Simon Jones: How to make friends and influence people

A few people this week were kind enough to send me a copy of a letter Silhouette sent to some of its customers. Or should I say, former customers, because the letter served as notice to practices that Silhouette deemed them ‘no longer commercially viable,’ after the introduction of minimum sales quotas, meaning the working relationship would be ‘paused’.

The decision to introduce sales quota was set against the backdrop of a ‘difficult economic climate’ following the coronavirus pandemic. Sales quotas and minimum orders have always been a bone of contention among practice frame buyers, but they are fairly common, and I have to admit, the figures quoted by Silhouette (24 rimless and 16 full rim or supra frames per year) didn’t seem outrageous. But it isn’t just Silhouette that’s experiencing a ‘difficult economic climate’. Practices are too.