Shopfitting - The reasons why now is the time!
It is no secret that the UK optical profession (and for that matter the profession throughout Europe) has undergone turbulent trading conditions.
Many have ‘battened down the hatches’ hoping that a time of greater financial stability is just around the corner.
This has meant that investment in vital practice upgrades have been put on hold indefinately.
Unfortunately, this reticence is causing a further decline and anecdotally at least, this has proven to put the paying public off spending.
The fact of the matter is, that despite the recession, the vast majority of people are still influenced by where they shop, eat and drink etc.. by the appearance and perceived image of the places they visit.
If the environment appears run down or dated, this immediately (even if this maybe subconscious) sends out the wrong message.
It tells the customer (patient) that this company is going backwards – not forwards and most importantly reflects the fact that if no care is taken over presentation, then what else is being overlooked.
This can lead (often very wrongly) to the belief that clinical standards /diagnostic equipment are also dated and likewise the frame selection on offer.
It is quite logical to think that if the image of the practice does not meet expectations and the interior is tired and out of date, then so it follows, is everything else.
Of course, in the vast majority of cases – this is not in fact what has happened – in many instances, it is the reverse and the practice may have invested huge capital in diagnostic equipment, or may stock the very latest in cutting edge frames and lenses at the expense of their practice interior and frame displays.
This however, is not what the customer/patient see’s when they walk past the shop window and therefore the message is never conveyed and they walk onto the next – more inviting practice.
It is worth mentioning that all successful businesses who have to have a public image and / or high street presence, – consistently invest in the environments in which their customers (patients) will experience their brand and its values. (See Woolworths as a case in point as to what happens for not investing in the right image/brand/interiors).
This is with good reason, as the spend level goes up when the environment is well presented – it is as simple as that.
Nobody expects every practice to invest huge sums of money in re-fitting their interiors (although many still see the benefits this brings and have continued to upgrade as they know it will more than pay dividends both in the short and long term). However, even a minor overhaul will create a tangible difference, which will in turn inflate bottom lines and prove extremely productive in boosting customer/patient confidence.
So is now the time to bring in a professional optical interior specialist to help you through and improve your position, or should you continue to wait?
The obvious answer is to be pro-active, not re-active, because, quite simply those that do will be far better placed (both now and in the future) to come out on top.
Getting left behind now will make the journey back even longer and harder and that is the last thing any optician needs in the current climate.
The trend towards practices moving to (much) bigger premises is growing, as businesses are taking advantage of reduced lease costs and larger rent free periods – with landlords keen to fill space – converting to greater overall contract values to the optical interior specialists.
It is also very apparent that after a sustained period of ‘sitting back and seeing what happens’ most forward thinking opticians have decided to invest in their premises and be pro-active in attracting new patients in and maximising their available revenue streams.
Also apparent is the growing feeling that failure to present the right image to the ever more savvy buying public, will be detrimental in the extreme and that patients need to be attracted by an inviting, contemporary environment. Driving these developments are several factors according to Lynx’s research.
The obvious issue of maintaining pace with competition on the high street (which is viewed as being more important than at any time during the last decade) coupled with very advantageous interest rates for equipment/shopfit leasing (the lowest in living memory) and the tax advantages such investments bring, are seen as the major catalysts in the drive to improve and come through recession successfully by the independent opticians questioned..
Finally, it seems the need to move forward has been realised and the inward investment within independent practice interiors can only signal better times ahead.
Recovery has been a long time coming and many may have been deterred from investing in their practices by the consistent negativity, so readily rolled out by the media – However, Lynx can report that all of the practices it has refitted during the downturn have seen significant increases in sales revenue and bottom line profit without fail. This is in line with the usual uplift expected following a practice upgrade (circa 30%) during normal trading conditions and is very good news for all concerned - not least those opticians who can now invest with confidence.
It seems that this trend will now continue as more and more business owners are seeing the benefits of upgrading their practices and developing their offer on the route to a far more prosperous and rewarding future. Speak to Lynx about upgrading!
Many have ‘battened down the hatches’ hoping that a time of greater financial stability is just around the corner.
This has meant that investment in vital practice upgrades have been put on hold indefinately.
Unfortunately, this reticence is causing a further decline and anecdotally at least, this has proven to put the paying public off spending.
The fact of the matter is, that despite the recession, the vast majority of people are still influenced by where they shop, eat and drink etc.. by the appearance and perceived image of the places they visit.
If the environment appears run down or dated, this immediately (even if this maybe subconscious) sends out the wrong message.
It tells the customer (patient) that this company is going backwards – not forwards and most importantly reflects the fact that if no care is taken over presentation, then what else is being overlooked.
This can lead (often very wrongly) to the belief that clinical standards /diagnostic equipment are also dated and likewise the frame selection on offer.
It is quite logical to think that if the image of the practice does not meet expectations and the interior is tired and out of date, then so it follows, is everything else.
Of course, in the vast majority of cases – this is not in fact what has happened – in many instances, it is the reverse and the practice may have invested huge capital in diagnostic equipment, or may stock the very latest in cutting edge frames and lenses at the expense of their practice interior and frame displays.
This however, is not what the customer/patient see’s when they walk past the shop window and therefore the message is never conveyed and they walk onto the next – more inviting practice.
It is worth mentioning that all successful businesses who have to have a public image and / or high street presence, – consistently invest in the environments in which their customers (patients) will experience their brand and its values. (See Woolworths as a case in point as to what happens for not investing in the right image/brand/interiors).
This is with good reason, as the spend level goes up when the environment is well presented – it is as simple as that.
Nobody expects every practice to invest huge sums of money in re-fitting their interiors (although many still see the benefits this brings and have continued to upgrade as they know it will more than pay dividends both in the short and long term). However, even a minor overhaul will create a tangible difference, which will in turn inflate bottom lines and prove extremely productive in boosting customer/patient confidence.
So is now the time to bring in a professional optical interior specialist to help you through and improve your position, or should you continue to wait?
The obvious answer is to be pro-active, not re-active, because, quite simply those that do will be far better placed (both now and in the future) to come out on top.
Getting left behind now will make the journey back even longer and harder and that is the last thing any optician needs in the current climate.
The trend towards practices moving to (much) bigger premises is growing, as businesses are taking advantage of reduced lease costs and larger rent free periods – with landlords keen to fill space – converting to greater overall contract values to the optical interior specialists.
It is also very apparent that after a sustained period of ‘sitting back and seeing what happens’ most forward thinking opticians have decided to invest in their premises and be pro-active in attracting new patients in and maximising their available revenue streams.
Also apparent is the growing feeling that failure to present the right image to the ever more savvy buying public, will be detrimental in the extreme and that patients need to be attracted by an inviting, contemporary environment. Driving these developments are several factors according to Lynx’s research.
The obvious issue of maintaining pace with competition on the high street (which is viewed as being more important than at any time during the last decade) coupled with very advantageous interest rates for equipment/shopfit leasing (the lowest in living memory) and the tax advantages such investments bring, are seen as the major catalysts in the drive to improve and come through recession successfully by the independent opticians questioned..
Finally, it seems the need to move forward has been realised and the inward investment within independent practice interiors can only signal better times ahead.
Recovery has been a long time coming and many may have been deterred from investing in their practices by the consistent negativity, so readily rolled out by the media – However, Lynx can report that all of the practices it has refitted during the downturn have seen significant increases in sales revenue and bottom line profit without fail. This is in line with the usual uplift expected following a practice upgrade (circa 30%) during normal trading conditions and is very good news for all concerned - not least those opticians who can now invest with confidence.
It seems that this trend will now continue as more and more business owners are seeing the benefits of upgrading their practices and developing their offer on the route to a far more prosperous and rewarding future. Speak to Lynx about upgrading!
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