I think it is no accident that market share of private practice optometry is expanding. Why does our market grow while private pharmacies and hardware stores disappear?
To me, the answer is obvious. When it comes to eye care and eyewear products, no one can replace the relationship of the locally-owned and operated eye care practice. That “skin in the game” of a business that is operated by the passion and persuasion of the owner simply can’t be reproduced on a grand scale.
And the teams love it. “I know that if I have a problem or see an opportunity I can deal with the person who can do something about it” a former chain store manager now private practice optician told me. “That relationship is priceless. And patients sense and love it, too!”
Being your own brand and steering your own destiny has always been the entrepreneur’s creed. In the words of American success story Mark Cuban, “the American dream is still alive.”
