Buying & Selling

Is your buying at tradeshows…

As more regional buying events have popped up in recent years, have your trade show attendance habits changed?

Notable “Other” responses included:

• “We plan to go to these events in the future but haven’t yet.”
• “Eliminated VEE since it’s in Florida, do mainly local events.”
• “We’ve gone to one in the past five years. I hope to start going to one annually (and hopefully different ones).”
• “We go to international shows.”
• “Attendance has declined over the years since deals aren’t as good.”

How many frame brands (not manufacturers or vendors) does your optical carry?

How long do you give a new brand to perform in your optical before you start marking it down or sending it back?

If you could carry and sell only one single brand, what would it be and why?**

• “Zeiss because of the consistent recognition of its product quality.”
• “Gucci is an established name that attracts customers who value style, quality, and status. This is our biggest seller.”
• “Ted Baker has a great frame variety for men, women and kids.”
• “Modo.”
• “Private label, best bang for the buck.”
• “Essilor offers high quality lenses and innovative technology.”
• “Tom Ford. Best profitability.”
• “Acuvue. The lenses fit most people and the support is superb.”
• “Ray-Ban, product recognition, good quality and price point.”
• “Coopervision Avaira Vitality.”
• “Uber.”
• “ECO frames. Great product, using recyclable materials, planting trees, at an affordable price point.”
• “Silhouette durable, different, brand loyalty.”
• “Charmant quality, minimal repairs, styles.”
• “SALT.”
• “Lafont. In ten years of carrying the brand, I have had only one “warranty” replacement.”
• “Kate Spade or Chanel. Various sizes and color and we are the only ones in [our state] to carry Chanel.”
• “Lindberg. So many options and quality is superb.”
• “l.a. Eyeworks our number one selling line right now.”
• “Scott Harris! They truly have something for everyone and I love Europa.”
• “Theo.”
• “Maui Jim, I strongly believe in light protection.”
• “Superflex by Westgroupe. The quality for the price is really incredible.”
• “Tom Davies, color fit and the bespoke ability.”

**Each of the brands included was mentioned multiple times though we are only running one specific mention.

If you could carry and sell only one type of product, what would it be and why?

• “Silhouette because people who know this brand love it and it is easy to sell; it tells a good story.”
• “Trivex. It works well for most Rxs and is an upgrade.”
• “Accessories. Easy sell. Less risk of returns.”
• “Quality higher end frames due to profit margins and perceived better value.”
• “Probably titaniums, specifically a Lindberg type, because they have such a wide array of products available.”
• “Premium progressives, good profit margin.”
• “Contact lenses. Presbyopes are very loyal when you can give them freedom from glasses.”
• “Contact lenses. Here are my reasons: 1. Predictable revenue streams through subscription models. 2. Lower returns and exchanges due to their disposable nature. 3. Opportunity for loyalty programs and customer retention. 4. Wide appeal to a diverse customer base (young, old, active, or casual wearers).”
• “Zeiss lenses, excellent pricing and very high success with lenses and coatings.”
• “Varilux XR lenses because they are amazing and everyone adapts easily to them.”
• “Specialty fits, i.e. XXL /Petite/accommodative bridges, to be distinguished as a specialty fitting shop.”
• “Dry eye treatments.”
• “Contacts, most people buy a year supply and we educate patients on different types of contacts and why they are prescribed. We’d provide sclerals too. Orders can be done over text.”
• “Luxury, independent frame lines because of the quality, service, uniqueness, and story.”

When a trend takes off, how quickly do you respond?

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever had to tell a patient/customer?

• “That we had to fire them as a patient due to their behavior and attitude toward our staff.”
• “Asking about stolen product goes in the worst topic category for me.”
• “We can’t solve this problem.”
• “You will never recover vision back in that eye.”
• “The worst thing I’ve ever had to tell a patient was that their condition had progressed to a point where their treatment options were limited, and the outcome might not be as positive as we had initially hoped. Delivering difficult news like that is always challenging.”
• “They still won’t be able to drive.”
• “That they have a choroidal melanoma and will probably lose the eye.”
• “No refund for a pair of eyeglasses purchased for someone who had passed away previously.”
• “They have a macula off retinal detachment.”

Please check the following issues patients/customers regularly ask you about: