Contact lens market climbs 8%

Latest figures released by the Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers (ACLM) and EUROMCONTACT have shown the UK and Ireland contact lens markets grew 8% to reach £290m last year.

The market was made up of the sale of over 780 million contact lenses, of which 65% were daily disposables and 31% were soft frequent replacement lenses among ACLM members.

In total, there were now 4.2 million contact lens wearers in the UK – 5.1% more wearers than in 2015 and representing 9% of adults aged 15-64 years.

‘The ACLM remains confident that the UK market for CLs continues to grow, and recommending contact lenses continues to provide the most effective way for practitioners to grow their business, to demonstrate a comprehensive clinical expertise, and to gain greater loyalty from their patients,’ an ACLM statement added.