Vision & Eye Care
Optometry, ophthalmology, and eyewear retail
What PE Ownership Means for This Industry
80% market control
EssilorLuxottica and PE firms control 80%+ of the eyewear market
Between EssilorLuxottica's near-monopoly on frames/lenses and PE-backed optometry chains, consumers face artificially high prices for glasses and eye exams.
Source: 60 Minutes / Adam Ruins Everything
PE-Owned Brands
Bausch + Lomb
Owned by Warburg Pincus
Warburg Pincus and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan acquired Bausch & Lomb for $4.5B in 2007. Sold to Valeant Pharmaceuticals (now Bausch Health) for $8.7B in 2013. Bausch Health later became notorious for drug price increases. Bausch + Lomb re-IPO'd in 2022.
EyeCare Partners
PE-backed eye care platform with 600+ locations, previously Partners Group-backed
Eyemart Express
Owned by Leonard Green & Partners
Budget eyewear retailer with 240+ locations. Previously Leonard Green-backed, sold to VSP Vision in 2025
LensCrafters
Optical retail chain owned by EssilorLuxottica
MyEyeDr.
Owned by KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts)
KKR-backed optometry chain with 800+ offices in 26 states
Pearle Vision
Eye care chain owned by EssilorLuxottica
Vision Innovation Partners
Owned by Gryphon Investors
Eye care services platform operating ophthalmology and optometry practices and surgery centers in the Mid-Atlantic. A current Gryphon Investors portfolio company.