Two substantial suppliers of frames and lenses have joined forces to offer something a little different to Australian independent practices. They tell Insight why the initiative has become so successful and what it might mean for the industry.
Sometimes, an idea comes along that is so brilliant in its simplicity, so obvious in its delivery and outcomes, that you wonder why it has taken so long to come to light.
Consider this: a customer heads into an independent optometry practice. It’s relatively high-end, filled with many quality frames from the top fashion houses.
They have their tests, find the frames they love.
Those frames – along with the lens request – are then sent to the lens lab, sometimes at great cost in time, money and carbon-emitting miles, where they are put together and then sent back to the practice and patient, many days and sometimes more than a week later.
In the meantime, the practice has had to replace that frame, which is itself shipped across those many miles.
About two years ago, eyewear company Safilo Australia and Aussie lens manufacturer CR Labs decided there had to be a better way.
They put their heads together and came up with the Full Circle Program, which has significantly simplified that optical odyssey, to the benefit of practice, patient, even the industry.
In fact, both Ms Shiva Taghvaei, senior commercial manager at Safilo Australia, and Mr Adam Fletcher, CEO of CR Labs, believe it’s the future of independent optometry in Australia, and possibly beyond.
But more on that later.
Under the Full Circle Program, CR Labs has invested in storage areas within its Melbourne lens manufacturing facility, in which are housed thousands of frames from seven of Safilo’s premier brands, including Carrera, Kate Spade, Boss and Carolina Herrera.
For those independent practices participating in the program, rather than sending frames chosen by patients to a lens supplier for fitting – a back-and-forth trip that can take a week and more and add costs to the transaction – they simply order the frames and lenses online and CR Labs takes care of the rest. The complete pair of glasses – a Safilo-supplied frame with CR Labs-made lenses – is back with the customer in three days.
But the benefits go way beyond just a speedier delivery, say Fletcher and Taghvaei.
This is a “win, win” for everyone.
The considerable saving in logistics and processing is better for the practice as well as the planet.
“The cost of freight is going up so a normal parcel can be anywhere between $8 to $12 for a practice, but when you multiply that out by a year, it’s thousands,” says Fletcher.
Under the Full Circle Program, participating practices pay nothing for freight on their frames.
“This reduces costs in freight and energy, so we’re saving tons of carbon and it’s better for the environment.
“And it all comes under one invoice.”
That includes the warranties and the replacements; everything is handled by CR Labs on behalf of Safilo Australia – a “one-stop shop” with benefits and savings for patients and practices.
And there is plenty of interest from those practices, say Fletcher and Taghvaei.
“We were actually quite surprised in its growth, because it continues to grow month on month,” he says, “but from a patient and practice buying perspective, it’s really a no-brainer.”
Taghvaei says hundreds of practices have joined the program since it started in mid-2023.
“CR Labs and us, we’re in the process of opening a lot more accounts in the coming weeks, so it’s going to grow a lot more. This is just the start.”
As simple as the idea sounds, the program is the result of a lot of planning by both companies, including creating an exclusive online ordering process, new marketing material and training for participating practices.
“We did a lot of research,” she says.
“We wanted to make sure this is something that will be a winner for our customers.
“The Full Circle Program was born because we were looking to find how we could help clear some of the obstacles for independents to be more competitive in the market.”
And to experience some of the advantages enjoyed by the corporates.
“Independents can get some really good discounts through this, some good commercial offers,” says Taghvaei.
“We have a streamlined process where we keep all the frames within this program at CR Labs.
“The Safilo team will assist and recommend that customers essentially choose what their patients want and what suits the store from the store’s perspective, allowing them to keep these items on their shelves.”
To help the practice get the best from the program, Safilo Australia supports training in the stores, and offers targeted marketing for Full Circle Program brands that highlights the benefits for practice and patient.
“The partners that we have within this program get the benefit of having a dedicated area, completely transformed to a certain brand, which brings the consumers or the patients to that area,” she says.
There are benefits in practice and stock management too.
“As part of this, they also get the advantage of one-to-one rotation where, when we leave the stock on the shelf for a little while, we can go back in there and manage the inventory for them.
“While we carefully tailor the opening range based on each practice’s needs, some models may not perform as expected. During regular visits, our sales team reviews the sales data with store managers, and if certain styles aren’t moving, we’ll recommend alternatives and arrange a rotation to keep the selection fresh and relevant.”
As more and more practices learn of these benefits and flock to the program, both Fletcher and Taghvaei are looking forward to what it might mean for their own businesses and the independent optometry sector.
Fletcher is looking beyond Australia’s shores.
“This is not just limited to the local market; we’ve got some big plans for expanding it outside the Australian market,” he says.
“CR Labs is the only lab in the world that can actually produce Carrera authentic lenses, and we’ve been endorsed and licensed by Safilo to do so.
“So when we look at other markets, like Asia, brands like Carrera are very big.”
Both believe this kind of arrangement could be the future of independent optometry in Australia.
“I’ve actually got labs ringing me from all over the world asking me, how does this relationship work . . . because they’re fascinated and interested, they see the same benefits,” says Fletcher.
“I think all frame suppliers should really look to align themselves with a lab, because potentially, that’ll be the future.”
Taghvaei says this type of collaboration is “something that the industry is heading towards”.
“There was a lot of talk in the market around complete pair solutions,” she says.
“Coming from a background in optical chains, I’ve always understood the benefit this model can offer to stores and store managers. There’s real comfort in knowing your best sellers are always on display, and being able to confidently tell a patient that they’ll receive a brand-new pair, not the one from the shelf. Patients love that experience.
“It also streamlines things for staff. They no longer need to reorder the same frame, wonder whether a top seller is in stock, or process and retag replacements – it saves a massive amount of time.
“For the practice owner, it brings efficiency across the board, with the added bonus of better margins and improved profitability.
“These were the ideas we set out to explore and put into practice – helping independents compete more effectively and stay ahead in a competitive market.”
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