NEW YORK—The latest Optical Business Barometer (OBB) report from Jobson Optical Research, which gauges the attitudes about their business and their business outlook among independent eyecare professionals, shows that the overall optical business rating for April 2015 decreased slightly to 3.83 from a March 2015 rating of 3.84. However, as compared to the April 2014 rating of 3.70, the April 2015 rating has increased, and when further compared to April 2013, the rating also increased from the rating of 3.65.
According to the report, in all previous annual periods April has declined significantly from the immediately preceding month of March. April 2015, however, is almost flat with March demonstrating a new periodic pattern that indicates a strong mid-year 2015 may be at hand.
Between March 2015 and April 2015, the confidence rating, a measuring of independent eyecare professionals’ outlook for overall optical retail business for the upcoming six months, was down only slightly, showing a rating of 3.87 as compared to March’s 3.89 rating. The April 2015 rating of 3.87 compares to 3.81 in 2014 and 3.67 in 2013.
The Optical Business Barometer is designed to gauge the optical business trends of eyecare professionals at independent optical locations and to provide independent optical retailers with a comparative “how's business” benchmark. The Optical Business Barometer is a monthly study of a representative sample of independent optical retailers (single locations and groups of no more than three locations). It is conducted online by Jobson Optical Research and is designed to take the temperature of the independent optical business. The OBB is based on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is very negative, 3 is neutral and 5 is very positive.
SOURCE: Jobson Optical Research Business Barometer for April 2015
Additionally, the April 2015 monthly scores for eyeglasses, exams and contact lenses all showed increases from the previous year. The April rating for eyeglasses rose from 3.67 in 2014 to 3.79 in 2015 (and further compared to 3.63 in 2013); the rating for exams rose from 3.70 in 2014 to 3.89 in 2015 (and further compared to 3.70 in 2013); and the rating for contact lenses rose from 3.55 in 2014 to 3.63 in 2015 (compared to 3.55 in 2013).
SOURCE: Jobson Optical Research Business Barometer for April 2015
Year-to-date average ratings for January through April 2015 for eyeglasses, eye exams and contact lenses all showed some increase in April 2015 compared to the same period in 2014 and 2013. Average eyeglass ratings for January through April 2015 stood at 3.81, compared to 3.65 for the same period in 2014 and 3.72 in 2013. Average year-to-date ratings for exams stood at 3.88, compared to 3.74 for the same period in 2014 and 3.75 in 2013. Contact lens ratings for January through April 2015 stood at 3.65, compared to 3.58 for the same period in 2014 and 3.59 in 2013.
Jobson's OBB report is also compared to the Consumer Confidence Index from the Conference Board. The Consumer Confidence Index showed a decrease in April 2015 to 95.2 (from a revised 101.4 in March 2015. These ratings still do not surpass the Index’s high point, which came in January of 2000 with a rating of 144.7.
SOURCE: Jobson Optical Research Business Barometer for April 2015
Regional scores for the overall optical industry year-to-date average rating stood at 3.67 in the Northeast, 3.99 in the South, 3.83 in the Midwest and 3.87 in the West.
For more information, visit jobsonresearch.com/obb or contact Jennifer Waller at (212) 274-7164 or jwaller@jobson.com.