By Marge Axelrad: Editorial Director
CINCINNATTI—Pearle Vision is embarking on a strategic expansion
of its franchising efforts.
Starting this year and into 2011, the division of Luxottica
(NYSE:LUX), which currently operates 743 stores in North America,
including 364 franchises in the U.S., intends to target independent
practices and optical retailers with a new initiative that reflects the
Pearle brand’s “Clearly Different” philosophy backed up by a complete
infrastructure of support services and resources.
“We believe there’s a large group of optometrists out there who
really want more of a turnkey solution when it comes to running their
own business,” said Seth McLaughlin, senior vice president and general
manager, Pearle Vision, in an exclusive interview with Vision Monday.
“Some are retail and business-minded and are successful, but among the
25,000 ODs out there in the U.S., there is a large number of them who we
feel would be interested to bring in the expertise of Pearle and tap
the resources of Luxottica Group to help them run their businesses.”
|
|
Pearle said it is leveraging its national brand strength and operational
support to franchisees. |
The current ratio of corporate stores and franchised Pearle
locations in North America, including Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, is
currently about 50/50; McLaughlin said the new initiative could
potentially grow the total number of franchises by some 50 percent over
the course of the next few years, reflecting the company’s optimistic
outlook toward the current market opportunity.
McLaughlin added, “The demands of running a practice, from
managing the staff and lab services to determining what works in the
dispensary, are extreme. We can bring the power of nearly 400 corporate
locations to bear with the data and experience to help determine what is
selling and how to operate efficiently. And as we look at the heritage
of the Pearle brand which Dr. Stanley Pearle founded nearly 50 years
ago, we can do this in a way that respects and enhances the doctor’s
ability to deliver premium eyecare. We want to be the eyecare retailer
down the street, owned and operated by your local OD professional. This
is a great evolution of the brand where the solution for the doctor is
‘Focus on patient care and let us take care of the rest.’”
McLaughlin continued, “In terms of the doctor role, too, we have
learnings through our 100+ locations where we employ the doctor as well
as significant input from our leasing doctors regarding best practices,
technologies and equipment.”
|
“This is a great evolution of the brand where the solution for the
doctor is ‘Focus on patient care and let us take care of the rest.’”
—Seth McLaughlin |
Luxottica and Pearle, said McLaughlin, see franchising as a trend
in the U.S. and in other markets around the world. “We’re always
looking at best path for growth for our brands. We are the franchise
brand in Luxottica’s retail portfolio—there are really not too many
similar opportunities in this optical category. We are looking for
people who want to fully affiliate and leverage the power of a large
company like Luxottica.”
Pearle initiated its franchise efforts in 1981. Today, there are
304 corporate Pearle stores in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Caribbean.
In Canada, Pearle operates 75 company locations and, McLaughlin said,
“We are considering franchise expansion there in 2011.”
Much of Pearle’s current presentation to prospective franchisees,
whether for existing optometric businesses or new practices, is to
communicate the work that Pearle has been doing internally and with its
existing franchise system in the past few years.
|
The goal of Pearle’s franchising efforts are to create “sustainable,
profitable business,” the company said. |
The underpinnings of Pearle’s “Clearly Different” tagline, now
used in its $40 million integrated consumer marketing efforts, were
about a year and a half in the making as the operation evolved this
message from the long-term “Nobody Cares for Eyes More than Pearle”
theme.
According to Bill Vaughan, Pearle’s vice president of franchise
development, a 12-year veteran of the company, “‘Clearly Different’
speaks to the idea of value for the money, associate and doctor
engagement with the patient, making sure that patients understand
choices when it comes to eye health and wellness, lens technology—it’s a
message of customer and patient advocacy. The Pearle platform is
centered on trusted eyecare and how we deliver that in-store
experience.”
Vaughan pointed out, “The consumer insights and research we’ve
collected and tested to best understand the price/value equation and
deliver those drivers of customer loyalty are things that are part of
what the franchisee can rely on from us. In the U.S., managed vision
care or group-directed care can be confusing; we want to help our
customers understand it and this is a part of the process and training
we offer associates.”
|
“The Pearle platform is centered on trusted eyecare and how we deliver
that in-store experience.” |
Vaughan also noted, “We’ve done a lot of work to be sure we can
provide solid growth and support for franchisees, to help them be more
profitable. The average annual volume for franchisee units is about
$700,000 in dispensing volume, probably double that of the average
independent, when you strip out the doctor fees. We have refined a
turnkey support model based on input and analysis of turnover from
thousands of locations; we have a whole new field structure team
dedicated to operational excellence and integrated services.”
Vaughan added, “We want to be more diagnostic in our approach, to
work with franchisee partners to understand the root challenges they
face to discover how Luxottica and Pearle can solve those issues
together, building a business plan, understanding capital assessments,
finding the right real estate and so forth. We have a history of success
with our long-term, ‘legacy’ franchisees; in fact, about 60 percent of
our franchisees are with us 10 years or more.”
Vaughan cited the investment inside the Pearle operation which
has happened in the years since Luxottica acquired Cole National/Pearle,
including improvements in Luxottica’s optical manufacturing/lab
operations and practice systems. Franchise agreements include product
mix requirements but Pearle franchisees are able to choose from an
approved list of outside vendors for frame choices. Pearle’s STARS
program is its inventory managing system which includes turnkey product
replenishment, product selection based on corporate data/trends,
full-service frame and lab reps and Luxottica wholesale pricing
advantages.
When it comes to the doctor side, Vaughan explained, Pearle
“doesn’t interfere with professional judgments” but does offer “soft
chairside advice and recommendations” for exam equipment and has a team
which negotiates contracts with instrument makers for pricing and
service.
Pearle’s current Franchise Advisory Council, with about 20 state
and seven national advisory representatives, meets regularly to share
input and provide peer-to-peer support.
Pearle’s traditional franchise convention will this year give way
to a new, expanded Pearle Vision Brand Summit, involving both corporate
and franchisees, vendors and resource services, to be held in New
Orleans in October.
■
■
maxelrad@jobson.com