The following veterans have seen first-hand the changes our industry has undergone. And, they are a good barometer of where we really are today. Here, they recall their histories and tell us what business was like throughout the years.

On Horse and Buggy

Juanita Moman, who has owned Moman's Optical in Gadsden, Ga. since 1975, says dispensing is in her blood. Her daughter is an optician, her granddaughter an optometrist, and, she recalls, "During the horse and buggy days, my father (O.L. Lumpkin) was a traveling optician. He had his samples, and he drove through the countryside 11 miles -- and that was a long time back then -- to dispense glasses out of a cart. As kids we played with those samples and glasses."

On Selling in the '40s

"When I entered the industry in 1947," wrote industry veteran Martin Singer in his memoirs, "I received three weeks training at my father's factory, Bay State Optical Company, and was assigned a territory... New York City. I was told to start at the Battery and walk north."

Until he reached midtown, he sold nothing. "The closest I came was on Canal Street, where a customer (now Cohen's Fashion Optical) exhibited interest in the Dean -- until he asked the price and was told $4.50. When asked if this was per dozen, I explained it was per piece. He expressed amazement, explaining that for $4.50 he supplied the customer a frame, lenses, a case, and an examination."

On Dispensing to Soldiers

Texas Smith, O.D. has a practice in Citrus Heights, Calif. and has been in practice and buying product for 32 years. He recalls, "I was drafted right out of school for Vietnam in the doctor's draft. I ran an optometric practice at Fort Stuart in Georgia. I worked in the flight surgeon's office dealing with the pilots that were flying the Huey helicopters. It was really easy on the dispensing part. "Would that be grey or would that be tortoise?" is all I had to ask. And the lenses were mostly glass."

On Finding Upscale Eyewear

Herman Bennett, O.D. opened his first practice in Ann Arbor, Mich. in the early 1960s. Today, he has several high-end dispensaries around the country under the Au Courant name. When he first opened his dispensary, it was altogether a different story, however. "There was no upscale merchandise in this country," he recalls, "so I went through the trade show directory for MIDO (the Italian international trade show held yearly in Milan). Mind you, I never went; I just wrote to the companies asking them to send samples and opened up the first office here mostly with samples from those European companies.

"A while later, but still before anybody looked at designer frames in this country, I found one of my big frame lines in a funny way. On the beach at Cannes, my son and I saw a nude starlet wearing great frames. I went up to her and said, "I cannot take my eyes off your sunglasses!" She laughed and said she was wearing Emmanuelle Kahn sunglasses. That's what we got into next."

On Changing Relationships

Steven Bennett, O.D., a second-generation optometrist, has been in practice with his father, Dr. Herman Bennett, for 22 years, and he recalls that the good old days were truly just that. "You established a much better rapport with each of the companies you were dealing with because it was more personal," he reports. "Today, however, we have a much greater variety in our product selections, and that's a great thing."

On Pricing and Professionalism

Ray Haskins has been in optical since the 1950s. Today, he owns and runs Paul's Optical in Overland Park, Kan. "I've been doing this since I was 16 and I can't believe that today I charge $300 for a pair of glasses. Back in those days frames were $8 wholesale."

Prices have risen, while professionalism has not, he says. "In the '60s with navy hopsack blazers, matching gray pants and regimental striped ties, we looked very professional. But it was expensive -- a $100 outfit. Today, however, at 66, I'm trying to bend with the times and go casual, but I still have no earring in my ear. Customers would run out the back door if I did that."

On Cutting Lenses

Don Meadows of Meadows Optical has been dispensing for 31 years, but he started working in the industry 56 years ago. "Thirty years ago it took four to five days to cut and edge lenses because we didn't have the automatic machines. Everything was glass then and in the lab I did everything by hand...I had a glass cutter and a hand edger and you followed the pattern. During this process you would have to chip all the excess glass off. If a lens broke, you would have to start all over again...plus it was kind of dangerous. Now, it's a different story."

On Eyewear in an Hour

A 20-year veteran of optical, Lynn Millay is the senior director of lens buying at LensCrafters. She has been with the giant optical chain since they opened their first store in Florence, Ky. on March 1, 1983. "When we first opened the Florence store, which had the lab visible to the street, people would be lined up standing out front watching the one-hour production of the glasses," she says. "They would compete for a place to watch them making eyeglasses.

"I remember having a conversation with founder Dean Butler in which he told me some day we'd have 300 stores. I was bowled over!" she says.

On Gold-Filled Frames

Judy Canty has been working in the optical industry for 27 years -- for the past 18 months as the independent owner of Holland Canty Opticians in Fairfax, Va. "I remember when the Universal Corsair was introduced," she says. "It was a gold-filled aviator shape, and we were appalled because we didn't think anybody in their right mind would pay $12 for a frame. Today, I would kill to have a $12 gold-filled frame!" EB