Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio has stepped up his public challenge to EssilorLuxottica’s leadership, accusing chief executive Francesco Milleri of losing the company’s direction even as the group reported stronger-than-expected sales that sent the share price higher.
The 31-year-old heir made a string of colourful personal revelations in recent interviews but it is his dispute with the professional management running the Ray-Ban and Luxottica empire that threatens to unsettle the family’s wealth, estimated at about €55 billion (roughly $88 billion).
Control of the business rests behind Delfin, the Luxembourg holding company that owns roughly a third of EssilorLuxottica, and which was split into eight equal stakes after founder Leonardo Del Vecchio died in 2022. Each of his six children received 12.5%, alongside his widow Nicoletta Zampillo and her son Rocco Basilico.
Earlier this year Leonardo Maria tried to buy the stakes of two siblings for about €10 billion, a move that would have lifted his holding to 37.5%. The proposal failed after Delfin’s chief executive, Romolo Bardin, opposed the holding company helping to finance the deal; Francesco Milleri had backed the bid.
Within months the heir resigned from senior roles at the group, a departure he framed in stark terms.
"This is not the Luxottica I grew up in."
Milleri has pushed back, saying he tried to help Leonardo Maria through the complex transaction and defending the company’s expansion under his tenure. He noted that the business has added around €3 billion in sales this year and pointed to the firm’s transformation from a mainly eyewear maker reporting about €7 billion in revenue with 85,000 employees to a group “approaching €30 billion” in revenue and 220,000 staff across eyewear, vision care, medical technology and hearing solutions.
Markets have been volatile around the stock. Shares surged about 15% last week after the trading update but had earlier lost almost half their value from peak levels as investor enthusiasm for smart-glasses technology cooled. Morningstar analyst Jelena Sokolova said markets had got ahead of themselves on AI hopes and that the shares looked overvalued last year.
The quarterly trading update that helped stabilise sentiment showed sales rising 9% to €7.49 billion in the three months to September. The company said traditional eyewear and medical-technology sales continued to grow, while smart glasses and other wearables recorded a 20% increase. Management described the results as evidence of the group’s diversified model.
Analysts say the personal feud is unlikely to unseat Milleri while the board backs him. RBC Capital Markets’ Piral Dadhania described the row as another episode of governance drama and questioned whether the heir can force a change in leadership. Meanwhile Delfin has reportedly looked at buying stakes back from some heirs, a move that could reduce the number of beneficiaries and simplify decision-making.
Academics and analysts say the broader issue is a familiar one for founder-led firms: a conflict between family heirs who want control and a professional manager charged with running a global company. Alfredo De Massis, a family business professor, warned that succession challenges are about preserving the company’s ability to create value for future generations, not just allocating the inheritance.
Since Leonardo Maria’s departure, EssilorLuxottica’s board has publicly reaffirmed support for Milleri, who has reshuffled senior management. Investors and family members are now weighing whether the heirs will accept a more limited operational role and reserve themselves for collecting returns from a business that remains one of the world’s largest eyewear groups.
