Yes, the Vision Monday Top 50 U.S. Optical Retailers are about the numbers. It is a ranking, of course, based on metrics like store counts and estimated revenues and who’s gaining, who’s been acquiring, who’s been consolidated.

Over the nearly 25 years that we’ve been tabulating things for this report, there have been different trends behind the numbers. In the late ’80s, just the fact that there was such a report was the news. (“You guys are covering chains..??) Certainly, the ride of “commercial chains” started to emerge in the years after certain restrictions—about eyeglass Rx release and corporate affiliation with optometry—started to relax. And the Boomer population’s vision needs, plus the expansion of big national and specialty retailers drove a lot of new store openings in this business.

“Superopticals,” many offering one-hour service, were rewriting the competitive rules in the business then, impacting the lab business in a huge way, even as entrepreneurial eyecare professionals in local markets started to see the opportunity of growing their number of offices as well.

In the ’90s, when mass merchants started to be intrigued by the optical business, we started to track them in the Top 50, and even felt the need to break out the warehouse clubs and large value retailers who saw optical as a new and valuable addition to their total business.

Through the 2000s, there was continued growth among all chains and managed vision care became even more of a factor for everyone. And we saw many groups focused on branding, whether at the high end, the mid-market range or, importantly, the value sector.

Of course in the most recent five to seven years, the economy’s ups and downs, the emergence of technology and the revolution of the Internet changed the underlying competitive dynamic once again. This year, we are seeing those forces, along with health care reform and more involvement by private equity players, starting to fuel other shifts.

Taken together and viewed over time, the VM Top 50 provides a signature perspective about our vision care business.

maxelrad@jobson.com