Bennie Price, a man with one of the biggest personalities in the Optometry industry has passed away peacefully after a short, but courageous battle with lung cancer.
His daughter, Emma Gillies, who was inspired to become an optometrist because of her father’s passion for contact lenses wrote: ‘Bennie began his career in optics as a sales rep for Viennaline selling Optyl Eyewear in the late 1960s. He quickly became known for his big smile and cheerful personality and became highly respected in the industry for his no nonsense approach to selling.’
His reputation resulted in him being approached by Bausch and Lomb in the mid 70s as they wanted a representative who was trusted by Opticians to lead the launch of the first soft contact lenses in the UK.
‘Driven by a fascination with the eye and a desire to help opticians learn how to fit these new soft contact lenses, Bennie undertook the Diploma in Contact Lens practice to help him understand better ocular anatomy and physiology and the impact of contact lens wear on the ocular surface. The depth of his knowledge gave him a high level of technical expertise, and gave his customers the confidence to fit the new contact lens technology. He wanted to be able to speak to opticians at their level and with their language, which earned him even greater respect from his customers. This dedication took him to the role of technical services manager and he travelled the country supporting opticians until they became familiar with this technology,’ said Gillies.
He returned to B&L after a short period with CooperVision, then returned to the world of Frames with Brulimar Optical in the early 90s. Michael McGrath of McGrath Opticians said: ‘What was not to like about Bennie Price. How many sales reps visits do you truly look forward to? Not too many, but Bennie was welcome anytime. I loved his earthy humour and self deprecating, affable manner. An old style salesman who became a friend as well as a source of knowledge. He would drop in sometimes just for a chat and a cup of tea and he and I would dissolve into fits of laughter at one of his tales. A lovely, lovely man who will be greatly missed by all of us at McGrath Opticians in Byres Road Glasgow.’
Bennie leaves behind his wife Anne, daughter Emma and granddaughter Anna.