What's New
FYI
By Lindsey Aspinall
 

Boyd F. Krueger of Base Curve

PEOPLE

Base Curve (parent company: REM Eyewear) has appointed Boyd F. Krueger as sales director of the Western region. Krueger will oversee the sales of the Carolina Herrera and John Varvatos collections.

New Zealand-based HumanWare has appointed Richard Mander, PhD, as the new CEO. Mander had worked in the U.S. for 14 years, including seven years at Apple, before returning to New Zealand in 2004.

Kenmark Group recently invited Chris Kelly of Optical World in Bridgewater, N.J., a top-selling Cynthia Rowley account, to attend the Cynthia Rowley Runway Show. Also attending were Kenmark's David Duralde, vice president of creative development, and Mindy Bernstein, a sales consultant.

Connie Martin was named Regional Sales Manager of the Year of Luxottica Group for 2005. This honor is given to an individual who exhibits both an increase in sales volume as well as professionalism and an alignment with senior management goals.

Bausch & Lomb named Gerhard Bauer, PhD, the corporate senior vice president and senior vice president, global operations and engineering. In addition, the company has also named Dwain L. Hahs thesenior vice president and president of its Asia region.

(l to r): Mindy Bernstein, Chris Kelly, and David Duralde attend the Cynthia Rowley Runway show

BUSINESS UPDATES

Satisloh North America is the newest distributor for 3M Leap III Finishing pads and 3M Surface Saver Tape products. 3M Leap III Finishing pads offer industry-recognized slip resistance while 3M Surface Saver Plus Tape provides consistent protective performance.

Essilor has opened the Dallas Definity Processing Center (DDPC) to produce Definity orders with state-of-the-art digital surfacing equipment. In addition, the company has acquired Uniscoat, Inc., a coating facility in Calif., and PerfeRx Optical Co., Inc., a Varilux distributor in Mass. In overseas news, Essilor International acquired a 25 percent stake in Ayudas para la Vision Subnormal (AVS), a company based in Madrid, Spain. In New Zealand, Prolab, based in Wellington, was acquired and the stake in Chris-tchurch-based Olab was raised to 50 percent. In India, the Group acquired the assets of Delta CNC, a lab based in Ahmedabad.

Transitions Optical has expan-ded the "Skills Workshops for Real Life" series to include an installment on "Brand Power." The new course will compliment Transitions' branded consumer outreach initiatives. Transitions is also partnering with STAR Labs to offer a new rewards program for both the lab and representatives who offer the courses, as well as ECPs who take them.

A study conducted on behalf of Acuvue Advance Brand Contact Lenses with Hydraclear revealed that 54 percent of non-contact lens wearing teens had a fear of putting something in their eye. Vistakon has introduced a sampling program allowing potential wearers to understand how a contact lens feels before having a real lens put in the eye. After feeling the "Hydraclear Touch," 60 percent of non-wearers said they would be more willing to try contact lenses.

Luxottica senior vice president Pierre Fay presents Connie Martin with her award

Corning Incorporated and Tokuyama Corporation announced an agreement to develop state-of-the-art photochromic technology. In addition, Corning has also announced collaboration with MoldSolutions for manufacturing and distributing high quality finished progressive molds.

AIT Industries has launched a new ad campaign in conjunction with the release of the new Evolution Series Edging Systems and the Opera Scan Drill Point Scanner, linking each new product with a sport.

Miyagi Eyewear recently made its debut in Paris with Premiere Optique, a luxury retailer located near the Champs-Elysées.

It was announced by the company that Signature Eyewear, formerly SEYE.PK, now SEYE.OB, will be trading on the OTC Bulletin Board.

CORRECTION

The price range for the Carolina Herrera collection in the April "Lines & Launches" section (page 54) is the retail price range. The correct wholesale price range is $95 to $150.

SAVE THE DATE

June 13-15 and Oct. 10-13, 2006. Lighthouse International's "Comprehensive Clinical Low Vision Care" and "Low Vision Therapy." Both are three-day courses to be held in New York. For more information, visit the Website www.lighthouse.org/ce, or contact Cathy Czeto at 212-821-9487 or Cczeto@lighthouse.org.

June 21-25, 2006. The annual American Optometric Association Congress and AOSA Conference, Las Vegas, at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. For more information, visit the Website www.aoanet.org.

June 23-24, 2006. Contact Lens Society of America's: "Surviving in the Contact Lens Field for the Next 10 Years," at the Hilton Myrtle Beach Resort in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Visit online at: www.clsa.info, or call 800-296-9776, for more information.

Aug. 3-6, 2006. Opticians Association of America annual meeting in Atlanta, Ga. Visit www.oaa.org for more information.

Aug. 5-6, 2006. The 26th Annual Educational Retreat for the Southwest Florida Optometric Association, to be held at the South Seas Resort Captiva Island. For more information or to register, visit the Website www.genesisgt.com/swfoa.

Aug. 5-6, 2006. Global Orthokeratology Symposium presents: "Fundamentals in Corneal Reshaping" in Fullerton, Calif. For more information visit the Website www.GOS2006.com.

Aug. 16-20, 2006. CE Riders presents the Washington State Scenic Cascade Loop by Motorcycle. Covers: 400 miles, four days, and 12 hours of CE credit. For more information, visit www.ceriders.com.

Sept. 14-16, 2006. International Vision Expo West, Las Vegas, at the Sands Convention Center. For more information, call 800-811-7151.

Oct. 11-13, 2006. International Optical Fair at Tokyo Big Sight in Japan. For more information, visit www.ioft.jp/english.

Oct. 27-30, 2006. Silmo, at the Porte de Versailles in Paris. For more information, visit the Website www.silmo.fr.

Nov. 2-3, 2006. Lighthouse International "Pediatric Low Vision Care" two-day course in New York. For more information, visit the Website www.lighthouse.org/ce or call Cathy Czeto at 212-821-9487 or via E-mail at: Cczeto@lighthouse.org

Nov. 3-5, 2006. The Optometric Management Symposium on Contemporary Eye Care, to be held at the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. For more information, call 800-549-3656 or visit www.optometric.com.

Nov. 8-10, 2006. Hong Kong Optical Fair, Hong Kong Convention Center. Visit www.hkopticalfair.com for more information.

Nov. 9-11, 2006. OLA annual meeting in Orlando, Fla., at the Gaylord Palms Resort. For information, call 800-477-5652.