The Image of Success -

Focussing on the fashion of eyewear is a great way to grow your business.

In many optical practices, eyewear generates most of the sales and with eyewear fast becoming the “it” accessory there are many opportunities ahead for business growth.

Yet many opticians struggle to sell high value, multiple eyewear pairs.

In this article, U.K. fashion practice of the year owner, Eva Davé, tells us about the importance of team image for driving successful sales for your practice.

In doing so, Eva explains how she has achieved an average dispense value of over £900 plus a multi pair dispense rate of 43% in a rural market town practice while the industry average is below 10%!

Image can make or break your business

First impressions matter, and if you want to be seen as credible styling experts, everything about your practice including your team, must look the part. The Image you and your employees present speaks volumes about your business.

Studies have shown that we are hardwired to make instant assessments of someone. In fact, we base our first impression mainly on the way people present themselves to the world.

Whether you like it or not, your clothes and accessories tell a story about who you are. They embody your brand and if you want to position yourself as credible eyewear stylists and fashion experts, you must dress accordingly and your team must reflect this. If you or your team are presenting an image which is incongruent to your brand, you will need to work much harder to establish your credibility as fashion experts and sell eyewear as an accessory.

So let’s talk about Eyewear

Are you serious about selling eyewear as a fashion accessory and not just a functional device? Then your team need to be wearing glasses to accessorise their outfits All THE TIME! This is not an area to neglect when it comes to your brand message.

How can you authentically sell eyewear as an accessory, if you don’t believe it adds anything to your look yourself? In practice I always advise my team to be as bold as they can in their eyewear choices whilst still being true to who they are.

IN ADDITION, have multiple pairs of glasses which you enjoy wearing and change them frequently. Use them as talking points to inspire you clients.

My team frequently have a few pairs of glasses at work in their eyewear wardrobes, and may even change them throughout the day. Eyewear and clothing are constant conversations in my practice and it’s the reason just under half of our clients purchase multiple pairs, while the industry average is under 10%!

But it’s not just your eyewear that needs to look good, your whole outfit needs to inspire! And this is not about having a team of supermodels, or forcing people to have image makeovers, it’s about having an educated team of people of all shapes and sizes who understand how to dress well for their body type, colouring and personality.Those who experience the joy and opportunity that dressing to impress/inspire can bring.

Dress to impress!

Zoe Witham, Dispensing Optician at Mincher-Lockett Co. Opticians (left), looks great in vibrant warm colours whereas I look better in vibrant but cooler toned colours.

We are dressed and accessorised to reflect individuality and colour types.

Think about what your image and your teams style says about you and your business.

Are you & your team in formal attire? This certainly can create authority and professionalism, but it can also create social distance and your clients may struggle to really connect to you. Interesting, fashionable and less formal clothes are always more open and friendly than a business suit. They show a joy in dressing which is great to express and will attract like minded clients.

Prefer a totally casual / contemporary vibe? This may make you feel relaxed and comfortable but may alienate some clients who favour luxury.

All in black? Black is no doubt super professional but it can come across as intimidating. Adding colour not only makes you look more approachable and makes people around you feel happier but it can also help you feel more confident – after all you can’t be shy in bright red! Wearing and looking great in colour also puts you in a trusted position to offer colour advice in eyewear. Would you take colour advice off someone who only ever wears black or brown?

Think about the image you are sending out and whether or not it is congruent to your brand. Take some time to have a conversation with your team about dressing mindfully with your business values at the forefront, particularly if you want to be seen as experts in fashion!

You are what you wear!

Dressing well is also important for confidence and self empowerment. Not only does it affect how others think about you but it also effects how you think about yourself.

Enclothed cognition is a branch of psychology that studies how our clothes make us feel. These studies have shown that not only can our clothes actually have an effect on our work performance and intelligence, but we can also start to embody some of the characteristics of the items we wear! So, trying out those bold glasses can actually make you feel bold and confident! Learning how to dress as a fashion expert is the first step to becoming one!

Employees are the face of your business

How the Eyewear Styling Academy can help you!

Dressing and acting authentically and mindfully with business values in mind is a great step towards empowering yourself and your team in accomplishing your goals of being seen a credible styling practice.

The Eyewear Styling Academy gives your team the skills to style both themselves and your clients in great eyewear.

My e-learning Eyewear Stylist Course not only equips you with the skills to style your clients, but also enables you and your team to identify your own unique style personality, dress the part as well as enabling you to choose the right stock and colours for your practice.

My optical practice, Mincher-Lockett & Co. Opticians is based in a small non-affluent Market Town in Shropshire U.K. This is not a bustling cosmopolitan city, neither is there a busy high street, and according to most Opticians, you wouldn’t expect to sell so-called “fashion glasses”. However, we do!

This is down to creating a practice which appeals to the right clients who love eyewear, as well as believing in the transformation power of clothing and eyewear!

We believe people should feel free to express who they are and not conform to the rules of society.

We encourage the team to embrace who they are through their clothing and eyewear choices whilst being sensitive to their corporate values.

We empower staff to carry this into every area of their lives because we believe that our values should be holistic and not just about work! They become a way of life!

Eyewear Stylists Course

My course is the UK’s first e-learning certified eyewear stylist course for the Optical Industry which equips you to boost your average dispense value, enhance your practice credibility, make frame selection easier and creates a stream of happy clients.

Key benefits of eyewear styling: