The Platform Group SE & Co. KGaA has announced the acquisition of optical company Blickpunkt GmbH Brillen und Contactlinsen, located in Starnberg, Bavaria, marking another step in its strategic expansion within the optics sector. This acquisition follows the establishment of a dedicated Optics & Hearing segment in the 2025 financial year, which connects local optical stores with the MyGlasses online platform. The acquirer was TPG's subsidiary, Feine Augenoptik Beteiligungs-GmbH, with closing expected by April 2026.
Dieter Meis, Managing Director of the Optics & Hearing segment, stated that the Starnberg location offers strong quality and a high-value customer base. He emphasized that this acquisition, combined with the company's approach and existing premium specialist stores like FreudenHaus and Söhnges, will further expand the foundation and leverage potential in the market. This move is part of a broader strategy that has seen TPG acquire five companies comprising over 30 locations nationwide in the 2025 financial year, including Beste Aussichten GmbH, Karrasch & Nolte, and Freudenhaus Optik Handels GmbH based in Munich.
Dr. Dominik Benner, CEO of The Platform Group, described the entry into the optical industry as a well-considered long-term strategy. He noted that expanding nationwide locations and linking them with online activities through platforms like corporate.the-platform-group.com ensures the company is building a stable and highly profitable segment. The next step involves integrating local opticians into the platform, creating a hybrid model that combines physical retail presence with digital capabilities.
The financial implications of this expansion are significant, with the Optics & Hearing segment achieving an EBITDA margin ranging from 20-25% since its establishment. This performance contributes to The Platform Group's overall financial results, which according to preliminary figures reached revenue of EUR 728 million in 2025 with adjusted EBITDA of EUR 55 million. The company operates as a Europe-wide software company active in 26 industries through proprietary platform solutions, with a partner network comprising more than 16,000 partners serving both B2B and B2C customers.
For business and technology leaders, this expansion demonstrates how traditional retail sectors like optics are being transformed through platform-based business models. The integration of local optical stores with online platforms represents a strategic response to changing consumer behavior and digital transformation pressures facing brick-and-mortar retailers. The Platform Group's approach of acquiring established local businesses while connecting them to digital platforms could serve as a model for other industries seeking to balance physical presence with online capabilities. This acquisition strategy, combined with platform integration, positions The Platform Group to capture value in a sector undergoing significant digital disruption while maintaining the personalized service advantages of local optical stores.
