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| Feature |The intention to hire more licensed personnel is in linewith a Wal-Mart move to higher quality products in optical,and indeed throughout the store. “Our customer surveys showthat they want more selection and quality in our productofferings,” explains Caldwell. “The average price per pair ofeyeglasses is climbing based on the fact that customers arechoosing better products and more lens finishings likeTransitions and anti-glare coatings than they did a few yearsago.”Caldwell sees the optical marketplace as very robust.“There are some very strong optical retail networks in Canada.And for the customer, it’s all about trust, whether they go to achain or an independent. If the chains don’t do a good job inensuring that the customer is taken care of they won’t do well.In the end it’s all about the customer.”New LookNew Look is a chain founded by a Quebec City-basedoptician in the 1980s and has gone through some ownershipand management changes over the years. It is now a publiccompany, listed on the TSX. Two years ago it became anincome trust – Benvest New Look Income Fund.President Emmett Pearson characterizes New Look as avalue eyewear retailer. Stores are between 3,000 and 4,000square feet and their sales volume is more than one millionper store annuallyWhile not a discount retailer, New Look does periodicallyoffer promotions with a limited number of frames on offer forunder $30, and inventory sales with 50 per cent off. Havingtheir own laboratory for lens production ensures qualitycontrol and helps them stay competitive. All merchandising isdone centrally and stores carry the same frames and lenses,with the exception of some more upscale stores in downtownmarkets that may carry more designer frames.“Our stores are designed to be attractive and large – anoptical superstore, if you will,” explains Pearson. “When youwalk in you get the feeling that this is a professionallyrun-up-to-date retailer. Our demographic is the large middlerange of income earners who are 35 years old and up, and wemarket more to women than to men because women tend tobe the decision influencer even with respect to men’s frames.Most New Look stores have one or two optometristsworking full time giving eye exams and some have as many asthree examination rooms. Other staff include opticians andsales associates.Last year New Look opened eight stores and plan to openat least six in 2007, giving them almost 60 stores by the endof this year. Forty of their stores are brand new or recentlyrenovated, and while New Look has taken over a fewpractices, most of the stores have been start-ups in malls orpower centres, with some street front locations as well.“Our first objective was to cover the market in Quebec,”says Pearson. “We market mainly through television and thoseads are seen by the whole province. So if we don’t have storesin some areas we’re wasting advertising dollars. We’re nowfocusing on eastern Ontario, and expect to have eight storesin Ottawa-Hull by the end of the year. At this point we will stickto contiguous expansion.”Crown OpticalBruce Van Leeuwen comes from an optical family. “Myfather started in the business in Calgary in 1961. I grew up inoptical and became an optician, like my dad.”In 1988, Van Leeuwen junior joined the business, takingit over in 2000. His father is now a silent partner.There are ten Crown Optical stores in Calgary and one inVictoria. And although they all operate under the Crown name,VanLeeuwen doesn’t consider his group of stores to be a chain.Some are in malls, others in professional buildings and two arein the downtown core.“Each store has different personality and character. Moststaff have been around since mid-70’s, and they’ve been ableto stamp their personalities on the stores,” he explains. “Thisdifferentiates us from our major competitors. Customers valuehaving long-standing relationships with our staff, who are trulyexcellent practitioners.”This approach allows Crown Optical to be responsive tolocal areas. “If a neighbourhood has a lot of seniors we caterto them. We also have a small store in a professional buildingthat has two ophthalmologists, one of whom is a children’sspecialist, so that store functions in a somewhat differentfashion. Each location offers a unique blend of frame and lensselections. We carry well-recognized name brands as well asour quality house brands. This diversity enables us to meetour customer’s needs while maintaining our family-styleatmosphere.”The optical world has changed dramatically since VanLeeuwen senior started Crown Optical. “When my fatherstarted, being an optical retailer was more of a vocation thanan entrepreneurial enterprise. I see things becoming muchmore business-oriented and it is becoming harder for theindependents to compete. On the other hand it is exciting froma business point of view.”Opening a store in Victoria is a positive move for VanLeeuwen. “We were able to purchase an existing business, andwith our eye on the future we can start to build on that. Wedon’t want to force anyone out of business but because somany are starting to look at retirement there are opportunitiesfor us.”ISIData provided by Opti-Guide 2007 (All rights reserved Breton Communications Inc.)16VISION | jul_aug | 2007