Essilor has moved to allay fears within the profession that its expansion in the online retail market will put them in competition with the very companies it supplies.
At an exclusive press briefing earlier this week, president of Essilor Europe Bernhard Nuesser told Optician that the company’s digital retail expansion was part of a strategy that would ultimately benefit independent high street opticians through ‘drive to store’ initiatives and consumer eye health resources
‘We want to shape the future of optics in the digital space. If Essilor doesn’t operate in this area, then companies like Amazon will,’ said Neusser.
The company also said children’s glasses had been removed from sale on UK-based sites following Optician’s discovery that children’s glasses could be supplied to under 16s without the supervision of a registered practitioner. Essilor regional VP for UK & Ireland Peter Smith said the company acted swiftly to remove the products as soon as it became aware of the situation.
Full details of the briefing will appear in a future issue of Optician.