Providing patients with fashionable, stylish frame options is one thing, but becoming a fashion-focused practice is a step which requires dedication and expertise. The Fashion Practice of the Year category at the Optician Awards looks to reward this, recognising practices which understand the importance of colour and sourcing frames that make the business stand out. Mincher-Lockett and Co Opticians were the 2019 selection for this award, and with good reason.
Judges picked the practice from among strong competition, selecting Mincher-Lockett and Co because of the special lengths gone to turn itself into a fashion practice. This is largely down to Eva Davé, optometrist and co-owner at the practice. She explains: ‘In 2015 we began to rebrand the practice to focus on becoming experts in eyewear styling and fashion. This was born out of both a passion for helping people look and feel the best version of themselves and necessity. By the end of 2014 many of the businesses in Market Drayton were really struggling. I felt we had to do something radically different to survive because at that point we certainly didn’t offer any differentiation points to other optical practices in the area.
‘We were also disheartened with the range of eyewear that was on offer and available in the UK. This is when we decided to focus on our own unique style and creative process of eyewear styling.’
Being different
Differentiating yourself from the competition is an excellent way to bring in patients to your practice, and becoming known as the fashionable practice in town is sure to benefit both your reputation and bottom line. Mincher-Lockett and Co carries around 1,000 different frames in the practice and, with only 12 being black, present an exceptionally colourful range of options to their patients.
Eva Davé says: ‘Everyone has their own unique style personality and we specialise in finding out about our patients’ personal style and interest through our one-to-one guided styling consultation. This process enables us to select between six and eight pieces from our vast collection we know they will love.’ Offering patients stylish options for their frames has been a successful business strategy at Mincher-Lockett, with the practice recently hitting an average dispense value of £1,000. Up from just £120 in 2014, it is clear that fashion expertise pays: ‘The problem we often have is narrowing the frame choices down to two or three as they like so many!’
Eyewear styling consultation
Mincher-Lockett and Co carries out individualised styling consultations with every patient, something Eva Davé characterises as essential to the practice’s success: ‘We spend up to an hour of extra time with our styling consultation, which shows our
clients that we care just as much about their eyewear choices as we do about their eye health. The consultation brings the “wow” into our clients’ experience and actually makes a trip to the opticians an exciting experience, encouraging them to visit more often for their clinical care too.’ Eva is a trained image consultant and also an international expert eyewear styling trainer at Colour Me Beautiful, a leading European image consultancy.
Winners
Mincher-Lockett’s entry to the Optician Awards impressed the judges and, in turn, winning the award has impressed the practice’s patients. Sam Davé, Eva’s optometrist husband and co-owner at the fashion focused practice, commented: ‘We were delighted to have won the award and have placed the winner’s trophy on display in a cabinet in our practice, for all of our clients to see. They have been really delighted for us and we received many cards and congratulations.’
The award has also solidified and expanded the reputation of the practice to its customers. ‘It’s been a great vehicle for promoting both our practice and our styling process, and of course for underpinning our credibility in what we are doing. It has also meant that we are being sought out for our styling advice and have more clients travelling from all over the UK, and even abroad, to see us,’ exclaims Sam Davé.
With regards to the future, Mincher-Lockett and Co are looking to continue with their success, while promoting their age-inclusive mission. Eva Davé explains: ‘It’s important for us to be proactive about advocating against ageism in the optical industry. Over 70% of over-50s feel misrepresented by society and, in particular, the fashion industry. Unfortunately, many optical practices cater for this generation with safe, boring eyewear. We are in a small market town, and have some of the funkiest farmers around.’