Offices often cut back on expenses when business is sluggish. But with a little initiative and creativity, just the opposite can yield a handsome profit. Take a look at what a very successful group of optical offices in Portland, OR has done to pick up its dispensary sales.
Bill MacGillivray, ABOM, owned optical businesses for 20-plus years before becoming Director of Optical Operations at Eye Health Northwest in Portland. He helped plan office make-overs at four of their 11 offices last year.
I talked to him about the Northwest Portland crown jewel store. With help from Laurie Estrada at Fashion Optical Displays, Eye Health Northwest did a dispensary makeover that has yielded an 11.7% increase in profit. Considering that the makeover cost was $60,000, the profit increase will more than pay for itself in a very short time period.
THE PROCESS When MacGillivray first walked into this office, he saw a bottleneck at the reception area. Patients couldn’t easily get into the dispensary while waiting to see the doctor. Dispensing tables were cold and sterile.
The makeover involved relocating the dispensing tables and opening up the entrance to the dispensary so that people could move about easily. In addition, new carpet was installed and walls were painted with a brighter coral color and customized ceiling lights were back-painted to match the walls.
More importantly, Fashion Optical’s SRT (Shadow Reducing Technology) eyewear display panels were installed which made the frames “pop out” under the new lighting. All of this helped the office add many new high-end lines that previous patients had left the office to find in local boutiques or in San Francisco.
MacGillivray knew that most patients wanted an “experience” while looking for eyewear. Feeling comfortable in an attractive setting with dispensers discussing high-end premium frames and lenses has set this operation apart from big box retail optical stores in town. DOES IT MAKE CENTS? This office sees over 160 patients daily. Many of them are there for medical reasons only, and cannot be part of the dispensary equation. The “capture” rate of patients purchasing eyewear has increased from 41% to 50%. And, the makeover has shifted the profit picture by 11.7%.
Even if you are on a much smaller scale, it’s easy to see how an office makeover designed to promote premium eyewear can make a substantial difference in profit. In the example shown below, capturing more patients and using a mere markup of only 2x increased the weekly profit to an impressive $25,600. If you increase the markup and decrease the number of patients, you’ll still have an impressive profit picture. According to MacCallivray, this makeover paid for itself in only a few weeks!
With the makeover in the Northwest Portland office, patients now enjoy the experience of receiving quality care in an attractive atmosphere.
Debra R. White is a former opticianry professor. She is currently an optical consultant, lecturer, and writer.
WHERE TO FIND IT Fashion Optical Displays 800-824-4106
• fashionoptical.com
