Tekcapital's Innovative Eyewear hit by US tariffs

(Sharecast News) - Tekcapital said in an update on Friday that its portfolio company Innovative Eyewear posted an 88% year-on-year rise in second-quarter revenue to $0.58m, driven by strong demand for its Lucyd Armor smart safety glasses and the recently launched Reebok Powered by Lucyd sport eyewear.

Revenue for the first half of 2025 rose 49% to $1.03m.

The AIM-traded firm said the Lucyd Armor line accounted for nearly half of units sold in the quarter, while the Reebok frames, launched in April, feature the company's best audio quality to date following a 2024 engineering upgrade.

Operating expenses grew 6% in the quarter, well below the rate of sales growth.

Gross margins fell to -2% from 18% a year earlier, which the company attributed to sharply higher customs duties, tariffs and import costs.

It said it was responding with supply chain diversification, expanded ex-US sales, selective price increases and changes to its fulfilment model, which are expected to offset tariff pressures over time.

"I am very pleased by our performance and improved sales for the quarter, as we continue our upward trend of outperforming sales each quarter on a year-over-year basis, which we have done every quarter for the last 24 months," said Innovative Eyewear chief executive Harrison Gross.

"We are optimistic about the potential to mitigate the effect of tariffs on our gross margins in the future, as we build a more globally focused business with significant distribution outside of the US."

The Nasdaq-listed smart eyewear maker posted a net loss of $2.11m for the quarter, compared with a $1.95m loss a year earlier, mainly due to higher tariffs.

For the first half, the loss narrowed 1% to $3.88m.

Cash, equivalents and investments stood at $8.91m at quarter-end, up from $7.52m at the end of 2024.

At 1424 BST, shares in Tekcapital were up 4.03% at 6.97p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.