Could JJ start all over again? I personlly dont think so, but just throwing it out there.

He did...and his future looks kinda Red to me.

I liken it to your favorite sports team being bought out (and let's be honest here, it's a buyout) by the most despised team in the league. How could a Boston Red Sox fan not be mad as hell if the Yankees bought them out?

So what will happen to the Pirate flag that was so proudly raised at HQ?

maybe it will be stored in davey jones locker. heheheh.. joke
bad joke. i know, am sorry

indeed will those changes be noticed right away.

or will just be that the profit earned will just go to luxottica ..

time will tell.

Look, even if the product stays the same quality, I just can't understand that after years of saying to us that other brands just don't care about optics they would sell to such a company!

i share that thought iwan.

Iwan, do you believe everything that's said in 'De Morgen'?

The way I figure we have 6 - 12 months to get the last of the "real" Oakley stuff that's still in the pipeline before Suxottica starts messing with everything. I'm still in shock... Maybe that's why most of the newer styles have been more towards the fashion side; to try to make Oakley more attractive to Sux? I don't know this is all so confusing.I'm trying to stay + but after my time at SGH and seeing what Sux did to brands they took over there, I just can't see how this will be a good thing. I'm also concerned about the apparel/bags/shoes line since this seems to be outside of Sux's core compentencies. To me the bags have been the closest to the type of design that the glasses used to have, which is what brought us all here to begin with. I wouldn't be surprised if those go away.

on the page it doesn't says anything about the other items, will those be out.
oakley only be eye wear, googles?

If Oakley stays Oakley as it keeps beign said, then that stuff stays as long as it's beneficial. Same as O-Stores and the like. They cut back on shoes because they weren;t selling. Bags sell uber well though.

I'm still very surprised that JJ actually agreed to this. Working in an OPD that also carries 40 other brands(about 15 of those Lux brands) I am not happy at all. After seeing what Lux did to the Ralph Lauren brand anfter they bought the rights from Safilo this year I'm scared about the quality. Maybe things will stay the same but I seriously doubt it given the track record Lux has.

Given that Oakley is known for its designs; that is to say part of the value of the brand is the design, what interest would Luxottica have in eliminating that? I'm seriously asking; that's not a rhetorical question. Every successful design from Oakley has been copied more-or-less closely by other brands. Oakley flat-out defined the sport shield, for example. It seems to me that, for at least a certain eyewear segment (sport, sport-fashion) we would see the bleeding in the opposite direction - more Oakley-like frames (if I can say that) rather than fewer. I am not suggesting this is either good or bad, just something I thought.

i think we could hear from chris, since he owns some stock in oakley..

Given that Oakley is known for its designs; that is to say part of the value of the brand is the design, what interest would Luxottica have in eliminating that?

I'm more conered about the quality. As I mentioned earlier, Revo used to be one of the best brands/glasses out there. At the time I worked at SGH I would have rated them above Maui's (IMHO the best fashion glasses), but after Sux took over there was a NOTICEABLE delcine in the quality. You could feel it and see it. Is Revo even around anymore?

As for design, I think most of us are worried that the edgier designs are going to be a thing of the past, because while people like us will buy them we are a smaller market segment, while more "traditional" styles sell better to the mass market and that's who Sux sells to.I think Sux is more interested in the Oakley brand than it is in the design. If this was done solely for design, Sux could have hired away sufficient talent or would have moved sooner to aquire O. I just think that is lower on their list of reasons for "merging" with O.

Personally, I'm more a fan of Oakley's fashion designs than the OTT stuff. That said, my single biggest concern with this merger is whether the quality control will still be there. I've owned and enjoyed a couple other brands, but there have been exactly none that have ever felt as bullet-proof as my Oaks.

I e-mailed Jim's personal secretary the same post that was delted here due to being "inappropriate". I also called her and expressed my concern. I may be one person, but I will do my part. (hope this post passes the QC test...)

Yeah and has anyone checked out an "Armani Exchange"??? WHAT A PIECE OF &*^!%$ !!! If Oakley becomes like that , (how wierd to think,..) it will be like the end of the sunglass wearing world to me,... what else can i wear like an Oakley, . . .NOTHING!!! Also I hate the idea, that since Oakley and Lux were kind of battling for sales/style domination, in all markets, that ?????Oakley "lost"?????? (shakes head in disbelief)

I e-mailed Jim's personal secretary the same post that was delted here due to being "inappropriate". I also called her and expressed my concern. I may be one person, but I will do my part. (hope this post passes the QC test...)

Well, if the staff felt it was inappropriate how is she going to take it? We have a well built relationship with Oakley for what we do here and I'd hate to see that come to an early end because you are trying to solicate an emotion from someone so high up with so much on his plate he can't necessarily worry about what the niche fan community thinks at the moment despite our feeling of importance to their good future.

I would hope we hear from him as well. Thanks for our years of committment to him and them. Some assurance for the future of Oakley with or without him. Maybe it will happen.

And, before you come back at me for my words, we've discussed this hundreds of times now and you are entitled to your opinion, and you can do what you want outside of our forum. I just don't want our name associate with any inflamatory comments, off-color remarks and/or threats made in regards to this situation.

I must say, I share the same concern as you Phil.

seems like ur 2nd strike terrorism. Im with Phil on this

I hope you didn't use the OR's name in that little interaction...

I concur..You must keep a level head and not be demeaning or harsh. This place is leaps and bounds better than the majority of forums in that members are respectful, helpful, and friends. I would hate to see the efforts and hardwork put into this place turned upside down due to emotion..Let's keep a cool head and express ourselves as respectful individuals...

Yes, in theory Lux is buying/merging with Oakley because Oakley is a leader in optic design and technology. But you never know what Lux is really planning. Lux and Oakley were competitors. Yes, they had different niches in the market, but in the end, they were competitors. In the mind of some business people, when your competition gets big enough, you try everything you can to squash them. If you can't squash them, then you buy them. Then you have two choices, you either crush the brand/company as everyone knows it (see the car industry and below for examples) or you let the brand/company keep going as it was.

There used to be two very well known waterparks up in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Some time ago, one of the waterparks purchased the other one. As soon as the papers were signed and the purchase was complete, the buying waterpark went to the other waterpark and demolished it. Not only did they demolish all of the slides and attractions, but they took cement trucks and poured cement through all of the existing undergroup water pipes so that the land could never again be used as a waterpark. Then they jacked up the prices at their existing waterpark because they no longer had any competition in the immediate area.

I'm going to take a wait and see approach to the situation (I think), but everything that Lux does from here on out will be scrutinized heavily and taken with some cynicism and skepticism.

One of the things that I loved on the Lux merger presentation/PDF thing is that under the Oakley core competency/strengths section it said that Oakley had a very strong, loyal following. Hopefully Lux realizes this and doesn't change anything.

Not to derailled this thread or anything, (a cleanup can be made later on) but what Terrorism posted was totally not appropriate, he then reposted it after being told not too and now he has e-mailed Jim's secretary...

Not the kind of image the o-review needs and to see all our hard work go to waste.

yes josh, agree.
i mean we can cry all day and things,.
but for what ever reason it was he sold the company. it was again his company.
we sould respect him.
respect him when he was the owner and we should still respect him.
he is the same guy. only richer.

CHA 2.1billion dollars CHING