By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, October 24, 2024 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—On October 10, people worldwide, both within and outside of the optical industry, took the time to recognize and celebrate World Sight Day. A day dedicated to the promotion of eyecare and overall eye health, this year’s World Sight Day celebrations were specifically directed at shining a light on eyecare for children. As
reported in
VMAIL, many of the industry’s largest companies and organizations stepped up for World Sight Day—but they aren’t the only ones who made a difference. The work many ECPs do on a local level and in their own communities is just as impactful. Here, we take a look at how some indies recognized this important day for our industry.
By Staff
Thursday, October 24, 2024 8:25 AM
The team at
Family Eye Care in Arkansas donned pink for breast cancer education.
By Staff
Thursday, October 24, 2024 8:20 AM
NEW YORK—We’re just a few days away from the spookiest night of the year, but there’s still plenty of time to get into the Halloween spirit in the office. As you prepare for the trick or treaters and ghouls and goblins, take a moment to get inspired by these independent ECPs who have transformed their offices into Halloween havens—there’s still time to grab a pumpkin, don a witches’ hat and make your workspace a memorable space this Halloween season.
By Staff
Thursday, October 24, 2024 8:15 AM
AUSTIN, Texas—
ZenBusiness, a platform helping small business owners start, run and grow successful businesses, is advancing its mission to empower entrepreneurs by launching new AI-driven tools. These innovations mark a significant step forward for ZenBusiness, simplifying critical tasks like business planning, website creation and helping small business owners run more efficiently and successfully, according to the company.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, October 10, 2024 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—
Prevent Blindness has once again declared October as Contact Lens Safety Month, with the goal of educating the public on the proper use of contact lenses, both prescription and cosmetic. With Halloween on the horizon and some costumes calling for a change in eye color, October is an ideal time to reinforce the importance of proper and safe contact lens use; to do so, Prevent Blindness is offering a variety of resources including fact sheets, social media graphics and
dedicated webpages. For ECPs, there are plenty of ways to prioritize contact lens safety this month. Here, we’re taking a look at the social media push that some indies are using to spread the word.
By Staff
Thursday, October 10, 2024 8:25 AM
The team at
Eyes on Fremont in Seattle and Bellingham, Wash., is raising awareness for breast cancer this October.
By Staff
Thursday, October 10, 2024 8:20 AM
PARIS—The 2024 edition of the Silmo d’Or Awards, chaired by fashion designer Alexis Mabille, recognized impactful design from the past year—as always, these recognitions included a number of independent designers. This year’s categories were: Children, Sport, Vision, Vision — Optical System, Material & Equipment, Optical Frame — Brands and Labels, Sunglasses — Brands & Labels, Technological Innovation in Eyewear, Technological Innovation in Eyewear — Connected Products, Optical Frame — Eyewear Designer, Sunglasses — Eyewear Designer and the Jury’s Special Award.
By Staff
Thursday, October 10, 2024 8:15 AM
NEWARK, N.J.—The
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has announced that it is cohosting two education events this fall aimed at women entrepreneurs as a continuation of the 2024 National ChallengeHER road tour. The SBA will partner with
Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) and
American Express (AMEX) on the education initiatives. ChallengeHer is a government contracting education initiative that aims to bring more women-owned firms into the federal government’s supply chain, encourages participation in the SBA’s
Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract Program and provides an avenue for government agencies to meet qualified women-owned small business contractors.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Friday, September 13, 2024 7:30 AM
NEWARK, N.J.—Jobson Optical Research released its annual
ECP Income Study this month, offering new insights into what ECPs across the country are earning. This extensive study includes the average income for optometrists, opticians/dispensers and optical office managers in the U.S—these metrics include independent ECPs, offering a helpful guidepost for other independents. In addition, a full comparison of males vs. females is broken out across all demographics.
By Staff
Friday, September 13, 2024 7:25 AM
The team at
Moffatt Eye Care in Magnolia, Texas, celebrated four years in business.
By Staff
Friday, September 13, 2024 7:20 AM
ST. LOUIS—The American Optometric Association (AOA) is celebrating September as Paraoptometric Appreciation Month, its formal observation of optometric practice staff who support the delivery of patient eyecare. As September winds down, there is still plenty of time for independent ECPs to show support for their paraoptometric teams—and the AOA provides several resources and suggestions to make that even easier.
By Staff
Friday, September 13, 2024 7:15 AM
The
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has announced that the Delaware Small Business Development Center (SBDC) has been selected to receive a $350,000 prize to develop and deploy a national Cyber Certification Program for SBA resource partners. The program will utilize industry best practices to provide cybersecurity tools and training to small businesses and will be delivered via a hybrid course curriculum with webinars and workshops, knowledge-based assessments, certification requirements, and ongoing continuing education to track key performance indicators over two years, according to the announcement.
By Gwendolyn Plummer
Thursday, September 5, 2024 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—
Women In Optometry has announced that it will award nine women ODs with a Theia Award of Excellence on Thursday, November 7, 2024, during the American Academy of Optometry’s Academy 2024 in Indianapolis, Ind., according to an announcement from
WO. This is the ninth year for this annual awards ceremony. Each year,
Women In Optometry asks readers and friends to submit the names of women who have been extraordinarily influential in the industry. This year, more than 200 nominations were submitted; the
WO advisory board votes for the winners.
By Staff
Thursday, September 5, 2024 8:25 AM
The team at
Laster Eye Center in Fort Smith, Ark., celebrated National Dog Day with a collage of their beloved pups.
By Staff
Thursday, September 5, 2024 8:20 AM
GOLDEN, Colo.—In August, Optometry Giving Sight (OGS) issued its 2024 World Sight Day Challenge in support of its mission to eradicate uncorrected refractive error through the growth and expansion of optometry around the world. The Challenge is the organization’s largest annual fundraiser. This year’s theme is Giving Together, Seeing Forever, which OGS said celebrates the collective power of the optometry community to give the gift of sight to millions of people in need. The Challenge runs from now through the end of October, with World Sight Day scheduled to be celebrated on October 10.