Hubert Sagnières

Hubert Sagnières (born 10 May 1955 in Vienne, France), is a business executive of French and Canadian nationality. He was chairman and CEO of Essilor International from 2012 to 2018 and became executive vice-chairman of EssilorLuxottica while keeping his role of chairman of Essilor International when Essilor merged with Luxottica in 2018.

Sagnières is also known for his enthusiasm for polar expeditions and his interest in the history of French explorations.

Hubert Sagnières is a passionate explorer and long-distance traveller. He has carried out more than twenty-five polar expeditions in the Arctic, travelling on skis while pulling his sledge or assisted by a team of dogs. In Oceania, his journeys have led him to the remote tribes of Borneo, Siberut, and Sumatra.

Sagnières is also an author of illustrated historical works published by Flammarion. An explorer and a specialist in the great polar and maritime expeditions, he created the editorial concept “Their Images and Their Words”, which brings together excerpts from explorers,accounts, original iconography, and route maps to offer a visual and documentary approach to exploration. He is also known for donating all of his author royalties to organisations dedicated to humanitarian action and to supporting exploration and solidarity initiatives.

In 2023, he published a book on French explorers from 1714 to 1854: »Daring French Explorations », whose royalties were entirely donated to Karuna-Shechen, the foundation created by Matthieu Ricard. In 2025, he released a second work devoted to Arctic expeditions: »For Glory,not Gold ». The book brings together more than four hundred illustrations, previously unpublished maps, and expedition-journal excerpts, and its royalties are donated to La Guilde (la-guilde.org).