Del Vecchio heir Rocco Basilico leaves EssilorLuxottica

Rocco Basilico’s resignation from EssilorLuxottica will take effect in January, but the move is bound to make waves straight away. Rocco Basilico, the son of Nicoletta Zampillo- the wife of the late Leonardo Del Vecchio– and one of the founder’s heirs, is leaving his role as chief wearables officer at the global giant in spectacle lenses and frames. The group is now far more than that, with a clear ambition to expand in med‑tech and new communications technologies.

The 35-year-old was born to the marriage of Paolo Basilico, a banker who founded the Kairos Group, and Nicoletta Zampillo, who later, in a second marriage, wed Leonardo Del Vecchio and remained by the Luxottica founder’s side until his death. Basilico was, in a sense, “adopted” by the entrepreneur who grew up at the “Martinitt” orphanage in Milan and, for about a decade, advanced within the company, with particular focus on markets outside Europe. It was therefore no surprise that he was included in the will- through a complex structure- on a par with Del Vecchio’s six children.

This exit does raise some eyebrows, not least because he is, together with Leonardo Maria, the only heir to have held sustained roles within the company. The group has also become a global giant from a financial perspective, with a market capitalisation of more than €140 billion and a share price that continues to set record highs on the Paris Stock Exchange, where it trades steadily and comfortably above the once-unthinkable €300 mark.

It was reportedly Basilico, who is primarily based in California, who first made contact with Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook and of Meta; the latter invested nearly €3 billion this summer to acquire about a 3% stake in EssilorLuxottica. He made the initial approach, which was then duly pursued by Del Vecchio himself and by CEO Francesco Milleri. The relationship led to the jointly launched smart glasses, Meta’s entry into the shareholder base, and an industrial partnership that is expected to bear further fruit.

The “young” Rocco Basilico is reportedly leaving to focus mainly on his own entrepreneurial projects- likely to be developed abroad- and perhaps because he has grown weary of certain internal dynamics he does not share. Three and a half years after the death of Luxottica’s founder, no agreement has yet been reached on acceptance of the inheritance. At a November 17 meeting of Delfin, the Luxembourg-based holding company that controls stakes in EssilorLuxottica and Covivio, as well as in MPS, Generali, and UniCredit, differing views were still recorded.

Two of Leonardo Del Vecchio’s eight heirs are said to have requested the transfer of part of their stake, identical for all and amounting to 12.5%. If approved- necessarily by unanimous vote- the move would trigger the other shareholders’ right of first refusal. And Basilico could aim to transfer a small part of his stake to a trust, a move that would also help raise liquidity to finance short-term entrepreneurial initiatives.