ADDING on ACCOUTREMENTS

Industry veterans discuss the benefits of offering accessories and share their best tips for boosting business with these add-on sales

BY ERINN MORGAN

Do optical accessories actually bring in profits? According to eyecare professionals who invest in the category, the answer is, “Yes.” But for some, the profits are realized in more ways than one.

“We carry accessories just to make the entire eyewear purchasing experience more enjoyable for our customers,” says Sandy Lesnick, ABOC, FNAO, who operates Lesnick Optical, Belleville Vision Center, and VisionPro Eyecare in the Detroit metro area. “It’s just a small percentage of our business, but the idea is that accessories help us with our sales of eyeglasses. You’re not making much profit on the accessories, but their availability adds to your eyeglass sales because you are elevating the experience for the patient.”

An assortment of accessories not only adds to the aura of your optical, it also delivers a simple, easy add-on sale that can increase patient profitability. For example, at Lesnick Optical, more than 60 percent of customers buy an accessory.

“When they leave here, our patients are done,” says Lesnick. “They don’t have to think about something else they might need in the future at the drugstore or elsewhere.”

Still, ECPs say that accessories, from eyeglass chains and cords to reading glasses and cases, account for only a few percent of their business—anywhere from 1 to 5 percent. But, most note that this business is a stable category that fills a need, enlivens the dispensary with style, and also brings in guaranteed extra profits.

eyeOs Eyewear reading glasses by Reptile Sun

“Accessories are probably about five percent of our total business, and I definitely believe it’s a growing category,” says Sherry Case, technician supervisor at Foothill Optometric Group located in Pleasanton, CA. “It was just cases and chains before, but now we have such a big opportunity with readers—with the availability of great styles, it’s a huge avenue.”

Fashion eyewear chains from Corinne McCormack

Depending on your locale, client demographic, and product mix, that small profit center could become even larger if you carry accessories that are higher priced. At Europtics, a five-store chain in the Denver area, the accessories assortment ranges at retail from $25 to $400 (for couture eyewear chains).

“Accessories are a stable business,” says Europtics’ corporate manager Amy Brandsma. “The category turns a profit; it’s just not something that’s high on the radar.”

PERFECT POSITIONING

Got accessories? If you don’t—or if you don’t pay much attention to your wilting, dusty display of chains and cases in the corner—then it may be high time to step things up, simply to serve your patients’ needs. ECPs across the country share their success stories:

No. 1. CONSIDER IT A SERVICE. “Accessories are about one percent of our total sales, but it’s really important to have them in the optical. It’s a service business,” says Bob Martinez, optician at Palo Alto Eyeworks in Palo Alto, CA.

Adds Chet Steinmetz, optician/owner at Visual Effects Optical in Chicago, “We display accessories for those who might want to consider them. They are a small part of what we do, but I have to say that they start to move more frequently come holiday time.”

l.a.Eyeworks’ peace monocle

Highlight accessories on the show floor with specialized displays, such as Presenta Nova’s RG series displays

No. 2. DISPLAY FRONT AND CENTER. For maximum grab-and-go visibility, many ECPs choose to display their eyewear accessories where patients check in and out.

“We place our accessories right on the counter so when people are leaving, they can see them,” says Lesnick, whose accessories roundup includes chains and cords plus reading glasses, contact lens and eyeglass cases, and special eyeglass holders for the car. “The idea is that the placement is similar to when you’re checking out at the grocery store and you remember you need batteries or a pack of gum or candy bar.”

At Palo Alto Eyeworks, Martinez places accessories next to the dispensing tables. “Our accessories display is very visible and accessible to patients when they come in,” says Martinez. “We have one display of women’s accessories set up right between two dispensing tables.”

No. 3. JUMP ON THE READER BOOM. ECPs agree that ready-made reading glasses are one of the most popular—and profitable—accessory categories today.

“Readers are our most profitable accessory,” says Brandsma, who notes that OTC readers were 3 percent of total sales in 2014 at Europtics (with all other accessories ringing in an additional 1 percent of total sales). “Our reader business is growing, and we have more people willing to spend money because they’ve embraced the higher quality of readers.”

Europtics’ reading glass assortment, which is merchandised as a special section within the larger frame displays, ranges from $40 to $129.

No. 4. GO BIG. At Foothill Optometric Group, accessories account for a full 5 percent of sales because the group invests in the category with a substantial assortment of chains, cases, and more.

“We have quite a display area of accessories right where patients check in and out,” says Case, who notes that her accessories prices range from $5 for a visor clip or cord to $45 for specialty readers with a case. “It’s all on one large, converted rotator display with different slots for fashion contact lens cases, chains, reader lanyards, reading glasses, and cases.” Case also points to the increased availability of fashion-focused, high-quality accessories on the market as a reason for the category’s growth.

No. 5. GET SMART WITH SELECTION. Talk about accessories with patients, but be sure to present options that are appropriate to their purchase. “When someone is spending $700 on an eyewear purchase, suggesting a $7 eyewear cord can be offensive,” says Brandsma. “So, we don’t ask our employees to present accessories unless they are really targeted. We want our customers to be aware that we have them, but we want to present the right options.”

STAR STUDDED

As with eyewear, celebrities wearing the accessories you carry in-story can be a big selling point for patients. Designs from La LOOP’s luxury line of fashion eyewear retainers have been photographed on some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, further adding to the allure and appeal of accessories.

(Clockwise) Stockard Channing, Brad Pitt, and Heidi Klum in La LOOP retainers