses (frames and lenses), contact lenses and associated care products, and sunglasses (both prescription and non-prescription). This segment is the primary revenue driver. In fiscal year 2023, the core category of prescription frames and lenses grew by 9% to generate €1.543 billion in sales. Supporting categories also showed robust growth, with sunglasses sales increasing by 19% to €84 million and contact lenses growing by 10% to €167 million.² Preliminary results for fiscal year 2024 indicate continued momentum, with prescription eyewear sales in Europe rising by 7%.³

Hearing Care (Acoustics): The hearing aids business represents a significant and rapidly growing secondary segment for Fielmann. The company offers hearing aids and related accessories, leveraging its existing store footprint by integrating hearing aid studios within its optical stores. This segment has demonstrated exceptional growth, with sales jumping 29% in 2023 to reach €129 million.² This trend continued into 2024, with the hearing aids business in Europe posting a 10% increase in sales.³ This outsized growth relative to the core optical segment positions the hearing care business as a key engine for future expansion, capitalizing on similar demographic trends as the optical market. The operational model benefits from substantial synergies, utilizing existing retail space and central overhead functions, allowing Fielmann to apply its proven strategies from the regulated optical industry to the similarly complex acoustics market.⁵

Primary Eyecare Services: A nascent but strategic revenue stream is the expansion into primary eyecare services. This initiative, which includes services like the “Eye Health Check Up,” moves Fielmann further into the healthcare space. In 2024, this business generated approximately €40 million in sales, a figure largely driven by the company’s recent expansion into the United States, where such services are a more integral part of the optical retail model.³

Geographic Footprint and Market Presence

Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, Fielmann has evolved from a domestic market leader into a major pan-European and emerging transatlantic player.⁶ The company holds a commanding market-leading position in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland (the DACH region).⁷

A cornerstone of its recent strategy, “Vision 2025,” has been aggressive internationalization. This has fundamentally shifted the company’s geographic sales mix. The share of international sales in the group’s total revenue has expanded dramatically, from 21% in 2018 to 37% in 2024. In the final quarter of 2024, international markets accounted for 40% of total sales, underscoring the rapid pace and success of this strategic pivot.³ Beyond its core DACH markets, the company has established a significant presence and is gaining market share in Spain, Italy, Poland, and the Czech Republic.³ The most transformative geographic move has been its entry into the United States in 2023 through major acquisitions, marking a new chapter in its global ambitions.⁸

Key Value Propositions and Competitive Differentiators

Fielmann’s success is built on a clear and consistently executed value proposition that has cultivated a strong competitive moat.

• Customer-Centric Philosophy: The company’s official guiding principle is “You are the customer” (Der Kunde bist Du), a philosophy that prioritizes fair, competent, and friendly service regardless of a customer’s budget.⁹ This focus has translated into tangible results, with customer satisfaction rates consistently at or above a 90% target level.³
• Price Leadership and Value-for-Money: Fielmann is synonymous with “fashionable eyewear at fair prices”.⁹ The company’s ability to offer guaranteed quality at the best prices serves as a powerful competitive advantage. This value proposition becomes particularly potent during periods of economic stress. In challenging macroeconomic environments with weak consumer sentiment, customers gravitate towards trusted, value-oriented providers, allowing Fielmann to consistently gain market share.³ This was demonstrated in 2022 when the company employed a deliberate strategy of “anticyclical price reductions” in Germany to attract new customers during a period of economic uncertainty.¹² This establishes the company’s pricing strategy not merely as a sales tactic, but as a strategic, defensive tool that strengthens its market position during downturns, setting the stage for accelerated growth in subsequent recoveries.
• Vertical Integration and Operational Control: Fielmann is active across large portions of the optical value chain. It operates its own design studios and manufacturing facilities, giving it significant control over product quality, innovation, and, crucially, costs.⁹ More than 70% of the eyewear products it sells are its own brands, which supports its cost leadership and margin structure.⁵

Business Model Evolution and Strategic Positioning

Fielmann is in the midst of a significant transformation, evolving from a dominant, but regionally focused, Central European retailer into a global, digitally integrated healthcare provider. This evolution is guided by its long-term strategic plans, “Vision 2025” and the newly announced “Vision 2035.”

The “Vision 2025” strategy, now nearing completion, was built on three pillars: cultural change, digitalization, and internationalization.⁵ The internationalization pillar has been an unqualified success, as evidenced by the dramatic shift in the geographic sales mix. The digitalization pillar is also bearing fruit, with the company successfully establishing itself as a leading omnichannel platform. In 2023, its digital sales channels grew by 17% to surpass €100 million in external sales (representing 5% of the group total). This performance is particularly noteworthy as it occurred while the broader German e-commerce market contracted by 12%, highlighting Fielmann’s effective digital execution.² Looking ahead, “Vision 2035” aims to build on this foundation, with an ambitious goal of reaching €4 billion in sales by 2030.¹⁵

2. Industry Analysis & Market Dynamics

Fielmann operates within the large, stable, and growing European optical retail market. The industry is characterized by resilient, non-discretionary demand driven by powerful demographic and lifestyle trends, but it is also facing shifts from digitalization and consolidation.

European Optical Retail Market Size, Growth, and Maturity

The European eyewear market is mature but continues to exhibit steady growth. It is the largest single eyewear market globally, accounting for approximately 36.6% of worldwide revenue in 2023.¹⁷ Market size estimates vary but consistently place its value in a significant range, from approximately USD 54 billion to USD 67 billion in 2023-2024.¹⁷

Growth forecasts for the market are robust, with various industry reports projecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of between 4.0% and 7.3% through the next decade.¹⁷ This trajectory is expected to push the market’s value to over USD 83 billion to USD 110 billion by the early 2030s.¹⁷ This growth is underpinned by the essential, healthcare-related nature of vision correction, making demand fundamentally non-discretionary and resilient across economic cycles.⁵

Key Industry Drivers

Several long-term, structural trends provide a durable tailwind for the optical retail industry.

• Aging Demographics: Europe has the highest proportion of elderly people in the world, with 19% of its population aged over 65.¹⁹ This demographic reality is a powerful driver of demand, as the need for vision correction, particularly for conditions like presbyopia, approaches 100% in senior populations.⁷
• Digitalization and Increased Screen Time: The pervasive use of digital devices such as smartphones, computers, and tablets is leading to a higher prevalence of vision disorders, including myopia (nearsightedness) in younger generations and symptoms of digital eye strain across all age groups.²¹ This trend directly fuels demand for both standard prescription eyewear and specialized products like blue light-filtering lenses.¹⁹
• Eyewear as a Fashion Accessory: Increasingly, eyewear is viewed not just as a medical necessity but as a key fashion item. This shift, amplified by social media and the involvement of luxury brands, encourages consumers to own multiple pairs and to update their eyewear more frequently to align with current trends, effectively shortening the replacement cycle and increasing the average spend per customer.¹⁷
• Growing Health Awareness: Consumers are becoming more conscious of the importance of preventative healthcare, leading to more regular eye examinations. This supports both the service and product sides of the optical retail business.²¹

Market Fragmentation vs. Consolidation Trends

The European optical market exhibits a dual structure. On one hand, it is highly fragmented, with thousands of independent opticians still commanding a significant portion of the market.⁵ On the other hand, the industry is experiencing a clear trend towards consolidation, with a few large, vertically integrated players dominating the landscape. The industry giant is EssilorLuxottica, followed by other major chains such as Fielmann, Specsavers, and the banners formerly under GrandVision (now part of EssilorLuxottica).²⁰ In most European countries, the top five retail players account for over 40% of total sales, indicating a significant degree of market concentration at the top.²⁵

Online vs. Brick-and-Mortar Dynamics

The physical, brick-and-mortar store remains the dominant sales channel in optical retail, accounting for approximately 79% of revenue in 2023.¹⁷ The enduring strength of this channel is rooted in the medical and service-intensive nature of the product. Consumers typically require in-person professional services for eye examinations, prescription generation, and the precise fitting of frames and lenses.²⁵ This provides a structural advantage to retailers with an extensive physical network.

However, e-commerce is unequivocally the fastest-growing channel, with a projected CAGR of over 8.6%.¹⁷ The online channel’s growth is driven by convenience, competitive pricing (especially for repeat purchases like contact lenses), and the adoption of enabling technologies like virtual try-on tools.¹⁹ This dynamic suggests that the most successful future business model is not purely online or offline, but rather a seamlessly integrated omnichannel platform. A hybrid approach allows a company to leverage the trust and professional services of its physical stores while offering the convenience and reach of a digital storefront. Fielmann’s strategy, which has resulted in its digital channels outperforming a declining e-commerce market, validates this integrated approach.²

Regulatory Environment and Technology Disruption

The European optical market is heavily regulated by national and regional health authorities that set strict standards for product quality, safety, and the provision of professional services.²³ This regulatory framework creates a significant barrier to entry, particularly for online-only players attempting to penetrate the lucrative prescription eyewear segment. The requirement for a valid prescription, typically obtained through an in-person examination, acts as a protective moat for established incumbents with integrated healthcare services. This regulatory structure slows the pace of disruption and affords companies like Fielmann the time to adapt their models, rather than being rapidly displaced by pure-tech challengers.

3. Competitive Landscape & Market Position

Fielmann has carved out a position of market leadership in its core territories and is a formidable challenger in its expansion markets. Its competitive standing is defined by dominant market share, a unique value proposition, and a highly efficient operating model that is difficult for rivals to replicate.

Market Share Analysis

Fielmann’s market position varies by geography, ranging from near-total dominance to an emerging challenger.

• Germany: In its home market, Fielmann’s leadership is absolute. Despite operating only 6% of the country’s optical stores, the company sells 55% of all prescription glasses by volume (unit market share).² Its value market share stands at over 24%, a testament to its extraordinary per-store productivity.²⁷
• DACH Region: This dominance extends to the broader German-speaking region. Fielmann is the market leader in Switzerland, with a 44% unit share and a 19% value share, and in Austria, with a 33% unit share and a 24% value share.⁷
• Spain: Through the strategic acquisition of Óptica & Audiología Universitaria in 2020, Fielmann rapidly established a strong foothold in Europe’s fourth-largest optical market. It is now considered the number two player in a highly fragmented market, holding a market share of approximately 10%.⁷
• Expansion Markets: The company is actively gaining share in other European markets. Preliminary 2024 results highlighted double-digit sales growth in Poland and the Czech Republic, significantly outpacing the broader market and indicating successful penetration.³

Competitive Positioning vs. Major Players

The European optical retail landscape is shaped by a few key competitors, each with a distinct strategic focus.

• EssilorLuxottica: The undisputed global industry leader, a Franco-Italian behemoth with 2023 revenues of over €25 billion and a network of approximately 18,000 stores.²⁹ Its vertical integration is unparalleled, spanning from lens technology (Essilor, Varilux) and iconic frame brands (Ray-Ban, Oakley, Persol) to a vast retail empire (Sunglass Hut, LensCrafters, GrandVision, Apollo Optik).²⁹ EssilorLuxottica’s strength lies in its brand portfolio and control over the premium and luxury segments. Fielmann competes not by challenging this brand dominance directly, but by focusing on the value and mass-market segments with a superior service and price proposition.
• Specsavers: A privately held company and a major competitor, particularly in the UK, the Nordic countries, and Australia. Specsavers operates a successful joint venture partnership model, where local stores are co-owned by the company and professional opticians.³² With over 44 million customers and more than 2,700 businesses, it is a powerful force in the value segment.³³ Fielmann’s corporate-owned, vertically integrated model offers potentially greater control over costs and quality consistency compared to Specsavers’ franchise-like structure.
• Online-Focused Retailers (e.g., Mister Spex): Publicly traded competitors like Germany’s Mister Spex have attempted to disrupt the market with an online-first model.³⁴ However, their performance highlights the inherent challenges of this approach. Mister Spex remains significantly smaller than Fielmann and has struggled to achieve profitability, underscoring the importance of the physical service component that Fielmann’s omnichannel model provides.³⁵

This competitive dynamic creates a “barbell” market structure. At one end, EssilorLuxottica dominates the premium/luxury segment through its powerful brand portfolio. At the other end, Fielmann dominates the value segment in its core markets through operational excellence. This structure places immense pressure on the undifferentiated middle market—comprising smaller chains and independent opticians—who lack both the brand power and the cost structure to compete effectively with the two poles. Fielmann’s growth strategy in Europe is predicated on systematically capturing share from this squeezed middle.

Competitive Advantages and Economic Moats

Fielmann’s market leadership is protected by several durable competitive advantages.

• Brand Equity: In the DACH region, the Fielmann brand is a formidable asset, with 90% brand awareness in Germany and a deep-seated association with trust, quality, and value.⁹
• Cost Advantage: The company’s significant scale, vertical integration into manufacturing, and centralized purchasing functions provide it with substantial bargaining power over suppliers. This structural cost advantage is the foundation of its price leadership strategy.¹⁴
• Operational Excellence and Productivity: Perhaps Fielmann’s most potent and difficult-to-replicate advantage is its superior operational efficiency. A typical Fielmann store sells more than 35 pairs of glasses per day, a figure that is over 17 times higher than the average independent optician in Germany, who sells fewer than two.¹¹ This extreme productivity generates superior revenue and cash flow per square foot. This operational engine is what funds the company’s price leadership. Competitors cannot sustainably match Fielmann’s prices because they lack the underlying efficiency to do so without destroying their own profitability. This virtuous cycle—where efficiency funds low prices, which in turn drives high volume, further enhancing efficiency—forms the core of Fielmann’s economic moat. The central question for the company’s future is the extent to which this highly tuned model can be successfully exported to new markets like the United States.

4. Financial Performance & Growth History

An analysis of Fielmann’s financial history reveals a company with a track record of steady growth and profitability, which has recently pivoted towards a more aggressive, investment-led expansion phase. This has impacted financial metrics in the short term but is aimed at establishing a higher long-term growth trajectory.

Revenue Growth Trajectory

Fielmann has demonstrated a consistent ability to grow its top line over the past decade. The company’s growth has accelerated significantly in recent years, driven by the execution of its “Vision 2025” strategy. After growing consolidated sales by 4.8% in 2022, the pace quickened to 12.0% in 2023 and a further 14.9% in 2024.¹⁴ This acceleration reflects the successful shift from mature, single-digit organic growth in its core DACH markets to a multi-faceted strategy combining strong performance in newer European markets and the significant impact of major acquisitions in the United States.² The company surpassed the €2 billion external sales threshold for the first time in 2022 and reached approximately €2.3 billion in consolidated sales in 2024.⁴

Profitability Trends

Fielmann’s profitability profile shows a period of deliberate investment and margin compression followed by a strong and decisive recovery. The company’s adjusted EBITDA margin, which stood at a high of 25.3% in 2019, declined to a trough of 19.3% in 2022.² This compression was not a sign of structural weakness but rather the result of conscious strategic decisions: anticyclical price reductions to gain market share, investments in employee salaries to secure talent, and absorbing inflationary cost pressures.¹²

The subsequent turnaround has been swift and effective. The adjusted EBITDA margin rebounded to 20.8% in 2023 and further to a preliminary 21.7% at the group level in 2024.² The recovery was driven by the implementation of a group-wide “Cost Leadership Program,” an improved product mix with a higher share of profitable progressive lenses, and strong growth in the high-margin hearing aids business.⁴ Profitability in the core European segment is even stronger, with the adjusted EBITDA margin reaching 22.8% in 2024, demonstrating the underlying health of the legacy business.⁴ The 2022 margin trough should be viewed as a successful strategic investment in long-term market position, funded by the company’s balance sheet strength, rather than a secular decline in profitability.

Return on Capital and Financial Leverage

The company’s capital efficiency has improved in line with its profitability. Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) recovered from 10.9% in 2022 to 14.0% in 2024, with analyst forecasts suggesting a further increase to over 17% in 2025, indicating that recent growth investments are generating shareholder value.¹⁴

Historically, Fielmann maintained a highly conservative financial profile, being described as “virtually debt free” in 2014.³⁷ This has changed as part of its strategic evolution. The company is now deliberately using its balance sheet to finance its ambitious M&A-led expansion. Net financial debt rose to €670 million in 2024 to fund acquisitions.¹⁴ Despite this increase in absolute terms, leverage remains modest, with the Net Debt-to-EBITDA ratio standing at a manageable 1.4x in 2024.¹⁴ This transformation marks a fundamental shift in capital allocation philosophy, from a fortress-like balance sheet to one that is actively deployed as a strategic weapon to accelerate growth. This increases the company’s financial risk profile but also significantly enhances its potential growth rate.

Cash Flow Generation

Fielmann consistently generates strong cash flow from its operations, which it describes as a “superior cash generation ability”.¹⁴ This cash flow provides the financial flexibility to fund its capital expenditures, shareholder returns, and acquisition strategy. The company’s free cash flow yield was forecasted to be a healthy 6.6% for 2024, underscoring its strong cash-generative characteristics.¹⁴

The table below provides a summary of Fielmann’s key financial metrics from 2018 through the preliminary results for 2024.

Table 1: Fielmann Group AG Key Financial Metrics (2018-2024)

Metric	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024 (Prelim.)
Consolidated Sales (€m)	1,428	1,521	1,429	1,678	1,759	1,970	2,264
Sales Growth (%)	3.0%	6.5%	-6.0%	17.4%	4.8%	12.0%	14.9%
Adj. EBITDA (€m)	296	385	337	N/A	340	410	491
Adj. EBITDA Margin (%)	20.7%	25.3%	23.6%	N/A	19.3%	20.8%	21.7%
Net Income (€m)	169	172	116	137	104	128	154
Net Margin (%)	11.8%	11.3%	8.1%	8.2%	5.9%	6.5%	6.8%
EPS (€)	2.01	2.05	1.39	1.63	1.23	1.56	1.81
ROE (%)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	16.9%
Net Financial Debt (€m)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	416	472	670
Net Debt/EBITDA (x)	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	1.2x	1.1x	1.4x
Note: Data compiled from multiple sources.2 EBITDA figures for 2018-2020 are based on reported numbers which may not be adjusted in the same manner as 2022-2024 figures. ROE for 2024 from.7

5. Recent Performance & Major Changes (2022-2024)

The period from 2022 to 2024 has been one of the most transformative in Fielmann’s history. The company navigated a challenging macroeconomic environment while simultaneously executing a bold strategic pivot into the North American market, accelerating its digital transformation, and refreshing its leadership team.

Strategic Pivot to the United States

The defining strategic initiative of this period was Fielmann’s entry into the United States, the world’s largest optical market, valued at approximately USD 66 billion.⁷ This was accomplished through two significant acquisitions:

• SVS Vision: Acquired in September 2023.⁸
• Shopko Optical: Acquired in July 2024, this was the largest transaction in the company’s history.⁷

These acquisitions immediately established a substantial US presence, forming the basis of a new entity, Fielmann USA, which is positioned as a leading optical retailer in the Upper Midwest.⁵ The US operations contributed approximately €200 million to group sales in 2024 and were the primary component of the 8% revenue growth attributed to M&A.³

This expansion represents a high-risk, high-reward strategy. The US market is attractive for its size and fragmented nature, but it also presents unique challenges, including a complex insurance and co-payment system that differs significantly from European healthcare models.⁵ The initial financial profile of the US business reflects this challenge: its adjusted EBITDA margin in 2024 was 9.9%, less than half of the 22.8% margin achieved in Europe.⁴ The central task for management, and the key determinant of the acquisitions’ long-term success, will be the ability to implement Fielmann’s highly efficient operating model to drive significant margin expansion in the US business.⁵

Navigating Macroeconomic Headwinds

Against a backdrop of recessionary conditions in Germany and persistently low consumer confidence across Europe, Fielmann’s value-oriented business model proved highly resilient.¹³ The company’s reputation as a price leader allowed it to capture market share from competitors as consumers became more price-sensitive.¹³ Concurrently, the company proactively managed inflationary pressures on its cost base through the rigorous implementation of its “Cost Leadership Program,” which focused on enhancing efficiency and controlling expenses. This program was a key factor in the successful expansion of the European EBITDA margin during this period.⁴

Acceleration of Digital and Omnichannel Initiatives

Fielmann continued to make significant strides in its digital transformation. The company’s strategic investments in its e-commerce platform and digital technologies yielded strong results, with online sales growing at rates that significantly outpaced the broader market. E-commerce revenue grew by 39% year-over-year in the first nine months of 2022 and continued its strong trajectory to surpass the €100 million mark in 2023.²

To bolster its technological capabilities for the future, the company’s venture capital arm, Fielmann Ventures, made key strategic investments. These included an investment in Deep Optics, an Israeli deep-tech company specializing in smart glasses technology, and a multi-million euro investment for a 20% stake in FittingBox, a global leader in augmented reality (AR) virtual try-on solutions for eyewear.⁸

Management and Leadership Evolution

The period saw important changes in Fielmann’s leadership structure, reflecting the company’s strategic evolution.

• Founder’s Passing: In January 2024, the company’s visionary founder, Günther Fielmann, passed away at the age of 84.⁸ While a momentous event, the generational leadership transition to his son, Marc Fielmann, had been successfully completed in prior years, ensuring strategic continuity.
• New Board Appointments: To align the management team with its new global focus, Steffen Baetjer was appointed Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in January 2024.⁸ In a highly symbolic move, Peter Lothes was appointed Chief Operating Officer (COO) in February 2025, becoming the first American to join the Fielmann Group Management Board. This appointment underscored the company’s deep commitment to the success of its new US operations.¹⁵

6. Growth Strategy & Future Opportunities

Fielmann’s future growth is guided by a clear and ambitious long-term strategy, encapsulated by its “Vision 2025” and “Vision 2035” plans. The strategy is multi-pronged, focusing on geographic expansion, omnichannel innovation, product mix enhancement, and continued vertical integration.

Geographic Expansion

The primary engine of future growth is expected to be international expansion, with a particular focus on the successful integration and expansion of its newly acquired US business. The immediate priority is to apply Fielmann’s operational best practices to the SVS Vision and Shopko Optical store networks to drive margin expansion and organic growth.⁵ Beyond the US, the company continues to see significant “whitespace” opportunities in its existing European growth markets, including Spain, Italy, and the promising markets of Eastern Europe, where it has already demonstrated strong double-digit growth.³

Digital and Omnichannel Initiatives

Fielmann is committed to evolving into a leading global omnichannel platform. The strategy involves creating a “blended experience” where customers can move seamlessly between online and in-store channels.³² This includes further investment in its e-commerce capabilities and the integration of advanced technologies like the AR virtual try-on solutions from its portfolio company, FittingBox.⁴¹ The goal is to provide customers with a unique and superior experience that combines the convenience of online shopping with the quality and professional service of its physical stores, thereby digitizing the eyewear industry without compromising on quality.

Product Mix Evolution

A key lever for both revenue growth and margin enhancement is the strategic management of the product mix.

• Premiumization: The company is focused on increasing the share of higher-value products, such as progressive lenses, which was a noted driver of growth in 2024.³
• Hearing Aids: The high-growth, high-margin hearing aids segment remains a strategic priority. The company will continue to expand its network of in-store hearing aid studios to capitalize on the strong demand and operational synergies.⁵
• Primary Eyecare: Fielmann is expanding its service offering into primary eyecare. The “Eye Health Check Up” service is being rolled out across its European network, with over 130,000 services performed since inception.³ This initiative not only creates a new revenue stream but also deepens the customer relationship and positions Fielmann as a comprehensive healthcare provider.

Acquisition Strategy and Vertical Integration

M&A remains a core pillar of the growth strategy. The company will continue to pursue a disciplined approach of acquiring leading regional players in large, fragmented markets to accelerate its internationalization.⁵

In parallel, Fielmann is deepening its vertical integration to enhance its cost and quality advantages. A notable recent investment is the €65 million development of a new high-tech manufacturing and logistics facility in Chomutov, Czech Republic. This is part of a broader €100 million investment program aimed at improving production lead times, reducing costs, and lowering the company’s carbon footprint.⁸

Long-Term Vision

The company’s strategic ambitions are formalized in its long-term plans. Having largely achieved the goals of “Vision 2025,” Fielmann has introduced “Vision 2035.” This new plan envisions the company’s evolution into a global provider of vision and hearing care, setting new financial targets of approximately €4 billion in global sales and an adjusted EBITDA margin of approximately 25% at the group level by 2030.¹⁵

7. Capital Allocation & Shareholder Returns

Fielmann’s capital allocation strategy has evolved in recent years from a conservative, dividend-focused approach to a more dynamic model that prioritizes funding strategic growth initiatives while still providing returns to shareholders. The company’s strong and reliable cash flow generation underpins this strategy.⁵

Capital Expenditure Priorities

Capital expenditures are primarily directed towards three key areas:

1. Network Expansion and Modernization: Continued investment in opening new stores in growth markets and modernizing the existing store base to enhance the customer experience.
2. Digitalization and Technology: Significant investment in the company’s omnichannel platform, e-commerce capabilities, and strategic stakes in technology companies like FittingBox (AR) and Deep Optics (smart glasses) through its Fielmann Ventures arm.⁸
3. Vertical Integration: Major investments in manufacturing and logistics, such as the new €65 million facility in the Czech Republic, to strengthen its supply chain and cost structure.⁸

Dividend Policy and Sustainability

Fielmann has a long history of being a reliable dividend payer. However, the company has shown a willingness to adapt its policy to support its strategic objectives. In 2023, it announced an “adjusted dividend policy to accelerate strategic investments,” signaling that M&A and internal growth projects were the top priority for capital.⁸

Despite this prioritization of growth, the company remains committed to shareholder returns. Following a successful fiscal year in 2024, the Management and Supervisory Boards recommended an increased dividend of €1.15 per share, up from €1.00 in the prior year.⁴ The payout ratio is typically maintained at a substantial level, estimated to be around 55-60% of net income.⁷ The dividend yield based on recent prices is approximately 2.1%.⁴³

M&A Activity and Integration

Mergers and acquisitions have become the most significant use of capital in the 2022-2024 period. The company has aggressively deployed its balance sheet to enter the US market, spending over €141 million on M&A in 2023 alone.⁷ The acquisitions of SVS Vision and Shopko Optical represent a substantial capital outlay and a clear prioritization of inorganic growth to achieve strategic scale in new markets. The track record of integrating these large US assets will be a critical determinant of the success of this capital allocation strategy.

Balance Sheet Management

The company has shifted from a nearly debt-free posture to one of modest leverage to facilitate its growth ambitions. This was further supported in May 2025 by the successful issuance of its inaugural €275 million Schuldschein (a traditional German debt instrument). The issuance was significantly oversubscribed, allowing the company to price the tranches at the lower end of the marketing range, thereby improving its capital structure and reducing its overall cost of capital.¹⁵ This demonstrates both management’s proactive approach to financing and strong investor confidence in the company’s credit profile.

8. Management Quality & Corporate Governance

Fielmann operates as a publicly listed family business, a structure that significantly influences its management style and corporate governance. The company is characterized by a long-term strategic vision, a stable leadership team, and a strong, customer-centric corporate culture.

Leadership Team and Track Record

The leadership team has successfully navigated a crucial generational transition. The company’s founder, Günther Fielmann, a towering figure in the German retail industry, gradually handed over control to his son, Marc Fielmann, who now serves as CEO.⁴⁵ The transition has been smooth, with the company accelerating its strategic evolution under the younger Fielmann’s leadership.

The Management Board has been recently strengthened to reflect the company’s increasingly international and complex operations. Key members include:

• Marc Fielmann (CEO): Responsible for Strategy, Category Management & Purchasing.⁴⁵
• Steffen Baetjer (CFO): Appointed in January 2024, responsible for Finance, Controlling, and Legal affairs.⁸
• Dr. Bastian Koerber (CSO): A long-tenured executive responsible for Sales, Marketing, and Expansion.⁴⁵
• Peter Lothes (COO): Appointed in February 2025, responsible for Manufacturing & Logistics and the first American on the board, signaling the strategic importance of the US market.¹⁵

The management team has demonstrated strong execution capabilities, successfully steering the company through the pandemic, navigating macroeconomic challenges, and delivering on the ambitious goals of the “Vision 2025” strategy. The company’s ability to meet or exceed its targets for customer satisfaction and sales, and its confidence in reaching its profitability goals, speaks to a high level of operational competence.⁴⁷

Corporate Governance Practices

Fielmann’s governance structure reflects its dual identity as a public company and a family-controlled enterprise. The Fielmann Family Foundation, via Korva SE, holds a majority stake of approximately 72.9% of the company’s shares.¹⁴ This controlling stake ensures a long-term perspective and strategic stability, insulating management from short-term market pressures. However, it also results in a relatively small free float of 27.1%, which can impact liquidity and may be a point of consideration for some institutional investors.¹⁴

The company adheres to the German Commercial Code for corporate governance and emphasizes transparency and open dialogue with all stakeholders.⁴⁸ It has a two-tier board structure, with a Management Board responsible for operations and a Supervisory Board responsible for oversight. The Supervisory Board is composed of both shareholder and employee representatives, in line with German corporate law.⁵⁰

Fielmann has established a comprehensive Code of Conduct for both its employees and suppliers, emphasizing respect for laws, human rights, and environmental protection.¹⁰ Management compensation systems are disclosed and are designed to align the interests of the executive team with long-term value creation for shareholders.⁴⁸

9. Risk Factors & Potential Headwinds

While Fielmann possesses a strong market position and a resilient business model, it is exposed to a range of strategic, operational, and financial risks that could impact its performance. The company outlines these risks in its annual reporting.³

Strategic and Market Risks

• Economic Sensitivity: Although vision care is largely non-discretionary, the business is not immune to severe economic downturns. During recessions, consumers may delay purchases of new eyewear, trade down to cheaper products, or forego second pairs and sunglasses, which could negatively impact sales and margins.
• Intense Competition: The optical retail market is highly competitive. Fielmann faces pressure from the global scale and brand portfolio of EssilorLuxottica, the value proposition of large private chains like Specsavers, and the growing presence of online retailers. Increased promotional activity or price competition could erode profitability.
• Market Saturation: In its core DACH markets, Fielmann already holds a very high market share. This implies that future growth in these mature regions will be limited and more difficult to achieve, making successful international expansion even more critical.

Operational and Execution Risks

• US Integration Risk: This is arguably the most significant near-to-medium-term risk. The successful integration of the SVS Vision and Shopko Optical acquisitions is a complex undertaking. Challenges in harmonizing IT systems, supply chains, corporate cultures, and store operations could lead to higher-than-expected costs and delays in achieving margin synergies. Failure to successfully adapt the Fielmann model to the unique characteristics of the US healthcare and retail environment could result in the US business underperforming expectations and becoming a drag on overall group profitability.
• Supply Chain Disruption: As a vertically integrated manufacturer and retailer, Fielmann is exposed to risks in its global supply chain. Potential disruptions from geopolitical events, trade tariffs (particularly with the US), or production stoppages could impact inventory availability, costs, and delivery times.³
• Skilled Labor Shortage: The company’s growth is dependent on its ability to attract and retain qualified opticians and acousticians. A shortage of skilled labor, driven by demographic changes, could constrain store expansion and increase wage pressures.³

Technology and Disruption Risks

• Online Competition: While Fielmann is developing a strong omnichannel presence, the threat from pure-play online retailers and direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands remains. A technological breakthrough in online refraction or fitting could potentially erode the competitive advantage of brick-and-mortar networks.
• Technological Obsolescence: The emergence of “smart glasses” or other disruptive technologies could fundamentally alter the eyewear market. While Fielmann is investing in this area, a failure to keep pace with innovation led by large technology firms or competitors like EssilorLuxottica could leave it at a disadvantage.

Financial and Other Risks

• Currency Exposure: With an increasing share of sales and costs denominated in foreign currencies, particularly the US Dollar (USD) and Swiss Franc (CHF), Fielmann’s reported earnings are more exposed to fluctuations in currency exchange rates.³
• Key Person Dependency: While the generational transition has been well-managed, the company’s strategy and culture are still strongly influenced by the Fielmann family. Any unexpected changes in leadership could introduce uncertainty.

10. Valuation Analysis

An analysis of Fielmann’s valuation must consider its position as a high-quality market leader undergoing a significant strategic transformation. Its trading multiples reflect a premium to many retail peers, justified by its strong profitability and growth prospects, but also incorporate the risks associated with its ambitious expansion plans. This analysis does not constitute a price target or a buy/sell recommendation.

Current and Historical Trading Multiples

Based on recent market data, Fielmann trades at a trailing twelve-month (TTM) Price-to-Earnings (P/E) ratio in the range of 28x to 30x.⁴³ Its forward P/E ratio, based on earnings estimates for the next fiscal year, is lower, in the range of 21x to 23x, reflecting expectations of continued earnings growth.⁴³

The company’s Enterprise Value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) multiple, a key metric that accounts for debt, stands at approximately 11.3x for fiscal year 2024.¹⁴ Historically, these multiples have fluctuated, but they consistently place Fielmann in the category of a high-quality, growth-oriented company.

Peer Group Valuation Comparison

A comparison with publicly traded peers in the global eyewear and medical device industry provides essential context for Fielmann’s valuation.

Table 2: Valuation Multiples of Peer Companies

Company	Ticker	Market Cap (USD)	P/E (TTM)	EV/EBITDA (TTM)
EssilorLuxottica SA	EL.PA	$144.4 B	~51.9x	~20.4x
Hoya Corporation	7741.T	$45.1 B	~36.9x	~23.6x
The Cooper Companies, Inc.	COO	$14.6 B	~35.4x	N/A
Fielmann AG	FIE.XETRA	~$5.1 B (€4.6B)	~28.5x	~11.3x
Mister Spex SE	MRX.F	$76.2 M	Negative	Negative
Note: Market data is subject to fluctuation. P/E and EV/EBITDA multiples are based on data from sources.14 Market caps are approximate for comparative purposes.

The peer comparison reveals several key points:

• Fielmann trades at a significant valuation discount to the global industry giants, EssilorLuxottica and Hoya Corporation, on both a P/E and EV/EBITDA basis. This discount may reflect Fielmann’s smaller scale, its concentration in the European market (prior to the full impact of US expansion), and a potentially lower growth profile compared to these diversified global leaders.
• Compared to US-based medical device company The Cooper Companies, Fielmann’s P/E multiple is lower.
• Fielmann commands a substantial premium over smaller, online-focused, and currently unprofitable competitors like Mister Spex, whose negative earnings result in meaningless valuation multiples. This highlights the market’s appreciation for Fielmann’s proven profitability and established business model.

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Considerations

While a full DCF model is beyond the scope of this analysis, the key assumptions that would drive such a valuation are clear.

• Revenue Growth: Short-to-medium term growth would be driven by the consolidation of US acquisitions and continued market share gains in Europe. Long-term growth would be underpinned by stable demographic tailwinds and the continued expansion of the hearing aid and primary eyecare businesses.
• Margin Expansion: A critical variable is the pace and extent of EBITDA margin improvement in the US operations. The ability to lift the US margin from its current ~10% level towards the European level of ~23% would be a major value driver. The company’s own long-term target is a group-level margin of 25% by 2030.¹⁵
• Capital Expenditures: Capex would need to remain elevated in the medium term to support store expansion, technological upgrades, and manufacturing investments.
• Discount Rate (WACC): The weighted average cost of capital would be influenced by German sovereign bond yields as the risk-free rate, an equity risk premium appropriate for developed European markets, and the company’s relatively low but increasing cost of debt.

Dividend Yield

As of mid-2025, Fielmann’s forward dividend of €1.15 per share provides a dividend yield of approximately 2.1%.⁴³ While this provides a modest income component to the total return proposition, the primary investment thesis for Fielmann is centered on its potential for capital appreciation driven by earnings growth and strategic expansion, rather than its dividend yield alone.

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