Companies not attending Optrafair are missing out on a once-every-two-years opportunity to meet new customers and win new business, warned Barry Dibble, vice chairman of organiser the Federation of Manufacturing Opticians.
Speaking in a broad-ranging interview, Dibble, who is also managing director of Rodenstock UK, said the best way for optical companies to cope with the credit crunch was to maintain or increase business activity.
'I don't think you can hide under the table and hope that it goes away. You can see what is happening on the high street at the moment and the aggressive actions being taken. I think you have got to take action to survive and those people who continue to push themselves forward during the recession will survive at the other end stronger as a result.
'Speaking with my FMO hat on, I'm concerned for those companies not attending Optrafair. It is a biennial event and it is seen really as the pinnacle of the optical calendar. It's a gathering of the optical community in one location and it's a fantastic opportunity so I am really concerned for those companies that, for whatever reason, have decided not to attend this year. It's strange personally I don't understand it. Optrafair is still the event, once every two years, I've never understood why the contact lens industry has never really favoured Optrafair, it still is the optical event.
'From a competitive situation it's a great opportunity for us [Rodenstock]. But the optical industry is something I do care deeply about so I am concerned for those companies.'