Eyewear in Mexico

COVID-19 impact on eyewear

The emergence of COVID-19 in Mexico and the subsequent lockdown measures introduced by the government resulted in many consumers being urged to remain at home wherever possible, including work-from-home strategies, restricted movement, and a focus on prioritising spending on basic essentials such as groceries, medicines and surface care. This had a significant impact on eyewear in Mexican in Q2 2020, a market which had been experiencing stable demand pre-COVID-19, driven by demand for greater convenience in terms of daily disposable lenses, innovative spectacles lenses and fashion trends driving demand for sunglasses.

COVID-19 country impact

The Mexican government announced nationwide restrictions on non-essential economic activities in most municipalities on 30 March, which took effect the following day, with the population urged to stay at home, where possible. On 16 April, the government extended these restrictions to last until 30 May, with the peak of the COVID-19 epidemic in Mexico occurring in May.

Company response

Eyewear in Mexico remained a fairly fragmented competitive environment in 2019. However, Luxottica Mexico SA de CV (sunglasses, spectacle frames) and Essilor de Mexico SA de CV (spectacle lenses) strengthened their leading positions following a global merger resulting in the formation of EssilorLuxottica SA, pooling resources including those from Luxottica’s long-term involvement in the design, manufacture, distribution and retail of eyewear and Essilor’s expertise within spectacle lenses, designing, manufacturing and marketing a wide range of corrective lenses and coatings.

Retailing shift

During lockdown in 2020, optical shops, the dominant distribution channel for eyewear in Mexico, chose to either close or operate limited services such as emergency examinations, although some independent outlets did not follow government recommendations to temporarily close their businesses. However, demand through optical shops significantly declined in Q2.

What next for eyewear?

Overall eyewear is expected to make a tentative recovery from 2022 onwards with positive demand and value growth at constant 2020 prices building momentum over the course of the forecast period. Ongoing price sensitivity in terms of what consumers deem to be essential goods and services is likely to dictate 2021 declines for sunglasses and spectacles at some level, although spectacle lenses is predicted to record a marginally slower volume decline in 2021 in comparison to the rest of the category, as some consumers are likely to return to optical shops to have their eyes tested but may choose the more affordable option of using their old spectacle frames out of necessity until they feel more confident in upgrading the style of frame for later in the forecast period.

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