A success in both public and content
“United we stand…”. This is the key message that emerged from the two days of activities that filled the first edition of the Vision Business Forum in Rome. The event, promoted by Assogruppi, Anfao, Mido and Federottica, saw the participation of 800 sector professionals: opticians, companies, and distributors. Such success was well-deserved and demonstrates that the sector perceives a need to gather and exchange strategies and business models, above all now that the overall economic situation is particularly difficult.
The macroeconomic panorama was the opener for all the guest speakers and was perfectly outlined by Sandro Castaldo, who stated, “The economic crisis has obliged many companies to reorient their objectives to maintaining turnover and reducing costs. The resulting climate of uncertainty fuels a vicious circle that must be interrupted by reinvesting in research and development and, above all, networking with other market players.”
Gerardo Pecoriello, a consultant of a firm specializing in the optics sector, then analysed market data, adding that although there was a drop in the sale of sunglasses and frames, it must be remembered that the ophthalmic lens market stayed straight on course: “The optician’s profession is, today more than ever, based on his technical skills,” affirms Pecoriello. ”Consumers are becoming more sensitive towards the price of “accessories ”and at the same time require more professionalism for lens sales and for products resulting from technological innovations. These skills, together with services offered at retail stores and the professional's people skills, become the elements that can make or break an eyewear business.”
Erika Mallarini, instructor at the SDA Bocconi, focused her talk on the importance of planning and the development of a business plan for eyewear centres. “Today more than ever, it is fundamental,” claims Mallarini, ”to have all the marketing levers under your thumb and to periodically measure the performance of your shop: stock management, pricing, assortment, and services are the interdependent variables that must never be neglected because they can determine the success of failure of a commercial enterprise.”
Business skills to manage all these aspects, seconded Castaldo, recapitulating Mallarini’s concepts, are often not part of the optician ’s know-how. This is why it is fundamental to develop a system, join forces, create cross-alliances between shops and professionals so as to fully exploit everyone's resources.
The value of collaboration was one of the main messages that emerged from presentations of the first intense day of work and the focal point shared during the round table that included: Andrea Garagnani of Assogruppi, Dan Emanuel Levi of MIDO, Cirillo Marcolin of ANFAO, Riccardo Perdomi of Andom, Paolo Pettazzoni, Gruppo Lenti of ANFAO, Giulio Velati of Federottica, Maurizio Veroli of the Consorzio Comunicazione Vista. At the centre of the debate were the potential solutions for leaving the crisis behind us and getting back onto the road to success together.
Monday morning was dedicated to the analysis of the sales approach with Paolo Carelli, an optician-optometrist expert in Hypovision; Paolo Pettazzoni, Vice President of ANFAO, who spoke on progressive lens sales, probably the most interesting product from the point of view of technological innovation; Massimo Trevisol, optician-optometrist specialised in Visual Sciences and Sport Vision; and Luca Giannelli, Optometrist, orthoptist, and visual-postural consultant.
The exhibition area was open for two days and covered by about 60 companies presenting their own products and the latest innovations on the market to a motivated and competent public.
