Safilo Group and Ports (Ports Asia Holdings) have sealed a ten-year licensing agreement for the design, manufacture and distribution of Ports branded sunglasses and optical frames in Mainland China.
The first collection will launch in January 2021.
Safilo Group CEO Angelo Trocchia described China as a key strategic market in the company’s development plans.
“We know how important it is for eyewear brands to be locally relevant to their target groups, especially in China, which is very specific, not only in terms of fitting but also with distinct tastes and local consumer trends,” he said.
Trocchia said the new agreement with Ports added a “high-potential and very promising” business to Safilo’s portfolio.
The Ports luxury fashion house was founded by Canadian fashion designer Luke Tanabe in Toronto in 1961. The brand entered the Chinese market in the early 1990s and, according to Safilo, changed the fashion style of many Chinese women. The Ports 1961 collection was featured in the 2006 movie The Devil Wears Prada and the 2008 movie Sex and the City. |
Ports Asia Holdings Director Rolando Santana emphasised the brand’s minimalistic design, attention to details and craftsmanship.
“We recognise in Safilo the best partner able to understand our distinctive DNA and translate it into the Ports eyewear collections,” he said.
