Sounds like your patients have never tried a Maui. I would estimate that about 100% of our Maui patients won't even look at anything else. It is actually quite comparable to AR- once someone experiences that clarity, why would they want anything less?Originally Posted by LENNY
Have I told you today how much I hate poly?
We had a gentleman from LC come in about two days ago looking over our selection and admiring the MJs they are no long allowed to sell. He was missing them.
Have I told you today how much I hate poly?
To tell you the truth my patients saw it all....
It was always my feeling that MJ does not care about small independent retailers, and now lets see how they survive without Essilux....
Revo is B Robinson....:)
Absolutely agree. There is no comparison. Do i think Maui is the be all/end all, of course not.
Maybe the RB fan in this thread doesn't have the patient base for or is uncomfortable with talking about the price point of Maui (and the RX retail goes up in April.) But no one who gets their PAL Rx in a 3 day turnaround and gets free replacement parts from Maui Jim (just take a glance at Lux's customer service patient feedback for fun) expresses remorse for not putting lenses in the wayfarer they bought at sunglass hut years back.
Obviously different patient bases exist throughout the country but its up to the optician to explain the benefits of a better made lens sourced by a more honestly run company, that is if the optician cares about such things.
We never sell plano either and I have mentioned several incentive ideas to the manager and doctors and they just ignore them. Not one idea seriously entertained. Killing me. We also do a lot of cataract surgeries and I know we could be selling a ton more. What can you do when you get complaints that your sales are not where the owners expect them to be, but they will not take suggestions from experienced opticians? So frustrating. Sorry... a little venting there.
Here's what I don't get about company philosophy at Maui Jim.
1. Their plano sunwear products are top-notch. Agreed.
2. They need B&M outlets, I'd think. I'm sure there are the sports shops and sunglass huts of the world, but wouldn't a traditional optical make sense?
3. What's more, if they go through the trouble of developing a killer Rx program, they know that's going to be initiated at "the three Os". You can't do that online or at SGH.
4. They have to know that their product is premium and niche. So why, oh, why are they so aggressive in making these smaller "three O" offices carry a disproportionately high number of frames? I mean, I used to carry them, and even at 36 that was a lot of inventory tied up. And that wasn't good enough for them.
I think their ought to be a new policy where you have to carry only 12. That would make it go into just about every office out there, and it could be a high-end niche product and everyone would be happy. They're missing the boat.
Another question:
On the "Maui Rx program" are we getting Maui polarized filters, or are we getting a Younger or KBCo or even an essilor filter with a fancy logo stamped on it?
I mean, I can do that.
Does anyone know?
Would it not require that whomever supplies Maui with all their plano six and eight-base polarized plano lenses also be in the business of producing different blank sizes and base curves and PAL front surfaces? That strains credulity, but I could just be cynical.
Or could they just make legit MJ pucks and free-form everything? I think that's a distinct possibility.
Last edited by drk; 03-16-2017 at 08:56 AM.
drk- I agree it is a lot of space. We happen to have enough turnover to be worth it, but I could see how it would be frustrating to want only a handful of frames. We sell very little plano so the board stays full for the most part until the rep comes to switch out for newer models. For the most part, it is the one line where the patient almost never gets the frame off the shelf. We are mostly using them for fitting purposes.
As for the polarization- Younger does not offer green or rose so they are not using those blanks. From what I can tell, they are IOT blanks digitally processed. The thing that makes it Maui is the processing combined with the bi/gradient mirror and BSAR. They do also advertise blocking 99.9% of glare and 95% of HEV. I know Vision Ease had given me their stats on the Coppertone's HEV coverage but shamefully cannot find it...
Have I told you today how much I hate poly?
FWIW, Maui has an agreement with Costco to only sell discontinued Maui Jims.
Caroline, L.O.
If you suffer from severe nonlinear waterfowl issues, you don't have your ducks in a row.
FWIW EVERY frame sold by Costco is Discontinued but few if any shoppers know or care
This is getting off topic now...
Younger does distribute Grey, Brown, Green and Copper Polarized in Poly. As they are one of the largest OEM distributor of lenses, I wouldn't be surprised if they provided Rose for MJ. Younger has a long standing relationship with MJ. If you remember, the first PAL that MJ glazed in their RX line was the Younger Image. As for VE, they offer Green, Grey and Brown in Coppertone. At least those are what we carry.
That tends to happen after a post goes to two pages....
I freaking love it, lensmanmd!
This shows that we can make equivalent lenses to MJ without all the untold expense. (Bi-gradient mirrors are neat and such, and I believe various coating labs can do it, if you need it, but a solid mirror is just as good for most landlubbers, IMHO.)
Granted, I hear nothing but superlatives regarding their Rx work/lab...but it's exclusive and it ain't cheap.
And to be fair to the VCP members (yeah, I know), that's a better use of their hard-earned dollars. (Yeah, I know, I hate it too.)
One other potential Maui exclusive: don't they do a hydrophobic top-coat?
drk,
I wish it were that easy. Yes, MJ does come with a great top coating. Probably the best on the market, IMO.
We offer Mirror coats loaded with super Hydro on Polarized lenses from Younger and KbCO. Matter of fact, we provide complimentary BSAR with all of our mirror coats. It just makes sense. We offer both solid and gradient polarized, as well as the DriveWear. We offer our polarized in all materials except glass. We offer both compensated and non compensated freeform PAL and compensated SV. Our freeform designs are from IOT and Zeiss. Even with all of that, we would not dare compare ourselves to MJ. Same lenses, same surfacing equipment, same freeform provider. Our thin film equipment and recipes are not the same, and I do not want the headaches of creating a stack that would be comparable to MJ. We are an HMO, and for me, the time and costs are just not worth it.
Do I think we can provide a great pair of sunwear with great optics and protection at an affordable price point? Absolutely. Do I think that we can provide premium coatings that are as good as MJ? No, I don't. Not without great costs. However, I can turn a mirrored and polarized FF PAL the same day, in almost any frame, instead of 1 to 2 weeks.
Sometimes, it is more cost effective to let those that can, do, even if the price to the patient is higher.
Drk: When was the last time you wrote a "Plano" Rx?
If you did, you might.
B
??
If you did [write a "Plano" Rx], you might [sell some plano Rx]
A prescription for sunglasses is only feasible in some photophobia condition or maybe some UV-damage or dry eye. Otherwise it's like telling people to eat better and get more sleep.
The Maui Jim Ophthalmic line is currently in testing stages right now. Only so many accounts currently carry it in their offices (I know of one such account in Southwestern PA where I live) How the frames perform in these locations will eventually determine if and how Maui Jim proceeds with this project in the future
Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity
They need a new designer or something. The frames are mediocre at best, and their minimums are ridiculous. Forget what I said in my first post. It's been 2.5 weeks with the product out, and I have managed to sell 10 complete sets only because most every one know's the warranty associated with the name. We plan on selling them down to 20-24 pieces and keeping it there. They honestly have maybe 6-8 frames that I can see selling several times over.
A well-informed little birdy just confirmed they still use Shamir.
*whoops! original quote had optical24/7's comment on it referencing Shamir (worth mentioning since I can't send rep points!)
Have I told you today how much I hate poly?
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