Originally Posted by
drk
ok, hear me out. There are a lot of assumptions about to be laid out.
The fundamental value proposition rule, here, is that there are 1. Service 2. Quality, and 3. Price. Choose two. (i'll refer to this as "value proposition".)
1. Mall (optical) shopping is going to plummet to next to nothing... yes
2. Internet shopping is very, very likely to propel online glasses buying into the stratosphere. This is not going to be a good option for most opticals. No, diagree. While it will propel online eyewear, those opticals that have opticians do skilled opticianry will thrive on a la carte.
3. There are freestanding chain-type opticals. I can see these proliferating because i think that's how "bricks and mortar" buying is going to be conducted. maybe. If brick and mortar optical has skilled opticians playing the long game, the payoff will be big.
4. Buying club-type opticals and target/walmart. I would call these discount opticals are now and will continue to be best value in retail b&m optical.
so, where is the golden age?
We will have less and less swanky mall and optical-dedicated freestandings, if you ask me. You would have to sell high quality materials with great service and a high price. And i just don't think a big corporation can staff these stores with good people. They just can't make a value proposition. correct. But that’s because skilled opticians actually gave up their place at the optical dining table.
i don't think we're going to see mom and pop optical boutiques growing like weeds due to a mass increase in market share. But i do see the growth of a segment i'll call "optical boutique" asserting itself. One that is creative, clever, caring, high-touch, unique, expert, experience-oriented, and ultimately relatively expensive. Value proposition: S=high, q=high, p=expensive. yes.
i think this is the way forward.
Bookmarks