Rodenstock hails its Club winners

Burnett Hodd & Jenkins of Sidcup, Kent won Rodenstock's National Centre of Excellence platinum award at the 14th annual Rodenstock Club luncheon at London's Savoy last month.
The practice won the overall title through best combined sales across the product categories of Wimbledon sunglasses, Impression ILT, progressives, ColorMatic and frames.
Speaking at the event, Rodenstock UK managing director Chris Hunt said that in increasingly difficult retail conditions the Club had continued to buck market trends. Rodenstock's change from being a family-owned company to a private equity corporation had made it commercially stronger and better able to stay on the same playing field as rival companies, with the tools to compete and excel.
'Our commitment to Club is not weakened or diminished by the changes at Rodenstock,' he said. There had been consumer promotions of TiLite frames and ColorMatic lenses, with more consumer initiatives for 2005 for supporters of the complete spectacle concept.
Gold National Centre of Excellence winner was Prince & Bates of Burton-on-Trent, with Aves Optometrists of Ware, Hertfordshire taking silver.
In Sunglass Practice of the Year, Club retail sales of Wimbledon were 1.5m for 2004. Overall winner was J M Tombs of Gosport, closely followed in second place by Burnett Hodd & Jenkins and in third place, DJ Bull of Burnham-on-Sea. The 20 finalists won a trip to Dublin, with the three winners and partners going to Wimbledon.
One award was made for Impression ILT Practice of the Year, to Martin Steels of Storrington who had been particularly successful with the lens. Hunt added that it was taking time for Club members to switch to the lens which was doing better with the chains.
Progressives gave the opportunity for genuine growth, he said, describing Rodenstock as a leader in back-surface progressives. Davis Optometrists of Kettering won platinum, Prince & Bates of Burton-on-Trent won gold and WH Kilgour of Ayr won silver.
The platinum ColorMatic Practice of the Year was Coleman Opticians of Norwich, the gold winner was Paxon & Thomas, Norwich and silver, Eye Care, Ipswich. Hunt added that 30 per cent of the company's Club retail lens sales were ColorMatic at 25m for 2004, with a new high-index version to be launched in 2005.
The Frame Stylist Practice of the Year platinum winner was Burnett Hodd & Jenkins, Prince & Bates took gold and KB & RL Gardner of Sunderland took silver.
It was announced that two long-serving directors were leaving and Hunt thanked them for all they had given to Rodenstock UK. Terry Seymour, production director, was to be a partner at Specsavers' Southampton production unit, to be replaced by Kurt Schranz of Carl Zeiss UK. Ran Bathgate was retiring, to be succeeded as director of sales by Freddie Collins.