I used to think I knew about Quality in frames, but often the comments I see from others here whose opinion I very much respect has me doubting myself.
I've carried Oakley for years. IMHO, They have some of the best frames and sunglasses I've seen. Sure, their materials sometimes "look" cheap, but more than ANY other frames/sunglasses I sell, they need the least repair and adjustment.
B
I just hit their website for the first time in forever. Are they not making metal frames anymore? What happened to the A,E,O,Square wires?
I have had pretty much the same experience with MOST of our Lux reps, but the whole Oakley BS made me want to do less business with Lux. Not worth carrying the same product you can find cheaper in their stores, or sunglasses cheap at department stores. Then there is the quality of some of their lines that is a joke to me personally. The less expensive lines are ok, but any frame that's more expensive shouldn't be the same quality as the frames that are half the cost just due to the brand. I don't mind paying for high end products, but I have a problem with high end frames that are poor quality. I believe you get what you pay for and most of the expensive Lux lines do not provide that.Originally Posted by Jarhead Daddy
This is interesting Barry. The few years I was managing a Sunglass Hut in the 90's (pre-Lux trashing days), Oakleys were by far the most warrantied product we carried. Literally, we would see on average of 2-5 every single day of their frames come back with busted temples, hinges, eyewires, warped lenses, etc. We would see maybe 2-3 a week...of everything else combined. The irony was we would also get the inevitable counterfeit frames as well, usually when people would take their weekend trip down to Tijuana. While we could spot them a mile away from their poor mold lines, wrong paint colors and mis-sized/placed "Oakley" logos, they were good enough to break in exactly the same places and ways the real stuff did. :)
Mind you, this was the quality before the big Lux blue-wash they've all been given now. Having had them in two dispensaries I've worked in since the takeover, our first hand experience is that they haven't improved in the least - quite the contrary in fact.
So the Chinese factories haven't improved the frame quality?
For non-metal sunglasses, my overall breakage - that I have seen - ..over a 10 year period...has been 4 frames.
4!
B
Has anyone seen any impact on sales of Oakleys to females since their big push to reach women: http://www.businessweek.com/articles...-the-lazy-ones
I would expect to see more warranty returns on Oakley due to the active lifestyle of those who wear them. Barry's experience is a testament to their quality.
Oh my OT, you are very outspoken. And you don't have to buy any to hear our reasoning but I'm pretty sure that wont make you any less anti-Oakley
I just heard from the the rep that I finally figured out belongs to jarhead daddy and he called him today. It sometimes takes us a while to unravel who belongs to whom but for the most part we do try very hard to follow up. I am not always notified.
Just so I'm clear, all you folks that have feeling about us of course have a nonexistent Dr redo rate, have never made a patient angry or measured a pd or seg incorrectly, right?? Just checking.
Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others. -H. Jackson Brown Jr.
If the only tool you have is a hammer you will approach every problem as though it were a nail
He's called himself TROLL for a reason, and it appears to be to bad-mouth vendors he doesn't like, and currently it is Oakley.
It's getting old, and I'm getting ready to use the block option.
i dont get why people bag on the "quality" of Oakley frames. the opthalmics i am wearing now are 5 years old and they are still brand new looking even your others brands plastic frames begin to fade by now. as far as their sunwear, i have a pair of Oakleys i have deployed twice with and they are still in perfect shape (i discharged after 4 years in 2006 if that tells you how old these are), the ONE time i took a blow to the head while wearing them, their break free temple hinge design allowed me to collect the pieces and snap them back together easily. i still wear them and they are still in great shape. when i worked for Lens-hell i mean crafters, i repaired ONE Oakley frame for every 50+ ray bans or comparable frame. i literally will not go another road for my own eye wear. after the initial fitting i have never had to have my Oakley frames adjusted. i just dont get it. they use better hinge design than your standard fall apart spring hinges, the standard hinges they use are HEAVY DUTY vs. the competitors simple and thin hinges i repair on a weekly basis. when i did Oakley rx orders they always came back to use very quickly, and we never had any issues with their customer service. i would take Oakley over anything else just based on my personal and professional experience with the brand.
Karen, thank you so much for your work on our behalf. I received a call from Chris (new area rep) today, and it went very well. I will be filling out the application and doing the 100 piece load-in. Sounds like it will come with a nice display, a good deal of advertising support, and employee training. Not to get too specific, but it also sounds like I may be able to get great billing terms. It is beginning to look like the old rep just wasn't doing his job. Sounds like he is gone, and we are off to a fresh start.
Speaking of reps, they are very valuable (or destructive). Some, like Karen, go the extra mile and are very instrumental in our company's success. Others...well...if you can't say anything nice... Reps are very much the faces of their companies, and good ones are worth every penny they are paid. I am very thankful for all the great reps that I have had the pleasure to work with.
Dammit! Caught!
B
Thank you friend! It was my pleasure to help you! Semper Fi! Both my husband and brother are Marines!
I personally wear New Oakley Carbon Plate ophthalmics and Jupiter Carbon Suns. I believe these authentic carbon fibre templed-models are THE most comfortable frames I have ever worn. And indestructible to boot!
FWIW
B
Wow terms that is nice. I was told otherwise, and I would do a larger buy in if any sort or terms were offered. Our rep seemed to be a real .......... and other reps have confirmed that.
Agreed 110%!! Karen seems great to go out of her way to help with the success of Oakley, that is awesome! I wish I dealt with someone like her. I did not, and the .......... I had to work with would make me not want to carry the product regardless of any buy in.
OT, have Karen take a look at your region and see if there is a new rep. It sounds to me like they are trying to realign things to be a bit more friendly to ophthalmic accounts.
Its what this thread was about. Sorry I'm short and have always been called a troll due to my sausage fingers.
I don't think there is but I did post my contact info in this thread and location. I know for a fact I am not the only one with issues with the rep for our area.
If you message me the info I'll dig into it :). I admit not wanting to scroll back through all this to find it. And tell me who your rep is.
Very kind of you, and I do appreciate it. However its still the same rep for office, and I have zero desire to work with him regardless of how much we would like to carry the product. He is the rep for Houston, TX.
So. I invite you all to go on a journey with me. Pretend you work in an office that had been around for 35+ years. You are known all over as a place that has cutting edge technology and caters to an athletic crowd but over the years has branched out into all areas of style and price point. You've had some growing pains in the past but who hasn't, right? About 5 years ago you were purchased by one of the largest practice purchasing groups in the world. Some folks were nervous about how that has changed things but for the most part, staff and policies stayed the same. Your outsourced your labor for certain things but haven't really had a major price increase in a decade so while some folks were angered by that move it does keep costs down. You have a very diverse staff with all levels of skill and experience and sometimes get in trouble for being very proud of who you are and what your practice has done. But always have the facts to back up your occasional ego trip.
Stay with me.
Two patients come in to your office. One has insurance, is very familiar with their coverage and while they are glad to have it they don't expect it to cover everything. They filled out their paperwork at home, were a pleasure to deal with, get themselves 2 pair of glasses, sent their family to you and have you a great review on Yelp.
The other comes in without an appointment, is mad that you don't know their coverage by heart, argues about paying for a retinal scan because they know they can see perfectly, and brings their kids with Cheerios that get all mashed up in your carpet. They leave because they won't pay their copay and without even being seen call your bosses boss to complain about your terrible service.
Assuming you could actually choose which patient to see, who would you pick?
Thats what we do.
Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others. -H. Jackson Brown Jr.
If the only tool you have is a hammer you will approach every problem as though it were a nail
Karen- well written note. Some people would prefer to be a victim and complain rather than accepting a genuine offer of help.
Karen - remember, he calls himself a TROLL for a reason. He's just looking for a reason to argue, not to find solutions. Best thing to do is just ignore him.
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