Marcolin S.p.A.'s main shareholder PAI Partners earlier this year hired Goldman Sachs to explore a merger or a sale. The private equity firm, which bought Marcolin in 2012 and currently owns around 80% of the group, is looking for a valuation as high as EUR 1.3 billion, the Financial Times reported earlier this month. The sale process has drawn interest from big players such as Gucci-owner Kering SA (ENXTPA:KER) and Ray-Ban parent EssilorLuxottica Société anonyme (ENXTPA:EL), but it has not made significant progress so far, two sources close to the matter told Reuters.

Kering is currently wrestling with a slowdown in Asian sales that has hit its star label Gucci. One stumbling block in talks with potential bidders is the asking price, which is considered too high, the sources said.