The Batemans name, bar a few exceptions, will disappear from the high street within the next 24 months as Vision Express (VE) invests in a 'substantial' upgrade of the 75 Batemans practices it acquired from bankruptcy in May.
As reported in Optician, (May 9), VE took the optical sector by surprise when it confirmed that it had acquired the business which had been a family concern for over 100 years but had suffered from a lack of investment in recent years.
Over the next six to nine months all Batemans outlets will be refitted with new fascia encompassing some element of the Batemans branding for a transitional period. Over the next 12 to 24 months all but a few Batemans practices will take on the full VE branding. The Batemans branding will be retained for those practices which would end up directly competing with an existing VE practice.
In an interview with Optician, VE chief executive Bryan Magrath said that since the acquisition a lot of work had gone into plans to transform the Batemans business.
'As a company we are keen to retain the employee and customer loyalty that Batemans enjoys,' he explained. 'There is a lot of emotional attachment to the Batemans name so we looked at those markets that the outlets operate in, predominantly small market towns, and we thought long and hard about the alternatives of branding the business.
'The conclusion that we came to was that they would work better under a VE banner although during the transitional period they will carry some elements of Batemans branding.'
He added: 'We hope that we will take all the Batemans customers with us because we focus on quality and customer care - values that are important to them. But we also want to add some VE type customers who are younger and more brand-conscious to ensure the success of brands in store.'
Magrath highlighted the importance of lowering the age profile of a typical Batemans customer. 'The Batemans database is old, going back 60 to 70 years in comparison to the VE database which is far younger.
'We are looking to build the business for the future and it makes more sense to try and move the age profile of the Batemans customer down. It hasn't always been an older customer base,' he explained.
Magrath also ruled out any disposal of Batemans outlets, despite several approaches from interested parties. 'We are keen to keep all 75 outlets we acquired,' he said.
? Read the full interview with Bryan Magrath next week.