How One Career Connected Eyewear, Music, Fashion, and Practice Design

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Welcome to another episode of Optometry Profits Revealed.
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I'm your host, Peter Precht, and today I am blessed to be with Anna Ibay.
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She has been a Canadian eyewear veteran for 25 years, and we're gonna walk through that journey rather than me uh gut getting to it because there's a lot of sidebars that relate to fashion and style.
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Without any further ado, Anna, thank you so much for being here.
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Hi, Peter.
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Come stay?
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Bonjour.
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Hello, everyone.
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I gotta be international because I live in Canada now, and it's all about your heritage first, then you're Canadian.
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And I think that's awesome.
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And that's a, you know, that's a conversation to connect, you know, with future business that we were just talking about before before we uh began recording.
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Um let's walk a little bit through your journey, because it's kind of a fascinating one.
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Uh 25 years is a pretty long time.
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You've been in several different places, but you really began your career with fitovers.
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Um talk a little bit about that, and then we're going to integrate other parts of your journey, and then obviously we'll get a technology up and down from you.
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And as always, we have a new segment where we ask for an online ordering story from you.
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But talk about your experience with fitovers and then the technology there.
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Because you mentioned um in what you sent to me that some of the technology actually ended up being purchased uh by uh Hoya.
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Oh yeah.
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Well, the I I my come my career in optical started with Fitovers in California, and it has been a lucky charm as well as a foundation for everything else I've done within this industry.
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First off, a lot of people don't know what Fitovers is, but the name kind of says it for itself.
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Um it's a product that's not pretty.
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Everybody calls it ugly.
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And I got over that and I had fun with it because when I spoke with the three O's that I dealt with, the opticians, the optometrists, and the ophthalmologists, they all knew fitovers.
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They'd called it ugly.
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However, they were calling, texting, sending us faxes, placing the order.
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And you know why?
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When your ophthalmologist prescribes to you that you need this product, right, people are gonna run.
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And when in the fashion part, I mean the the fashion part was second, it's just a function product first, but they're not as ugly as they used to be nowadays.
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Anyway, I'll let you keep going.
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But that that's fascinating to me.
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Um, and you're right.
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If it's recommended by the ophthalmologist, I call it the Mercedes-Benza fitovers because we wanted it to be pretty, we wanted the men to look sharp, we wanted to, we end eventually did a collaboration with Sworski Crystal, and we added Sworski Crystal on the side of the frames.
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Oh, and they were pearl color, sapphire, burgundy.
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Uh, we actually even did a show.
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Oh my gosh, that was one of the best shows, where at Vision Expo we created a gigantic booth with curtains that made the booth, and we had lounge music and all the fitovers.
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We gifted um martinis to our key buyers, and they came in and asked for the drink, sapphire or the cosmopolitan was the name of the burgundy frame.
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I can't remember now at the top of my head.
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But we made it beautiful.
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We made it pretty.
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What's that?
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I remember that.
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I'm sorry, go ahead.
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You do?
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You remember that booth?
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Oh my gosh.
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No, I remember not the booth.
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I remember that actual fit over.
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Oh, the the sapphire and the and the and the per purple.
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We've had every color under the sun.
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Well, and but talk about that redesign of the marketing where uh you could literally know immediately whether it would fit over your glasses or not.
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Um, you know, without even grabbing it and putting it on.
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I thought that was a that to me, that's a that's an uh that's such a simple check to put your match your glasses up on top of the display.
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Is that how it actually worked?
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That I did not see.
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We started first getting a lot of complaints.
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People were like, it doesn't fit.
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There was returns, and you know our industry, everybody hates returns.
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There was um complaints, our customer service was giving us feedback.
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So Paul Stables is the president, and I worked closely with him and the rest of the executive team to make the product better.
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And what we did was took the catalog and made boxes.
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This is the large fit over, this is the small fit over, here are the measurements, and your glasses fit into that.
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All the ophthalmologists, the opticians, optometrists that carried our product gate put that aside and showed the patients if it fits into this, your glass, this is the size you will need.
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So it was kind of basic foundation of proper fitting the frames.
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It worked well.
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And you ran with it.
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If it saves and returns, then it's a win-win.
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What about the VTO component?
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Um, when did that get come into the mix uh with their product?
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So we what we were my my neighbor, and I'm I think I just connected everybody to problem solve.
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My neighbor was in the tech industry, Austin, Texas.
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Let's back up for a minute.
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So Fitovers was based in California.
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Right.
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And it became very expensive to run a business there.
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Labor was crazy, shipping was crazy, freight across the U.S.
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was crazy.
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So relocating to Austin, Texas, we had the music scene, we had the film scene, and we were center.
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Being in sales and being able to speak to people in the East Coast and the West Coast and everything in between was so much easier.
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So I loved living in Austin, not for only for the central standard time zone, but for freight and being able to, me as a sales um person, I had a territory.
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So I was talking to ECPs on the East Coast, West Coast, and everything in between.
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So that was a key component of working at um fitovers.
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Well, and so so that so that takes you to Austin.
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And then you had time with uh Hillco, and then you know, we we were just talking about while you were in uh Austin, you you had a chance to get involved with the Austin Film Society to talk about that.
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Yes.
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Um wow, we did skip something.
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The virtual tryon.
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The the the tech neighbor of mine, let me go back.
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The tech neighbor of mine, he created the virtual tryon.
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And it was it was right in the very first stages of what people had websites that were interactive, and we said, let's do this, let's create a virtual try on.
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And you could go on to Fit Over's website and take your glasses and try on the Fitover, and it worked.
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Like we were getting a lot of excellent feedback, people were using it, and that actually helped our end clients at the at the very end.
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It helped our ECPs understand a little bit more about how to fit the fitovers properly.
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During your time there, did you see sales shift from inside of practice to being online with technology like that?
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Absolutely, and it just helped with the with the returns and understanding the product a little bit more.
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Right.
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And people were amazed how once you had the proper fit, it didn't look like a fit over.
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Right.
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And people had that stigma, Peter.
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People were like, they're ugly.
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Then they put them on, they're like, oh my god, they're polarized on the front, they're polarized on the side.
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They sit on top of my glasses.
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So when I'm at the US Open or I'm fishing or just walking, you're getting protection from the front.
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You're getting protection from the side, and they're starting to look pretty.
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Well, you know, sometimes you're a retired fisherman and you don't have the finances this year to get the polarized sunglasses, but you fish and you know you need the near.
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And this was just a great answer for so many people that didn't have the capability of getting the prescription sunglasses at that moment.
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But it but I would also argue, and I don't know if this data was ever tracked, that that product probably ultimately drove up the sales of prescription safety.
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I mean, prescription sunglasses.
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I think one of my part-time, one of my duties at Fitovers was uh I did a lot of brand marketing collaborations, and I would go to the fishing show with the team.
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So if you've ever heard of iCast, I forget what it stands for, international conference, yeah, it was all the sporting goods.
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And one of um our booths we had uh next to us was bass fishman, bass pro, all those type of buyers.
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And I saw this gentleman named Mike Iconelli, and he was from New Jersey, and he was one of the top-rising bass fishermen in the U.S.
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I connect, I contacted him and I connected him.
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I went to the bass fishing event in Alabama, and I met him, and I got him as our brand manager, our brand ambassador.
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Peter, he ended up winning the Bass Pro contest of whatever tournaments.
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That's crazy.
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Wearing our glasses.
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And you know, again, uh what better example can you walk into just to and and your history is littered, your your career is littered with the stories that are like this because we were I was a little premature, but we were jumping into the Austin Film Society, and uh, you know, Richard Linklater, who's actually the director of Days that Confused, which you mentioned before, which I think is awesome.
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It's one of my favorite, you know, kind of you know, knockoff movies, just because it reminded me an awful lot of my uh misspent youth.
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But um, yeah, talk definitely talk about that.
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Um that technology that you just mentioned there, so that ended up being sold to Hoya.
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Yes, yes.
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Paul, uh Paul Stables, the president of our company, he's now retired, living in Austin, wanted to sell the product, and I was no longer with them, but we are, you know, I don't burn my bridges.
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I'm friendly with everyone I've ever worked with.
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And they're they're still my mentors and friends.
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So he did end up selling it to Hoya in uh Canada and the US.
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And I spoke to one of his distributors recently, actually, out of Calgary, Alberta, and he said, Yeah, I'm retired.
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Tell me what you're up to.
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I still like hearing about what's going on in my career and everything optical.
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And those guys are are still having fun in Hoya.
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I see the the fitovers on the on the website there.
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And you know, uh after all these years, they have a lot of competitors, but they did leave a lasting legacy because they got a they received a ton of great reviews.
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Well, not only that, there's still knockoffs that are coming out that have gotten even larger with that field of view on the side, because that was a big complaint of theirs, is that you uh the you know it inhibited uh periphery.
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But again, if they hadn't started that trend, then we wouldn't be looking at what's happening now uh where that is not a non-issue, you know, where the side view is is is far friendlier that than it was on you know on the initial designs.
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Um did you know that it's against the law in California to wear a sidearm when driving, you have to have that uh you have to have that peripheral vision when you're driving.
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So living in California, I did I I heard that.
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So that was one of the sales pitch the the team did was selling that it's a polarized lens on the side.
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That's kind of interesting.
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That to me that would be a perfect segue into selling the second pair of prescription sunglasses that we were doing.
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Absolutely, absolutely, and people did RX fitovers, by the way.
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Many of our clients that ended up loving the product would RX it.
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Wow.
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Well, and that's you know, again, you've got a massive field of view, which is just awesome, you know.
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And if you don't and if you're like a contact lens wearer and you like that huge field of view, you know, you end up being limited to a degree.
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So I yeah, I again I think the uses there are continuous, the connections in of other sales.
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I I don't think people associate fitovers enough with the prescription safety sales that end up excuse me, prescription sun sales.
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It's embedded in my head.
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It's prescription sun sales that uh you know that generate afterwards.
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Because to me, it is a natural thing where later in life you're gonna remember the experience, and and quite frankly, if you don't know to go get it online and you don't find it, then you may end up getting prescription, you know.
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You may end up getting prescription sunglasses, which it isn't a bad thing.
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Um you from from 10 to 11, you were uh with Jonathan Paul eyewear?
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Yeah, they like I mentioned, they did, they really helped my career.
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Like the OWA was a key part of my career.
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And Fitovers paid for my mentorship through OWA, where I did have a great network of mentors.
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I was also on the events planning team, so Vision Expo East and West.
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I got to be part of the team that put on the raffle.
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Did you ever go to the raffle events?
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No, I was part of the team.
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Oh we would get all these cool swag from all the um sponsors and friends of OWA, and we would just raffle it off.
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And people love coming and like winning these products for a small donation or a ticket.
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Well, and you talked about having a chance to to meet Diane Van First Furstenberg and as well as others, you know.
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That was fantastic.
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She was so um generous with her time, her showroom.
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It was at her, the event was at her showroom, and it was um a highlight.
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My mentor, Shirley Platzerstock, who is uh based out of California, was receiving one of the awards, the Pixas Award.
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So I was able to be part of that event.
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And uh it was I was young.
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I was it was so impressive to see all these big name designers and all these executives that attended our event.
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So for me, I was still in the beginning of my career, and I always um am thankful and grateful for that time where it helped me understand a little bit more, but it opened up a whole set of doors for me to this day.
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Well, that's exactly right.
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Uh and I'll I I said it before, I don't mind sticking my neck out and saying it right here now that uh the women of the optical industry do a way better job promoting and taking care of each other than the men.
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And I'm not calling names out, but it is very, very true.
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You know, there tends to be a high competitive nature at higher levels with the men.
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And uh the women tend to make sure they want to lift each other up.
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Uh the women are more cognizant of the skill sets of other women.
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Uh and well, it's true.
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That's the other thing.
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The women aren't just about plugging someone into a seat that doesn't know what they're doing, but they're also more apt to know who knows what they're doing.
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Because they listen, they have conversations where they listen.
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It's not about them, it's about listening first.
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And I, you know, we we could talk about that for for hours on end.
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Um, but I do want to talk about some of the other aspects that connect into fashion and and and event, and we want to draw this into branding.
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Branding is becoming uh an invertently very large theme on my podcast, and again, it wasn't set in set out to be that way, but it is ending up to be that way.
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We do want to talk about that.
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Um, California accessories for a window of time.
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And then accent labels and uh Liberty uh clothing.
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I want to talk about how these connections, um, you know, how did they stem out of where you were, and then talk about the people you met there.
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I've always worked in fashion as a young girl, so it was it was um just kind of a natural path for me to go that way.
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I was needed a pause from optical.
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During all these trade shows that I attended, California Accessories and a whole list of great vent uh manufacturers and designers were always our neighbors.
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So, you know, when you go to these two shows, you gotta go there a couple of days early, you gotta set up, get all your sales um promo and your list and your pricing.
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So a lot, a lot of these years being at these events, you see the same people.
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Uh California Accessories was one of my jobs where I became an executive account executive.
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So I was commissioned, I I was hustling to fashion accounts.
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Um, I did a lot of catalogs.
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Remember Hammacker Schlemmer and Sharper Image?
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I had quite a connection of those type of fashion accounts.
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So it was fun.
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I did the same thing I was doing at Fitovers and pivoted and worked those type of key accounts with California accessories.
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Uh, I don't know if you know Frederick Gruntel, but he became an excellent, well, he's still an excellent guy.
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I we still keep in contact, and I think he's still on Vision Council um committee, too.
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But we still connect, he's always at the show.
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And again, that's one of my mentors that I can call him and when we still talk, and he gives me advice, or you know, get we we talk about eyewear, and he's doing the Peeper's brand.
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So that was a really great way of you know, pivoting from fitovers to an accessory.
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Um, Accent Labels was a company I worked for a short time where we created labels for every clothing company based out of Canada.
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The majority of the cloth uh manufacturers are in Montreal and Toronto.
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Toronto is all the fashion clothing.
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So we worked with COSS, which is a clothing company.
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We worked with Canada the Goose.
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Those were, if you know the patch, those are the type of um products that I got to sell and feel and touch.
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It was it was fun.
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You know, I'm always inspired by materials and what makes your your brand look beautiful.
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Was fashion and design different there than what you've ever seen in Iwear?
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Oh boy.
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Clothing is a whole other monster, Peter.
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That's gonna be an another podcast.
00:20:06.640 --> 00:20:14.559
It just seems to me like, well, I understand it fashion, the the fashion components aren't necessarily what hits the ground running in terms of everyone wearing.
00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:26.799
But it I do wonder, you know, I do wonder about the utility aspect getting in the way of some fashion, or vice versa, you know, in terms of eyewear, like what it was able to come over.
00:20:26.960 --> 00:20:32.000
Because there's no question that the luxury market is massive in eyewear.
00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:33.839
And I agree.
00:20:34.000 --> 00:20:34.559
I agree.
00:20:35.119 --> 00:20:43.839
How does it connect into some of these other styles and fashion and brand ambassadors, any type of branding, any type of self-branding?
00:20:44.000 --> 00:20:46.640
I'm very interested in you know those components.
00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:56.240
Because you don't have to be stuck in a single lane if you're an individual optician, but it is something that I think is kind of you know changing the game.
00:20:56.480 --> 00:21:07.039
Um so what uh Liberty Clothing, that's from 17 to 19, and then just prior to the pandemic, you were with Oliver Peoples for uh a couple of years.
00:21:07.519 --> 00:21:10.000
Liberty Clothing was was a fun little gig.
00:21:10.160 --> 00:21:26.640
It was uh I worked with I want to call her Miss Tim Hortons, and uh Ann Joyce was the um married into the family, and she had a clothing company, and she was big into hemp, hemp clothing.
00:21:26.799 --> 00:21:27.119
That's cool.
00:21:27.440 --> 00:21:36.880
So we we attended the marijuana biz show, the sport the the clothing show in uh Colorado.
00:21:37.039 --> 00:21:47.519
So again, it was all about design, it was all about branding, it was all about uh the whole visual and the Canadian landscape again.
00:21:47.599 --> 00:22:04.799
I I ran across Canada so many times selling eyewear, accessories, now clothing with her, and again, it was fun, it was all about fashion, design, quality, and at the end of Talking to your clients and giving the giving them the best advice.
00:22:05.039 --> 00:22:11.279
And I think that just what keeps resonating in my career is whatever I'm selling.
00:22:11.519 --> 00:22:13.519
People want to be able to trust you.
00:22:13.759 --> 00:22:18.640
And she had a great company in the sense that she was all about bootstrapping.
00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:34.799
As the president, she would be on the road, looking at product, looking at design, and you know, making sure that at the end client understood it, loved it, and you know, customer service goes a long way too with your clients.
00:22:35.200 --> 00:22:37.519
Well, that product is incredibly durable.
00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:46.640
Like what I know about hemp is that it doesn't break down, you know, clothing-wise, a lot of a lot of other product-wise bags and things like that.
00:22:46.799 --> 00:22:50.880
Uh, they don't break, it doesn't break down at the level that a lot of other, you know.
00:22:51.680 --> 00:22:53.839
The design has come a long way, Peter.
00:22:54.000 --> 00:23:00.480
It's not like your 70s rustifarian hemp bag and a one-size-fits-all sweater.
00:23:00.640 --> 00:23:04.319
She was making beautiful, beautiful luxe products.
00:23:04.960 --> 00:23:06.160
I I can imagine.
00:23:06.240 --> 00:23:14.559
And and that's see, that's got to be exciting uh as well, because that's what you talked about, is what I remember, and it is what resonates in my mind.
00:23:14.720 --> 00:23:17.359
You know, because that's what you would see at a show or something like that.
00:23:17.519 --> 00:23:25.200
You'd see a hemp stand, and it would literally have, you know, bags and you know, you'd you'd see shirts and stuff like that, but it wasn't, it was different.
00:23:25.359 --> 00:23:30.400
It wasn't like what you're describing uh now or what you had seen.
00:23:30.720 --> 00:23:37.599
So so after that, like I said, pre-pandemic, you were with Oliver Peoples, which is kind of interesting.
00:23:37.759 --> 00:23:51.759
Um Yeah, that was a that was a very challenging job in the sense that they were on top of you for sales with Oliver Peoples.
00:23:52.240 --> 00:23:54.799
And I covered the Ontario Territory.
00:23:56.079 --> 00:24:02.640
Uh it's a brand that people love or hate.
00:24:03.279 --> 00:24:06.720
And for me, I embraced it.
00:24:06.880 --> 00:24:10.480
I loved the way they were technically advanced.
00:24:11.039 --> 00:24:22.160
The brands were they had assets as a sales rep to use, and then I got to do some really unique things.
00:24:22.319 --> 00:24:25.680
Uh, I don't know if you know um a brand called Alan McLey.
00:24:27.279 --> 00:24:41.599
That was one of my lineups, and the brand that I the company was actually luxury, luxury house brands from California, and so it was Oliver Peoples, uh Philip Stark, Purceau, Alan McLey.
00:24:41.759 --> 00:24:55.200
And I got to do a fantastic trunk show where the Alan McLey pieces that Elton John, uh Lenny Kravitz, there were gallery pieces that traveled across the US.
00:24:55.680 --> 00:25:05.200
I got to bring those pieces to Canada and do a trunk show where you couldn't touch the product because there were museum pieces basically.
00:25:05.519 --> 00:25:11.839
So they were covered in like an art art glass.
00:25:12.559 --> 00:25:20.079
No, it was a um kind of um a uh plexiglass piece to cover it because you couldn't touch these pieces.
00:25:20.400 --> 00:25:21.119
Right, right.
00:25:21.599 --> 00:25:23.359
And so that was kind of fun.
00:25:23.519 --> 00:25:39.920
It was in a a neighborhood called Yorkville where it's very bougie, very chichy, and um high-end clients, and we did a fantastic show, and the Alan Mickley product was displayed, everything was the black and white theme.
00:25:40.160 --> 00:25:45.440
Um we ended up, you know, obviously I had to have a pair of Alan McLean frames.
00:25:45.599 --> 00:25:50.640
The lens guys, since I've had laser surgery now, the lens guys put a beautiful lens in there for me.
00:25:50.720 --> 00:25:58.000
But, you know, if you you know the original Alan Mickley, it was all about black and white and red my my Gucci hat back there.
00:25:58.160 --> 00:26:01.519
So they were a brand that I personally loved.
00:26:01.680 --> 00:26:03.440
I loved the French aspect of it.
00:26:03.519 --> 00:26:11.359
Um, Canadians have the you know, the French aspect in all our um instructions, our labels.
00:26:11.440 --> 00:26:14.480
So Alan Mikley is a very well-loved brand.
00:26:14.559 --> 00:26:15.440
And that was fun.
00:26:15.519 --> 00:26:16.720
I enjoyed doing that.
00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:26.079
I got to be part of the team when we went to New York and had um our our clients uh attend Vision Expo with all of our people.
00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:31.200
Um tough job, yes, but I love their technical.
00:26:31.599 --> 00:26:39.359
Uh they had iPads for everyone, so when you're on the road, every inventory, every pricing was all connected.
00:26:39.440 --> 00:26:57.599
So you place an order, it went to the head office, they were able to process orders, and the clients understood what their inventory was, what the price points was, and which brands, because they had a lot of brands that was under the luxury house brands.
00:26:57.680 --> 00:26:58.480
So that was fun.
00:26:58.559 --> 00:27:04.559
I enjoyed it, and then COVID hit, and they let a few of the reps go, and one of them was myself.
00:27:05.119 --> 00:27:11.440
Well, uh and all of these things end up moving in line for you to create I Love Style.
00:27:11.599 --> 00:27:17.359
So talk talk about that because that's that's a part of the industry a lot of people don't really talk so much about.
00:27:18.720 --> 00:27:22.960
They're involved in the beginning, and then you know, sometimes they're on to the next, you know.
00:27:23.759 --> 00:27:31.519
Well, this is another friend of mine that I known from Vision Expo and all the other uh trade shows that I attended.
00:27:31.839 --> 00:27:42.160
And Manny, the president of Frame Displays, uh has a showroom in Toronto and asked for me to help with his business.
00:27:42.319 --> 00:28:02.799
So I was doing it part-time, and I would bring doctors, again, the three O's, and they would look at the showroom and I would help them do a redesign or a refresh for their optical shops, clinics, uh boutiques, etc., whatever you want to call them.
00:28:02.960 --> 00:28:15.200
So that was fun, and I was I really learned a ton of uh ways to help these doctors create the the proper footprint of a successful eye care practice.
00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:16.799
And there's a lot of nuances.
00:28:16.880 --> 00:28:21.279
I'm not gonna share it because again, that's a whole other um podcast.
00:28:21.519 --> 00:28:22.559
But that was a time.
00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:26.400
Marketing is fascinating to me.
00:28:26.799 --> 00:28:27.359
It is.
00:28:27.440 --> 00:28:41.119
Uh, you know, the it it and you're right, we could spend an hour just talking about how frames are laid out, how that's related to your clientele, how it's related to the look you're trying to to project as a practice.
00:28:41.279 --> 00:28:48.480
You know, sometimes people want something more clinical, sometimes they want something more modern, or in the line of what they're doing.
00:28:49.839 --> 00:28:51.359
Like I've seen it all now.
00:28:52.000 --> 00:28:52.799
Industrial.
00:28:53.839 --> 00:28:54.960
Yeah, yeah.
00:28:55.519 --> 00:28:56.000
I have.
00:28:56.079 --> 00:28:57.680
I've seen a little bit of all of it too.
00:28:57.839 --> 00:29:03.200
There's a there's a dermatologist in in, I think, York, and he's a big fisherman.
00:29:03.440 --> 00:29:10.640
You know, so there's literally 20, 30 years of mounted fish all over the that's what the entire guest room is.
00:29:10.720 --> 00:29:12.240
This is you know Wow.
00:29:12.880 --> 00:29:14.880
Sharks and tuna and everything.
00:29:15.039 --> 00:29:16.400
Yeah, everything is on the wall, you know.
00:29:16.480 --> 00:29:18.079
It's it is kind of, you know.
00:29:18.480 --> 00:29:20.799
But that's it, but again, that's his thing.
00:29:20.960 --> 00:29:27.039
He that's him, that's his that's his way of projecting, you know, or explaining who he is in the mix.
00:29:27.200 --> 00:29:34.160
You know, and and and and it it and the you know what he's into, and and that that's you know, relatable to people.
00:29:34.319 --> 00:29:52.960
And I like that about um about branding, but it is a little different from what you were talking about, uh, as far as the how you would lay out a practice and and frame boards, actual frame boards and how they go, and how how how the flow of a of an optical ought to be and all of that kind of thing.
00:29:53.440 --> 00:30:03.519
Locking, displays, unlocking displays, LED, signage, mirrors, uh optician desk.
00:30:03.759 --> 00:30:24.319
Yeah, it was and now we have during there's a lot of clients that have um break-ins, so they needed some sort of roll away so you can have your frames in front of the window and then unlock the wheels and roll it away because there was a point where the break-ins, you had to remove everything from your front window.
00:30:24.480 --> 00:30:26.160
So that was a fun journey.
00:30:26.319 --> 00:30:41.359
I um I loved how during COVID, once um all the i optical stores shut down, they reached out to me and said, We've got this other product, we'd love for you to sell it across Canada.
00:30:41.599 --> 00:30:43.839
And uh, I did really well with it.
00:30:44.000 --> 00:31:05.920
I had lived up in at our family cottage for during COVID, and they sent me the information, and I, you know, the acrylic uh pieces where you go into an optical shop and you know it stops uh talking, it stops the spray during COVID.
00:31:06.000 --> 00:31:08.400
It protects the people behind the screens.
00:31:08.799 --> 00:31:10.000
Yeah, yeah.
00:31:11.200 --> 00:31:15.039
I sold that to every opt for anybody that needed it.
00:31:15.759 --> 00:31:20.799
They were I did an email blast and people were like, I need that in my practice.
00:31:21.119 --> 00:31:22.400
Can you send an ASAP?
00:31:22.559 --> 00:31:38.319
I was selling these acrylic barriers to eye doctors across Canada, and then all the mask, the clear mask, I was selling these units across Canada from our cottage during COVID.
00:31:40.079 --> 00:31:41.440
That's kind of cool.
00:31:41.680 --> 00:31:43.519
You you talk about a fast pivot.
00:31:43.599 --> 00:31:54.160
You you went right from uh right from not selling Oliver Peoples to connecting in and helping practices pivot into a way that they could keep their doors open, which I think is really, really cool.
00:31:54.559 --> 00:32:02.240
Some people had to open they they would lock the door and have these barriers and let clients in and pick up their glasses.
00:32:02.400 --> 00:32:04.160
Everything was switching to online.
00:32:04.720 --> 00:32:05.680
So it was great.
00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:07.599
I was able to work from our cottage.
00:32:07.680 --> 00:32:18.319
We were we had a garden, I'd walk on and swim at the lake, and I was selling these products for frame displays from our cottage.
00:32:19.119 --> 00:32:20.079
I think it's awesome.
00:32:20.240 --> 00:32:21.119
It really is cool.
00:32:21.200 --> 00:32:35.759
Well, and right there, there's a there's a you know, kind of you're giving away a a a good technology story because I do, like I said, uh at some point and and may as well do it now, uh, talk about a technology experience that was good.
00:32:35.920 --> 00:32:37.279
Obviously, that's kind of a good one.
00:32:37.359 --> 00:32:41.039
I mean, if you were able to pivot, a lot of people had a bad time during COVID.
00:32:41.119 --> 00:32:47.680
A lot of people did not do too well uh when 2020 and 2021 landed in their fate on their plate, you know.
00:32:47.839 --> 00:32:56.240
Uh but yeah, obviously that's a good move, which you just described being able to uh work from your garden and go take a dip in the lake.
00:32:56.400 --> 00:33:01.759
But talk about a good and bad technology experience that have been very flagrant for you over the 25 years.
00:33:01.839 --> 00:33:11.519
I mean, uh obviously there were some really good ones there with uh fitovers that I might be stealing from you, and that technology that you just told right there, being able to work during the during uh the pandemic.
00:33:11.599 --> 00:33:12.960
Is there is there a bad one?
00:33:13.359 --> 00:33:14.559
Got a bad one?
00:33:16.799 --> 00:33:17.759
Or do you?
00:33:18.400 --> 00:33:19.599
I I don't know.
00:33:19.759 --> 00:33:20.880
A bad one.
00:33:21.359 --> 00:33:30.160
Maybe the technical problems at uh Oliver Peoples, that those iPads was constantly not updated.
00:33:30.319 --> 00:33:32.160
They weren't getting the orders.
00:33:32.400 --> 00:33:38.319
It was um it was a bit of a a c conundrum sometimes.
00:33:38.480 --> 00:33:40.720
I just went and did old-fashioned.
00:33:40.799 --> 00:33:42.480
Let's hear it's a written order.
00:33:42.559 --> 00:33:45.519
I'm faxing, uh not faxing, I'm emailing it in.
00:33:45.599 --> 00:33:48.000
I'm taking a screenshot and sending my orders in.
00:33:48.240 --> 00:33:51.359
But you know, today technology, I do love it.
00:33:51.519 --> 00:33:59.279
I am addicted to all my prod all my um my tech um products.
00:33:59.680 --> 00:34:14.239
However, with with that being said, when I did pivot over to um more marketing than selling, I I worked for a company out of uh of out of Ajax called Alternative Eyewear.
00:34:16.320 --> 00:34:21.920
And they are um a great business, independent company.
00:34:22.639 --> 00:34:30.880
And it again, it brings all my my career back in a full circle because they do have a children's eyewear brand.
00:34:31.199 --> 00:34:37.039
But um, I don't really have a a great answer for uh technology.
00:34:38.400 --> 00:34:40.320
Well bad technology.
00:34:40.559 --> 00:34:47.280
Because I just I'm a problem solver, I make it work, or I find out what the problem is and we just get over it quickly.
00:34:48.079 --> 00:34:57.920
Well, uh again, you know, the the problem solving mentality isn't so much, you know, oh the tech is bad, it's it's maybe not applicable in my lane.
00:34:58.159 --> 00:35:11.840
And um, I knew you and I tend to stay that way where we're not it takes a heck of a lot for I I don't speak for you, but it takes a heck of a lot for me to really push uh a technology off the cliff as just gone, useless, no good.
00:35:12.079 --> 00:35:16.239
I've had several interviews where I'm gonna say three or four.
00:35:16.480 --> 00:35:19.199
Um yeah.
00:35:20.400 --> 00:35:27.760
In season two, three or four that have said blue, you know, blue light was sold to them the wrong way.
00:35:27.920 --> 00:35:29.199
And they didn't appreciate that.
00:35:29.280 --> 00:35:34.320
You know, it was sold to them as a circadian rhythm fix, and that's not at all what it ended up doing.
00:35:34.400 --> 00:35:40.639
But by the same token, you don't want to be neglecting anybody that that has a psychosomatic reason that they may use it.
00:35:40.880 --> 00:35:51.119
Um, you know, I know one of the things that I do deal with is uh ocular migraines, and they, you know, they're not painful, but they can be uh you know visually annoying.
00:35:51.360 --> 00:36:00.159
And uh and I know that when I step away from tech uh and look out at out or go outside, they go go to way, they go away almost immediately.
00:36:00.400 --> 00:36:01.760
So there's something going on there.
00:36:01.840 --> 00:36:08.960
I don't I I don't want to say it's blue light or not, but I believe there's some type of connection, and obviously a behavioral thing switches it.
00:36:09.119 --> 00:36:19.920
I find it interesting that with myopia management, getting outside is often often talked about, you know, uh which makes uh sense in some ways, and in other ways doesn't make sense.
00:36:20.000 --> 00:36:29.360
But you know, I just think that all the very different focal lengths are uh are helpful versus all of this time where we're constantly on screens.
00:36:29.599 --> 00:36:46.400
And you know, I don't I don't know, I don't want to say that that's the end all be all, but um, you know, from a bad standpoint, you know, what you mentioned early on was like CRM issues within corporate.
00:36:46.639 --> 00:36:57.360
And I can't speak so much to it in the frame lane as I can in the lens lane, and I will tell you that it is uh a conundrum.
00:36:57.440 --> 00:37:01.920
You know, workflows are clunky, they're not well designed.
00:37:02.400 --> 00:37:14.800
Um years and years ago, uh my wife worked for an ophthalmologist, and that group could not find an operating system that they like, so so they use dental.
00:37:15.119 --> 00:37:30.559
And and that's not uncommon in some of the ophthalmology groups in the mid-state here in PA, where they're literally processing claims because the coding and whatnot and the design of the system is better through dental, which is medical billing everything.
00:37:31.519 --> 00:37:36.800
So I think that you know there's a few things that left or left to be desired.
00:37:36.960 --> 00:37:47.760
Uh, I know I've had in-depth conversations with uh Gwen Cooper at the uh you know the UOA, and there's a disconnect because opticians have no federal recognition.
00:37:47.920 --> 00:37:51.440
So there's no way they can code and bill anything when they don't even exist.
00:37:51.840 --> 00:37:53.039
Oh, wow.
00:37:53.360 --> 00:38:06.800
Well, uh and again, if all the states would galvanize and do start to follow in suit with what we're doing now in PA, and the beginning of that is if your state does not have an opticians association, talk to us and put one together.
00:38:07.039 --> 00:38:09.599
Um these aren't hard to do.
00:38:09.760 --> 00:38:12.480
We can connect with people that will do it very quickly for you.
00:38:12.639 --> 00:38:17.119
But you guys in Canada have a strong galvanized opticians association.
00:38:17.360 --> 00:38:19.920
Um what are your thoughts on that?
00:38:20.079 --> 00:38:32.480
And I mean, have you had is your career, which is a little more fashion-oriented, has that, you know, have you had a lot of exposure to the opticians at a national level in Canada?
00:38:33.199 --> 00:38:35.360
I've attended their events.
00:38:35.840 --> 00:38:49.280
I honestly have, well, because we sold um, I've sold a lot of uh products that that uh I didn't really need in their craw.
00:38:52.400 --> 00:38:55.440
Not a good way to put it, but what was that?
00:38:55.679 --> 00:38:56.880
Stick in their craw.
00:38:56.960 --> 00:39:04.639
Like you just took a sail away from me, but we were just explaining how you didn't, you know.
00:39:04.880 --> 00:39:10.960
We're just explaining how you, you know, maybe it took five years, but they bought that set of prescription sunglasses and you forgot why.
00:39:11.119 --> 00:39:13.599
Had to do with those fitovers, dude, you know.
00:39:13.760 --> 00:39:18.239
Um I do want you to tell me, you also, you know, it's time to dive into this.
00:39:18.320 --> 00:39:20.719
If you if you don't have one, I'll have a few other things to say.
00:39:20.880 --> 00:39:23.840
But do you have a good, bad, or ugly online ordering story?
00:39:24.000 --> 00:39:26.320
Not personally, just something you've heard, whatever.
00:39:26.559 --> 00:39:32.320
Um because that's I mean, that's in your lane, and it can even be a fit over story.
00:39:32.400 --> 00:39:34.079
You know, it doesn't matter to me.
00:39:34.239 --> 00:39:38.079
Um, you did mention one a moment ago where someone got prescription.
00:39:38.400 --> 00:39:44.320
Uh someone ended up the the the fisherman ended up getting prescription after the fact, didn't it?
00:39:44.480 --> 00:39:45.199
Didn't you say that?
00:39:45.360 --> 00:39:50.559
That after he had fitovers, he ended up getting a set of prescription, or maybe that was somebody else.
00:39:50.800 --> 00:40:15.119
But no, the the the Bass Pro, he actually um with the connections, we did get him some new frames and lenses, but he was his his duty with us was to promote the fitovers as a fit over product, and we really did not highlight the actual RX frames.
00:40:16.159 --> 00:40:26.880
You know, being in the industry, that was part of his deal with us, is being able to get new frames and lenses through us along with the fitovers that matched or fit perfectly with his existing RX.
00:40:27.679 --> 00:40:38.239
However, a lot of the opticians and the optometrist did mention that people are constantly RXing, and that's the first thing is are they is is the bevel big enough?
00:40:38.639 --> 00:40:43.199
I've seen all sorts people also all sorts of people RX those frames.
00:40:43.599 --> 00:40:43.920
Right.
00:40:44.079 --> 00:40:49.440
And the lenses, you have to get a huge lens too, so that can be kind of a pain in the butt from a lab standpoint.
00:40:50.079 --> 00:40:50.639
Absolutely.
00:40:51.039 --> 00:40:59.840
But they did it because they knew it was it was a way a way to up the cell, get a second pair, even though it's a fit over.
00:41:00.000 --> 00:41:01.920
But yeah, they were they were still doing it.
00:41:02.079 --> 00:41:07.199
We've had a lot of people come back to us and say, send us more, we want to RX them.
00:41:08.159 --> 00:41:08.800
Right.
00:41:09.360 --> 00:41:10.239
Why not?
00:41:10.559 --> 00:41:11.440
Makes all the sense.
00:41:11.599 --> 00:41:17.360
If you find yourself wearing them all the time, you really don't want to have two sets of glasses on your face all the time.
00:41:17.519 --> 00:41:18.480
I understand that.
00:41:18.639 --> 00:41:20.639
I mean it kind of makes sense to me.
00:41:20.719 --> 00:41:23.440
Um you brought up uh an important thing.
00:41:23.679 --> 00:41:26.800
Being on the water and you're surrounded by glare.
00:41:28.639 --> 00:41:39.199
When you hear people say it saved my life, or I can't believe how I don't have migraines, or it was kind of like having a goggle.
00:41:39.440 --> 00:41:49.760
I'm on the water, and the spray and the sun and the polarized helped my vision after being on the water for hours.
00:41:50.079 --> 00:41:58.719
Well, the other thing crazy about the that continuous field of view is if it's a downpour, it's sometimes better driving.
00:41:59.119 --> 00:42:00.320
Which is nuts.
00:42:00.719 --> 00:42:06.559
To leave your polarized lawn in this dark sky and the you know two inches of rain per hour.
00:42:06.719 --> 00:42:14.639
But honestly, that it it uh often the polarized lines are spectacular in that type of uh environment while you're driving.
00:42:14.880 --> 00:42:20.079
I'm I'm a big believer of polarized even when I know you're not supposed to when you ski.
00:42:20.159 --> 00:42:21.920
I I'm a I'm a skier too.
00:42:22.239 --> 00:42:31.199
So I I actually sometimes spring skiing, I'd take a fit over and put it over top and just wear it as a pair of goggles slash sunglasses.
00:42:32.000 --> 00:42:32.400
Right.
00:42:32.559 --> 00:42:36.480
Well, and you know, the reason being you want to be able to see the terrain shift.
00:42:36.639 --> 00:42:45.519
You want to be able to see the reflection on the terrain, and if you lose that, you can be cruising along and all of a sudden the hill drops out from under you, which is not cool.
00:42:45.760 --> 00:42:55.920
Um, let's talk a little bit in length, uh, if we can, uh, about alternative eyewear and um how you uh how that introduction came into your world.
00:42:56.079 --> 00:43:05.119
They've got an amazing array of product uh gridiron, uh indie kids, um uh ovo.
00:43:05.599 --> 00:43:10.800
I mean, those are just three that's um yeah.
00:43:11.039 --> 00:43:24.400
So how how did you meet Paul and and let's talk about uh talk about them because that's a that's quite a story, and then what a massive amount of frame lines that they actually have in in motion right now.
00:43:24.719 --> 00:43:32.800
So I've known Paul and his team, Jim, uh, for many, many years because they were always my booth neighbor.
00:43:33.039 --> 00:43:43.440
So we'd again I see them set up, we'd see them at the same events, we'd be at the show, we'd send friends over and say, You gotta look at uh alternative eyewear and back and forth.
00:43:43.599 --> 00:43:49.760
So I've known Paul for many, many years, and when I've been selling other products, I would send him clients.
00:43:49.840 --> 00:43:52.400
I'd say, Hey, these people need uh kids' eyewear.
00:43:52.559 --> 00:43:54.639
So we we just kind of always kept in touch.
00:43:54.719 --> 00:43:56.960
He was my friend, I knew his team.
00:43:57.119 --> 00:43:59.760
Uh then I I was looking for a a job.
00:44:00.320 --> 00:44:04.960
And he's like, come and see what we have to offer.
00:44:05.280 --> 00:44:14.800
So I actually was more doing working on a specific product called FEMA Optical, helping them with that product.
00:44:14.960 --> 00:44:16.000
Have you heard of FEMA?
00:44:18.400 --> 00:44:24.800
When I hear FEMA, I tend to think of the Fed the emergency management agency with the government.
00:44:24.960 --> 00:44:27.199
So I know that's not the FEMA you're talking about.
00:44:27.760 --> 00:44:29.440
No, no, no, with a T FEMA.
00:44:29.679 --> 00:44:46.480
So they are known for customized customization of frames, uh, the arms, as well as choosing the style all from an online online uh portal.
00:44:46.960 --> 00:44:49.360
So it's a bespoke product that's ordered online.
00:44:49.760 --> 00:44:50.559
That's really good.
00:44:50.960 --> 00:44:51.840
That's really good.
00:44:52.719 --> 00:44:59.840
So I was hired mainly to bring this brand to another level, but I was also started to do marketing for them too.
00:44:59.920 --> 00:45:14.400
So I was doing a lot of uh unique outreach with um a high-level artist named Adrian Gasada, who is a Grammy Award award-winning um musician.
00:45:14.800 --> 00:45:23.519
So I was doing a lot of fun things with Paul, working with Thema, uh doing their uh marketing outreach.
00:45:24.159 --> 00:45:32.159
Um and now with my agency, I am working with them in a different capacity.
00:45:32.320 --> 00:45:35.519
But let's talk about their stag line.
00:45:35.679 --> 00:45:44.880
If you go on their website and take a look at their stag line, it's one of my favorite collections of one of my favorite brands of theirs because it is uh can be Unisec.
00:45:45.360 --> 00:45:48.639
So they have um quite a beautiful collection.
00:45:48.719 --> 00:46:01.039
They've got titanium, um, it's a mainly geared towards men, but I've I've got a wide face and a no uh my nose bridge and needs I always need nose pads, and I love their product.
00:46:01.119 --> 00:46:06.000
And I ended up uh connecting some friends of mine from Austin in the film and music scene.
00:46:06.239 --> 00:46:24.480
Adrian Casada is known for a band called Black Pumas, and they actually opened up, they played for the inauguration of Joe Biden during the their inauguration celebration.
00:46:24.960 --> 00:46:30.719
Adrian opened it up, and it was right when I was starting with um with Paul.
00:46:31.119 --> 00:46:52.079
So I connected them together, and what happened was a really fun collab where Adrian signed some of his new albums, and we did a contest, and the winner was able to receive a signed um record from Adrian uh wearing the stag product.
00:46:53.519 --> 00:46:54.480
That's awesome.
00:46:54.639 --> 00:46:56.719
And the whole Austin music scene.
00:46:56.800 --> 00:47:00.079
I mean, that's a that that's such a game changer to me, you know.
00:47:00.480 --> 00:47:17.280
The whole there's I had inter I interviewed earlier uh earlier this year, I'd interviewed uh Dimitri, and and he he lives in Austin and he talked about the diversity, how strong the art movement is there.
00:47:17.599 --> 00:47:27.119
So the diversity of of you know artistic ability, like you just mentioned the whole the whole design your own frame.
00:47:27.280 --> 00:47:32.559
You know, I would imagine something like that would would would hit pretty pretty well in that environment.
00:47:32.800 --> 00:47:36.480
Do you uh do you have an online ordering story?
00:47:36.719 --> 00:47:40.960
Because your your history is not really in that lane, you know.
00:47:41.199 --> 00:47:48.000
But uh but you mentioned, you know, you mentioned how at a certain point Fit Over switched over to that.
00:47:48.079 --> 00:47:52.960
Was that part of the you also mentioned that people, you know, weren't so fond of it.
00:47:53.119 --> 00:47:54.320
Did that have something to do with it?
00:47:54.480 --> 00:47:58.559
The fact that they that they're they're ordering online surged at a certain point?
00:47:58.880 --> 00:48:07.360
It's um at the end of the day, I feel like people need to go see their ECPs.
00:48:07.599 --> 00:48:07.920
Right.
00:48:08.159 --> 00:48:09.519
And online is great.
00:48:09.920 --> 00:48:13.519
I love I myself am a big online ordering.
00:48:13.920 --> 00:48:22.320
I order from my dog food to chachi things like cleaning cloth cases, etc.
00:48:22.719 --> 00:48:32.400
But when it comes to frames, it's something that I would advocate for going to see your local eye care professional.
00:48:35.119 --> 00:48:36.719
I completely agree with that.
00:48:36.960 --> 00:48:54.719
In fact, a lot of the work that I try to connect back in is to take people in the right experience from an unpleasant online experience or a half-done online experience and connect them with professionals and back into optometry or ophthalmology or uh or an optician-owned.
00:48:55.119 --> 00:49:03.199
Uh certainly in the mid-Atlantic, we've got quite a few of uh optician-owned uh you know businesses that have been multi-generational.
00:49:03.519 --> 00:49:18.320
So that's to me, being able to connect as much as we can, or at least have active consultations so that people are able to pull back into uh the optometric environment, I think is is is very, very, very important.
00:49:18.480 --> 00:49:33.599
We're seeing that, you know, I mentioned it on other podcasts, but there's certainly a situation where people can get a series of measurements and even refractive technology, they don't call it refraction, but they can get this from their phone.
00:49:33.920 --> 00:49:45.840
So being able to use your phone to get this data, it downloads to the cloud, practice has access to the cloud, now we're bringing that patient to your door.
00:49:46.639 --> 00:49:54.719
So it's not a threatening device, it's a pre-visit triage device that shortens the time in the exam chair.
00:49:55.280 --> 00:49:56.480
That's very smart.
00:49:56.800 --> 00:49:58.320
Well, that's a game changer.
00:49:58.559 --> 00:50:09.039
And again, if you choose to push that, you know, down the stairway and say, forget it, I don't want anything to do with it, which optometry tends to do very, very quickly.
00:50:09.199 --> 00:50:13.360
You know, ophthalmology and opticians are a little bit more open to the technology I just described.
00:50:13.519 --> 00:50:19.920
But the reality is the best use for it is optometry because insurance has never been billed with this technology.
00:50:20.159 --> 00:50:29.840
So you've got somebody showing up in the in your chair that has the capacity to have been handing you a great starting point for the refraction.
00:50:30.079 --> 00:50:37.119
You finalize it if you need to, but you've just it's taken an enormous amount of what you need to do off your table.
00:50:37.280 --> 00:50:41.199
The reality is you just need to be able to trust those measurements if you do trust them.
00:50:41.519 --> 00:50:45.360
So, you know, get involved for a window of time and utilize that type of technology.
00:50:45.440 --> 00:50:50.639
Because here's the thing: people want stuff they want to order online.
00:50:51.199 --> 00:50:58.079
And like you were just saying, even the small things that you order online, the things that I end up ordering online that I don't want to go get.
00:50:58.239 --> 00:51:02.320
You know, there's certain stuff I don't want to drive to the other side of town for, you know.
00:51:02.480 --> 00:51:07.760
It's like way easier just to have it shipped and pre-plant and do it a week earlier or something like that.
00:51:08.000 --> 00:51:11.679
But, you know, tools like this are giving people their life back.
00:51:11.840 --> 00:51:17.039
There's this preemptive assumption that people just want to go buy glasses online because it's cheaper.
00:51:17.280 --> 00:51:37.280
And I repeatedly, every time I talk with practices and people, tools like this fit into what they do, um, you know, and also be able to put uh independent practices in the same lane of some of these entities because that's what the tools I just described, the natural extension of that is to go buy online.
00:51:38.320 --> 00:51:40.960
And what I do have a great online story for you.
00:51:42.000 --> 00:51:42.400
Let's hear it.
00:51:42.480 --> 00:51:43.440
Yeah, let's let's hear it.
00:51:43.519 --> 00:51:45.199
Tell tell tell me a good one.
00:51:45.599 --> 00:51:56.079
I have a current client that we are implementing some of my services on I Love Style, and it's systems.
00:51:56.639 --> 00:52:06.880
So we're doing a back to school campaign, and again, it's the campaign is only through the online portal.
00:52:07.599 --> 00:52:30.480
So what I'm doing with my team is creating the big campaign behind the scenes and helping the uh current clients understand that in order to purchase these uh specials that the company is running, is you have to order it online to get the discounts, to get the freebies.
00:52:30.880 --> 00:52:48.639
And so what I love style creates is the link, the call to action, and be able to have a dashboard to see which clients are ordering, how long they look, and it's a system that I actually sell to the three O's.
00:52:48.960 --> 00:52:52.159
We should set it up so you've got it on your website too, Peter.
00:52:52.480 --> 00:52:59.360
But yes, that is promoting online ordering in a different way, and it's called creating a system.
00:53:00.320 --> 00:53:01.599
Well, that's what it is.
00:53:01.840 --> 00:53:05.039
We're building a system for them to come back.
00:53:05.280 --> 00:53:20.559
Some places don't want to look at the patient that left um last Tuesday, and and now it's the following Thursday, and they're in with the set of glasses that are falling off their face, the prescription's not right, where did you order them from?
00:53:20.719 --> 00:53:23.519
A lot of people don't want to be involved with that fix.
00:53:23.840 --> 00:53:30.159
But you're right, when you've got a system that you can reliably plug into, you know, I see clear Lisa part of that.
00:53:30.400 --> 00:53:38.000
IQ is part of the partnership that we just talked about, building that outward reach to come back in.
00:53:38.719 --> 00:53:47.599
And and what you've just described is it's it's I don't want to say it's a mandate, but what options are there?
00:53:48.400 --> 00:53:59.760
I would love to talk to you more about systems because I feel like our industry is moving towards that because people want to have more patients in their chairs, right?
00:54:00.000 --> 00:54:06.800
They want they don't want to do social media, they don't want to answer the phones, they need their time back.
00:54:07.519 --> 00:54:39.760
So, how I am using my agency to help ECPs is through these systems, whether it's helping them with back-to-school or online ordering or having more time put into their hands, or just little things like I've created an international voice agent for a client where they've got distribution in 25 locations, so they need it in Spanish, they need it in French, they need it in German.
00:54:39.920 --> 00:54:52.239
So when you go onto the website, those distributors or clients, the AI agent will translate in Italian, Spanish, French, um, German.
00:54:53.039 --> 00:54:59.519
That's absolutely that's gonna improve their online ordering if it can say it in Italian, Spanish.
00:54:59.760 --> 00:55:14.559
Well, you know, we take some of this stuff for granted how there's there's times on LinkedIn where I'm following a dialogue in Europe and I'm like, translate, translate, translate, type it in what I want to do, and then translate translate, because I don't know what anybody else is saying, it's all in German.
00:55:14.880 --> 00:55:29.280
But you know, how awesome is that we have this ability, and and I don't I don't have an explanation for this, but I've got upwards of between 25 and 30 percent of the people following this podcast are European.
00:55:30.000 --> 00:55:32.480
Oh my gosh, we need we need a separate conversation.
00:55:32.559 --> 00:55:36.320
I want to I want to put uh these AI agents on your website.
00:55:36.480 --> 00:55:37.199
You need that.
00:55:37.519 --> 00:55:46.400
No, I I absolutely do, and uh, and that makes a lot of sense with who they're connecting to, the work that they can do, how they can make stuff easier.
00:55:46.480 --> 00:55:48.800
Uh, yeah, there's no there's no doubt about it.
00:55:48.960 --> 00:55:55.679
But the systems that they can build are cool because we can improve them and tweak them based on what happens.
00:55:56.079 --> 00:55:56.800
Absolutely.
00:55:57.199 --> 00:55:59.599
It's not a straight path anymore.
00:55:59.920 --> 00:56:01.519
Everybody's business is different.
00:56:01.679 --> 00:56:15.679
So online ordering, whether it's lenses, uh, cleaning cloths, straps, etc., that is going to be much more smoother transition for the vendor and the client or the customer.
00:56:16.400 --> 00:56:23.920
Yeah, once you have AI assists assistants be able to uh to to uh well they they they have the ability.
00:56:24.000 --> 00:56:35.760
It's it's plugging in and using them in the right way, and then like I just mentioned, being able to uh recognize where where the revenue streams are that are worthwhile for you.
00:56:36.000 --> 00:56:51.599
Um you know, some things appear to not make sense, but it's amazing how how you can reach in different directions as a brick and mortar practice when you begin to use AI with your existing systems so that you can build a different way.
00:56:51.760 --> 00:56:53.280
It's a big time saver, Peter.
00:56:53.440 --> 00:56:58.639
Yeah, people are scared of it, they they're they're they really are not sure.
00:56:58.960 --> 00:57:10.800
And at the end of the day, there's always gonna be you know followers and leaders, and people that are early adopters and people that are gonna see everybody fail or they want to see the guinea pigs.
00:57:10.880 --> 00:57:14.880
At the end of the day, it's like having the internet all over again.
00:57:15.039 --> 00:57:16.480
It's all brand new.
00:57:16.719 --> 00:57:25.760
You're riding the bike, you gotta practice it, you're gonna fall down, but then you're gonna understand it, and you'll be on your 10-speed bike and and race off.
00:57:26.400 --> 00:57:41.840
It's a it's a really good comparison uh because I I remember you know all the different learning curves with the internet and and and figuring out you know social media, who's talking to what, why are they posting that, those kind of things.
00:57:42.000 --> 00:57:45.360
You know, because when you're very first watching it, you just don't it doesn't make sense.
00:57:45.679 --> 00:58:05.199
You know, it was a different type of uh uh so learning internet, email, websites, e-commerce, um which was these systems, these systems I have now, they have an app available so that you can take online ordering right from your phone, Peter.
00:58:06.960 --> 00:58:08.239
Makes sense to me.
00:58:08.559 --> 00:58:21.360
There's there's quo there's um QR codes, these apps can take an order, and your your um your office can be processing it for your clients ASAP.
00:58:21.519 --> 00:58:22.960
So there's no delay.
00:58:23.119 --> 00:58:29.920
So there's so many systems out there that make your time and your job much more smoother.
00:58:30.559 --> 00:58:37.760
So, you know, I'm gonna talk about this now, uh, because I think it's it it's critical.
00:58:37.920 --> 00:59:13.440
Uh, but I actually think what what you're just talking about, especially in relation to you know, brand managing, self-brand managing, I think that we really ought to uh have a round table in October or November uh in the all coming months and invite you know some very um very highly poised you know opticians uh to talk directly about what you're talking about because you bring a totally different skill set from your experience into this, but you also are highly familiar and you know optical up and down.
00:59:13.760 --> 00:59:17.039
But and I love the people that we we discussed in the past.
00:59:17.199 --> 00:59:23.199
I think that would at some of those uh contacts, um the opticians uh group, what was it?
00:59:23.280 --> 00:59:24.239
Um Kruller.
00:59:24.400 --> 00:59:24.960
What was her name?
00:59:25.119 --> 00:59:25.679
Danielle.
00:59:26.000 --> 00:59:27.199
Oh, Danielle Kral.
00:59:27.440 --> 00:59:27.679
Yep.
00:59:27.920 --> 00:59:28.800
Krawl, yes.
00:59:28.960 --> 00:59:32.639
I I would I love everything she posts, and you can see it.
00:59:32.719 --> 00:59:38.639
I'm always liking, and I don't really comment because I feel like I just like to listen and see what other people have to say.
00:59:39.280 --> 00:59:41.920
And I would love to be part of your round table.
00:59:42.079 --> 00:59:54.320
Um again, I I think that it's important because there's, you know, Danielle has, you know, advertently or inadvertently built a deep following around truffles and and this love for cats.
00:59:54.400 --> 00:59:58.400
And Sadie's been in this interview, so you know my feeling towards cats.
00:59:58.559 --> 01:00:02.480
But it's, you know, that is it's okay to be who you are.
01:00:02.639 --> 01:00:05.679
And it's alright for yourself to bleed into things.
01:00:05.760 --> 01:00:13.840
You don't have to resist letting your juices flow of who you are, and that can be part of who you are as a brand.
01:00:14.000 --> 01:00:27.599
And I think that people, some of these things are just breaking down, but I don't think there's any real clear pathways for people to explore and end up going down and potentially even monetizing themselves as a self-branded uh you know uh optician.
01:00:27.840 --> 01:00:33.760
And I think that that's something that people are interested in in a lot of different ways.
01:00:33.920 --> 01:00:36.239
So I think that's something that you can speak to.
01:00:36.400 --> 01:00:37.920
I think it's something that Dr.
01:00:38.079 --> 01:00:41.280
uh Wynne, Christy Wynne, can speak to if she's able to.
01:00:41.440 --> 01:00:43.360
I'm certainly going to try to reach to her.
01:00:43.519 --> 01:00:49.920
Uh obviously, Rick Peralta, Optical Jedi, Tom's Got Glasses on TikTok, the Octan on TikTok.
01:00:50.079 --> 01:00:51.199
These are just some people.
01:00:51.440 --> 01:01:05.199
Um, and Daniel Kral, like you mentioned, uh great examples of people that are carving interesting lanes inside of Opticianry and branding themselves at the same time as they're pushing forward uh other successful products.
01:01:05.440 --> 01:01:09.119
Yeah, really, really fun time to be doing what we're doing.
01:01:09.199 --> 01:01:12.719
And I think that's that's that's what makes it so cool.
01:01:12.960 --> 01:01:16.559
Well, we've talked for an hour, uh, as uh as is pretty normal.
01:01:16.719 --> 01:01:24.960
Is there any last message that you want to extend out to to everybody uh that you could think of?
01:01:25.199 --> 01:01:26.559
Or have you hit on everything?
01:01:26.880 --> 01:01:29.840
I didn't I didn't know if there's anything else you wanted to add.
01:01:30.400 --> 01:01:30.880
Wow.
01:01:31.119 --> 01:01:42.639
Um I I think uh the number one thing I want to hit on is I'd like that you had mentioned that you have a cat, and Danielle has a cat.
01:01:43.039 --> 01:01:46.880
I have my poodle, she's probably sleeping somewhere.
01:01:47.199 --> 01:01:51.119
And at the end of the day, I'm always a solo entrepreneur.
01:01:51.280 --> 01:01:57.039
I'm sitting here talking to everyone, and I'm in my office, but I do have a sidekick too.
01:01:57.199 --> 01:02:03.679
I have my Melee, the Merle mini poodle, and she's hiding, I guess.
01:02:03.840 --> 01:02:07.519
She has her own social media brand, believe it or not, Peter.
01:02:07.760 --> 01:02:09.199
Oh, that's cool.
01:02:09.920 --> 01:02:12.159
Forward me that we include it in the links.
01:02:12.320 --> 01:02:13.039
That was the other thing.
01:02:13.119 --> 01:02:13.519
Is that any?
01:02:13.760 --> 01:02:25.760
I do like to say this for sure that you know, any links that that that are pertinent, you know, to us or that we want to promote, you know, will be in the show notes for sure, uh, when we run this interview.
01:02:26.000 --> 01:02:35.519
And um part of my journey is when I go to these eye doctors and uh optical stores, is there's always someone that has their pets with them.
01:02:35.599 --> 01:02:40.079
And I love that because it's at the end of the day, they are our emotional support.
01:02:40.159 --> 01:02:48.000
And I love that these opticians and optometrists that, well, not all the doctors can have that because it's a medical clinic, but they've got their mascot.
01:02:48.559 --> 01:02:51.679
Yeah, there's plenty of docs I've been in where their dogs are there all the time.
01:02:51.760 --> 01:02:52.880
And it is their mascot.
01:02:52.960 --> 01:02:55.039
I mean, they're just they're part of the office.
01:02:55.360 --> 01:02:56.079
They're part of the office.
01:02:57.599 --> 01:02:59.440
They're super duper friendly.
01:02:59.840 --> 01:03:07.199
And at the end of the day, that makes everybody's life and interaction just a little bit more friendly.
01:03:07.760 --> 01:03:20.880
For me, as a takeaway to you and to everybody that's watching us or listening to the podcast, is it's okay to and especially after COVID, you know, people have been distanced from each other.
01:03:21.039 --> 01:03:21.199
Right.
01:03:21.440 --> 01:03:27.039
It's okay to send out that little bit of friendliness.
01:03:27.440 --> 01:03:28.559
Kill them with kindness.
01:03:28.719 --> 01:03:30.320
That's my that's my takeaway.
01:03:30.480 --> 01:03:31.599
Kill them with kindness.
01:03:32.559 --> 01:03:39.840
Being at the end of you know, these clients, I I gotta smile and bear it, but a lot of times just kill them with kindness.
01:03:40.000 --> 01:03:47.440
You can really take down these barriers between your friends, your co-workers, clients, manufacturers, etc.
01:03:47.840 --> 01:03:49.679
That's my my takeaway, Peter.
01:03:50.079 --> 01:03:53.599
Well, and I think it's a it's that is a great takeaway.
01:03:53.679 --> 01:03:55.119
I think it's a consistent message.
01:03:55.280 --> 01:03:56.639
I think it's one that's needed.
01:03:56.800 --> 01:04:04.639
I think kindness um speaking to it has opened up other doors, and I think that it will continue to do that.
01:04:04.800 --> 01:04:09.760
On this very podcast, Tom's Got Glasses, has spoken very succinctly about it.
01:04:10.079 --> 01:04:12.000
Opticians need to stop gatekeeping.
01:04:12.079 --> 01:04:15.440
It isn't about being mean to the new optician who showed up and was wrong.
01:04:15.599 --> 01:04:18.000
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
01:04:18.239 --> 01:04:19.519
It's about being kind.
01:04:19.679 --> 01:04:23.039
And uh we mentioned Daniel Kral several times in the last few minutes.
01:04:23.199 --> 01:04:24.480
She's a champion of that.
01:04:24.719 --> 01:04:25.679
She leads with it.
01:04:25.760 --> 01:04:33.679
If you see something on Facebook, the opticians on Facebook where that is going on, where some poor person asked a question they wish they didn't ask.
01:04:33.840 --> 01:04:37.840
Um, Danielle is in there saying, This doesn't help.
01:04:38.159 --> 01:04:42.400
This let's let's just take three steps back and approach this in a different way.
01:04:42.639 --> 01:04:43.920
And she's right.
01:04:44.159 --> 01:04:45.920
And it's a win all the time.
01:04:46.079 --> 01:04:51.199
Kindness wins, it opens up doors, it doesn't close them, and gatekeeping loses.
01:04:51.440 --> 01:04:53.119
So we're changing everything.
01:04:53.280 --> 01:04:56.000
And everything that we're doing here is part of that change.
01:04:56.159 --> 01:04:57.199
So I love it.
01:04:57.280 --> 01:04:58.239
I love it all, Peter.
01:04:58.559 --> 01:04:59.119
I love it too.
01:04:59.360 --> 01:05:00.800
Anna, thank you so much.
01:05:02.079 --> 01:05:03.920
This has been a fantastic interview.
01:05:04.079 --> 01:05:12.239
I really think we hit on some things that are that are critical, and I'm I love the whole development that we're to keep building into branding.
01:05:12.400 --> 01:05:23.920
You know, we'll get into ambassador stuff later, but there's no question that branding and self-branding are uh something new that's happening within optical and a new exciting way for opticians.
01:05:24.159 --> 01:05:26.400
So thank you, everybody.
01:05:26.719 --> 01:05:28.480
Well, thank you for having me, Peter.
01:05:28.639 --> 01:05:32.800
I appreciate you and I appreciate your time and I appreciate your audience.
01:05:33.760 --> 01:05:34.880
Have a fabulous day.
01:05:35.119 --> 01:05:36.400
Thank you so much, Anna.
01:05:36.480 --> 01:05:39.519
This has been another episode of Optometry Profits Revealed.
01:05:39.840 --> 01:05:44.559
Please, by all means, if your practice is interested, check out the profit growth quiz.
01:05:44.639 --> 01:05:49.199
It just gets a rank of where you are, and we will be in touch with you with how you did with that.
01:05:49.360 --> 01:05:50.320
Thank you so much, everybody.
01:05:50.480 --> 01:05:51.119
Take good care.
01:05:51.199 --> 01:05:52.960
We'll see you on the next episode.