walmart optical

[Johns]

no this isn't the part where the v.c mgrs say they never leave the department. it's the part where i say if division 1 was all it should be this shouldn't and wouldn't happen.

I don't understand this terminology. What's "division 1"?

[OPTIDONN]

no this isn't the part where the v.c mgrs say they never leave the department. it's the part where i say if division 1 was all it should be this shouldn't and wouldn't happen.

You know I don't want to be a jerk but how long have you been in optical? From two posts you made regarding job openings you seem to have confused opticians with optometrists. Do you know the difference? Sorry, not trying to be a jerk just curious.

[AngryFish]

Division One is the body of retail departments of a Wal-Mart store. It consists of pretty much everything except things like Grocery, Optical, Photo, Pharmacy, TLE, and other ancillary departments.

[Johns]

Division One is the body of retail departments of a Wal-Mart store. It consists of pretty much everything except things like Grocery, Optical, Photo, Pharmacy, TLE, and other ancillary departments.

Thanks, I haven't been in a WM in over 8 years, and am not versed in the WM jargon.

[partyoptician]

The BIG question is this. Who will buy Who? Maybe THe Mart is the only business big enough to take out Luxottica> Can you say corporate take over! It sure would be fun to watch!:bbg:

[Danimal2]

Dan like i told you in a past thread the type of optician you get and how informed they are depends on the state your in an of course pride,knowledge, and general professionalism the individual takes in his job. i have gone to many shops in nevada checking out the type of personel they have and compentency , i don't know about texas but i can say we are going to rectify that nationally within the next 5 years. whether or not the state is licensed or not you will have a certain amout of time to gain your abo and ncle/ that will stop some people from thinking that working in optical is a easy job. but if i ever ran into you an asked you a ? you might not know at the time / i promise i won't call you a bottom of the barrell scumbag optician.

Thanks Geo for not wishing to call me a "bottom of the barrel scumbag optician". As we all do faulter on ?'s from time to time. Resultant Prism has always been interesting to me as there are a few Docs that like to prescribe that way. The first time I was handed an RX with that, I was dumb founded. It had been years since I had worked with an RX like that. Well time being what it is, I called numerous doctors in the area to get their input and that resulted in numerous translations. I did the math and could not come up with the right answer. I knew what I was looking for, but nothing seemed to be working out. I called a Doctor at the University of Houston (yes he wrote the book) and he was so very helpful. He walked me through everything. I told him that is exactly what I plugged into my calculator. He said "Really". I said "Yes". He then informed me that I needed to change my calculator settings back to decimal instead of Radians. Ha...Ha..:cheers:

[KStraker]

I did not help this patient so I don't know why she chose to do this, but: This patient comes in and has an exam. We are providers for her insurance with coverage for exam and glasses. She had the exam, but wound up walking with the Rx. She strolled on down to Walmart and bought a pair. Her Rx is roughly +.50 -.50 +2.00 OU. She came back yesterday and said she is having trouble in the distance. I read the glasses and they are about a .18 strong on the distance power. She wound up with a Natural Poly Transitions with AR fit at 18mm. First of all I've never had much luck with a Natural under about 21mm. Second, this patient did not ask for poly or AR and doesn't need or want it. Now she is thinking that she would also like to do away with the transitions. Oh yeah, the left seg is off axis by about 20 degrees. Luckily it's a no line bifocal. :hammer:If she had gotten the lenses here, she would have spent 115.00 for a clear cr39 Natural and gotten them in an hour. I bet she spent more at Walmart, waited 2 weeks, and still doesn't have a working pair of glasses. She also does not know what her poly lens and AR coat are good for. Conclusion: a fool and her money are soon parted. I wish I could shaft people and some how convince them that I'm doing them a favor.

[Happylady]

Oh yeah, the left seg is off axis by about 20 degrees. Luckily it's a no line bifocal. :hammer:If she had gotten the lenses here, she would have spent 115.00 for a clShe also does not know what her poly lens and AR coat are good for.

That 20 degree off is too much and should be redone. The AR is really a good thing but I don't know how good a quality AR she has. A bad AR is not a good thing.

The Wallmart near me used to use the Natural and tell people they were getting a Varilux lens. I agree that a Natural at 18 is too low. I know they say it can be fit that low, but I remember when it was recommended to be fit at 24. I think it is best fit at at least 20.

[For-Life]

I did not help this patient so I don't know why she chose to do this, but: This patient comes in and has an exam. We are providers for her insurance with coverage for exam and glasses. She had the exam, but wound up walking with the Rx. She strolled on down to Walmart and bought a pair. Her Rx is roughly +.50 -.50 +2.00 OU. She came back yesterday and said she is having trouble in the distance. I read the glasses and they are about a .18 strong on the distance power. She wound up with a Natural Poly Transitions with AR fit at 18mm. First of all I've never had much luck with a Natural under about 21mm. Second, this patient did not ask for poly or AR and doesn't need or want it. Now she is thinking that she would also like to do away with the transitions. Oh yeah, the left seg is off axis by about 20 degrees. Luckily it's a no line bifocal. :hammer:If she had gotten the lenses here, she would have spent 115.00 for a clear cr39 Natural and gotten them in an hour. I bet she spent more at Walmart, waited 2 weeks, and still doesn't have a working pair of glasses. She also does not know what her poly lens and AR coat are good for. Conclusion: a fool and her money are soon parted. I wish I could shaft people and some how convince them that I'm doing them a favor.

Worst thing is she will probably blame the AR or PAL. Not the fitter.

[Danimal2]

Her Rx is roughly +.50 -.50 +2.00 OU. She came back yesterday and said she is having trouble in the distance. I read the glasses and they are about a .18 strong on the distance power. She wound up with a Natural Poly Transitions with AR fit at 18mm. First of all I've never had much luck with a Natural under about 21mm. Second, this patient did not ask for poly or AR and doesn't need or want it.

Wow, roughly +.50-.50 X??? +2.00 OU. How does one define "roughly". Ansi Standards are there to help all. Having a .18 increase or decrease on a +.50 -.50 would really tell me the glasses, lensometer, optician, or something was really totally out of whack (get real). Then you say she came in with problems at distance and you state that the seg was set to low. I did not hear anything about issues with reading. Although I would agree that a Natural at 18mm would not be functional in most cases. Probably not that noticable in this one (not to justify a wrong).

I hear others always stating that Wally world is sub standard. Now I am sure there are issues from place to place. It is not the company or the product, but the individuals that work in some of the places whether corp. or private.

Treat the patient with Great Customer Service and share your knowledge and the RX would not have walked. Do the same on the patient if they did walk back in and they will get a refund at Wally World and come back to you. Trash your competitors to the patient and if the patient is of any moral fortitued (sorry drinking :cheers: so spelling maybe off. New keyboard as well.) they will not be back.

Just my two cents.

[Fezz]

(sorry drinking :cheers: so spelling maybe off. New keyboard as well.)
Just my two cents.

:D:cheers::D:cheers::D

[KStraker]

Wow, roughly +.50-.50 X??? +2.00 OU. How does one define "roughly". Ansi Standards are there to help all. Having a .18 increase or decrease on a +.50 -.50 would really tell me the glasses, lensometer, optician, or something was really totally out of whack (get real). Then you say she came in with problems at distance and you state that the seg was set to low. I did not hear anything about issues with reading. Although I would agree that a Natural at 18mm would not be functional in most cases. Probably not that noticable in this one (not to justify a wrong).

I hear others always stating that Wally world is sub standard. Now I am sure there are issues from place to place. It is not the company or the product, but the individuals that work in some of the places whether corp. or private.

Treat the patient with Great Customer Service and share your knowledge and the RX would not have walked. Do the same on the patient if they did walk back in and they will get a refund at Wally World and come back to you. Trash your competitors to the patient and if the patient is of any moral fortitued (sorry drinking :cheers: so spelling maybe off. New keyboard as well.) they will not be back.

Just my two cents.

Roughly= she has a moderate presciption and I don't feel like going to get her record to get the exact numbers. This is a post on the interweb, not a page from a doctoral thesis. I did not trash Wallyworld. I simply told her that there was little too much plus and the bifocal was crooked. Morality does not some in to play with Walmart shoppers, just a super low price, or the illusion of a sweet deal. If they did have such lofty morals they probably wouldn't be there in the first place. As far as something being out of whack here it is: it's called not giving a sh!t. Who wants to send a job back for a remake, take another week and a half, and listen to the patient complain. Sounds like the old, here try these and hope for the best routine. I should have found a way to inform her about what was best for her needs without knocking the service she had at Walmart. If I had helped her to begin with I would have just spelled it out: Here's what is best for you, here's the cost after your insurance benefit, and yes we are the only provider in this area, but if you still want to take your Rx somewhere else and pay more then here you go. She'll be back.

[patti]

I actually work for the often dreaded Wal-mart corporation , and Personally in 30 years in the optical buisness I have never worked anywhere that understood that patient care and education was first and formost as much as in this organization. In addition they live up to their open door policy and pay top dollar. I have worked in private practice with OD's and MD'S, I have worked for small boutiqes, small Doctor owned chains, Mid sized chains and Large companys such as LensCrafters, but I promise you (and no one is paying me to say this), so far the Wal-Mart organization has been the best. they just seem to understand that the reason we do this type of work, besides the income, is to help people have a better quality of vision. I have found that most opticains just want to help people.In addition I have access to significantly better technology than I did when I was with LC.
Also I can assure you that there is no intention to eliminate Optical managers and there is no organized plan to hire non- optical staff to manage. In fact in general it is prefered to hire optically trained managers, but as it has been noted in this conversation, the trained Opticians are often not trained in management or think they are such a hot commodity that they demand a salary that will break the bank. In those cases a non- optically trained management oriented person would still be a viable choice.
Just voicing my opinion

[Danimal2]

Tell them like it is Patti. Good to hear from a fellow (sorry female) associate. Although I would have to question your comment on the latest tech being at our disposal. As now most of us in the Vision Centers have lost our finishing labs and we are no longer have the ability to say that we atleast cut the lenses (thus allowing for any further modifications based on RX and frame choice that may need to be made)for the glasses that we sell. Although the markdown issue has been much better as far as the training side of things goes.

I too agree that My Wal-Mart Experience has be more than great. Good Pay, Good Bennies, sometimes really strange hours (happy holidays).

Take care

Danimal

[MarcE]

I actually work for the often dreaded Wal-mart corporation , and Personally in 30 years in the optical buisness I have never worked anywhere that understood that patient care and education was first and formost as much as in this organization. ,
but I promise you (and no one is paying me to say this), so far the Wal-Mart organization has been the best.

Amazing. Our local W-M can't get a SV stock lens edged in less than 5 days. They can't find a replacement sun clip or a temple for the frame they sold just 4 months ago. They don't have access to 1.70 or trivex. They won't touch a previously used drill mount frame. No shape modification on lenses. They won't go outside a +- 4.00 on most any sunglass. I've seen personally dozens of Ovations and Naturals fit at 15 and 16 high. If the patient doesn't want AR, they don't seem to be able to help. Patient is intolerant to poly? Again they don't seem to understand.

I'm really not a W-M basher. I have copied many of their smart business tactics. But a quality optical store? Not my experience. Not the experience of half the W-M associates that leave their discount on the table and come see me.

[Johns]

I'm really not a W-M basher. I have copied many of their smart business tactics. But a quality optical store? Not my experience. Not the experience of half the W-M associates that leave their discount on the table and come see me.

Discount on the table?!? We advertise that we take the WM Vision Plan at our store (It only exists at our store!) The employees pay a "co-pay" of $49 for SV lenses, and a "co-pay" of 25% discount on their frames. They're amazed that their Vision Center doesn't take the insurance they didn't even know they had!

If I ever figure out how to post photos here, I'll post a picture of the wall of our lab. It's got about 35 photo copied WM employee badges that we make copies of. (For "insurance" purposes, of course.) Oh, and these badges include 3 of the people that work, or have worked in the WM Vision Center.


Disclaimer: I am a WM basher, but I've got nothing against their employees.

[Alan W]

This thread seems to linger on and on. Not that I disagree with any of it. I really see some keen observations here. I'd like to contribute mine as having once been a WMVC manager, I might have stuck around had the District Manager been evaporated from the face of the earth for incompetency. But, that's another story. Ultimately, she quit under fire! What I do see here is that there are contributions of thought coming from different points of reference, hence the paradigm conflict. WM has accomplished its goal. It is the Jiffy Lube of opticianry. It has a narrow scope of service that is done as well as the available labor force provides. Up against true craftspeople, the conflict ensues. WM doesn't deny that true craftspeople exist. They just don't want their customers to think there's a "higher order." In my ancient way of thinking, I believe that true craftspeople are too preoccupied defending their quality of service and end-product perception. Having been the owner of a couple very high end stores where I practiced opticianry as a craftsman, my thinking is that the success I enjoyed was from taking the same product "they" sold, and making it just part of a superior perceived end product on the equivelent level of "Lexus Certified Service!" If you consistently, from customer to customer, do that . . . your "thumbprint" will be ackowledged. Just don't expect all the big cash rewards. It ain't gonna happen! Rembrandt, and almost all the other masters . . . . died poor. . . . or chewed off a body part!

[kgh77]

Walmart just rescently closed 23 (I believe) vision centers, I was in one of them. They say that would be the only time they would do this, yeah right! The DM will not be getting a bonus in 2008 so I think that the assistant managers will eventually take over where the DM's are now. The DM are worthless, they don't increase sales, or morale, or find opticians to hire. They have their weekly conference call ***** about sales and make sure the pretty pictures are up and thats it!! they know nothing about selling or what makes an optical run! No I'm not bitter, I just got to see it in action. What a waste.

[Johns]

WM has accomplished its goal. It is the Jiffy Lube of opticianry. It has a narrow scope of service that is done as well as the available labor force provides.

Hmm...Jiffy Lube of opticianry?

Yeah, I'd buy that comparison.

-Good for only the most basic of services.
-People that care about their cars and can afford it, use full service mechanics.
-Stories abound about blown engines when the oil plug has been left out.
-Service in 10 minutes or less. (Must be the exam..def. not the glasses)
-Employees wear shop-type uniforms.

[Johns]

Personally in 30 years in the optical buisness I have never worked anywhere that understood that patient care and education was first and formost as much as in this organization.

Wow...

I can't imagine how much lower the level of service could go if their "priorities" weren't so high!