retrospectives

Read All About It

A timeless topic from December 2002

In December 2002, reading glasses were slowly transitioning from a thing of mere function to one of fashion. The aging baby boomer market coupled with solid sales increases—according to the Sunglass Association of America, units were up 3.5 percent from 2001—made for a profitable mix for dispensaries willing to take advantage of this up-and-coming trend.

Eyecare Business asked a number of optical professionals to share their thoughts on the importance of tapping into this growing classification. Following are a few of their answers.

MULTIPLE-PAIR SALES

“My store's mission is to get people to think about building a reader wardrobe the same way they have a shoe wardrobe, so they have something to wear for every occasion. It's not uncommon for some of my customers to own as many as five pairs. That's why it's so important to keep a steady stream of new styles coming in—so there's always a reason to buy another pair.”

— Alyce Skinner, optician and owner, Adairreaders.com, Fort Worth, Texas

AT THE READY

“Since we are a high-end optical store, our readers range from $60 to $200. We don't even display them because we want to encourage prescription eyewear sales; but if we have a customer who requests them, we have a tray of readers to pull out at the ready.”

— John Chiaparelli, optician, Joel Name Optique de Paris, New York

DISPLAYS THAT PAY

We have a tower of [readers] at the entryway, a top-of-counter display next to the register, and we even display them inside a glass coffee table… We want customers to try on readers while they're waiting in the seating area or in line. They are great impulse purchases that don't require the help of a sales person.”

— Carrie Sims, optician, Salle Opticians, Atlanta

BOYS VS. GIRLS

“About 33 percent of my business comes from repeat customers who are building reader wardrobes. A lot of women buy one pair of readers for every day and another pair for going out at night, while men tend to buy multiple pairs to keep one at home, one at the office, and one in their car.”

— Jack Burns, owner, Cheaters, Corte Madera, Calif.

PRESCRIPTION SEGUE

Once [a patient] who's been wearing readers finds out he or she needs prescription eyewear, we can then introduce them to progressive lenses with AR coating in a three-piece mount. So a $59 reader sale evolves into a $500 sale over time.”

— David Doebler, owner, Embassy Opticians, Washington, D.C.