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LOVE AT
FIRST SIGHT
Paul and Lorie Carey met in the mid-1980s while both
were attending the dispensing optician program at
Georgian College in Barrie. Twenty years later, in 2006,
the husband-and-wife duo opened Carey Optical in the
shoreline community of Port Elgin, Ontario. Over the past
decade, the independent optical dispensary has experienced much success and the Careys have watched their
business grow beyond their expectations. This spring, they
are planning to undertake a major renovation to prepare
for even more growth. Recently, the pair took some time
to talk about their business, their success and the exciting
times ahead.
Q. What are your most popular styles?
By Denis Langlois
A. The upswept cat-eye is popular and round shapes are
coming back into style, but we have something for everyone.
We find people are open to new and funky-looking glasses.
Q. What kind of clientele does your store service?
Q. What kind of marketing tools do you use?
A. Port Elgin is within a half-hour drive to many small
towns. We provide service to a very large clientele of all ages
and walks of life
A. Carey Optical has built a reputation on service that goes
above and beyond. This has resulted in word-of-mouth
advertising. Special events such as trunk shows and sales are
always advertised in our local newspaper. We are beginning
to have a lot of fun with social media as well. Having a good
website and being active on Facebook and Instagram is
helping our business grow.
Q. Why Port Elgin?
A. After moving to Owen Sound in 1996, we worked for and
managed various optical dispensaries and began to realize
that if we are going to give 110% to customers, why not go
out on our own? Originally, we had planned on doing this in
Owen Sound, but after doing the demographic research, we
decided that it was already saturated for the size of the city
with four chain opticals, two independent opticals and five
dispensing OD offices. Port Elgin was only 35 minutes from
Owen Sound, and at the time, there was no independent optical in town. It was close enough that our loyal customers
could follow us and a great opportunity to gain new ones.
Since opening, new competition has come to town, but we
have created our own niche clientele, and have continued to
grow every year.
Q. What are the primary brand names
your store features?
A. Our most popular brands names are Oakley, Versace,
Ray-Ban, Maui Jim, Serengeti, Polo Ralph Lauren, Dilem,
Silhouette, OGA, Seraphin, and OGI. We try to attend one
international convention every year and bring in one new
line of one-of-a-kind pieces that we sell off the boards for those
people who, in a small town, don't want to look like
everyone else.
44 Optical Prism | April 2016
Q. What are some of the benefits of operating
an independent outlet?
A. The biggest benefit is the freedom to customize each pair
of glasses with whatever best suits the customer's needs.
I can make a complete pair of glasses to suit any budget and
any need. I have access to any lens company and almost any
frame company. We use the tools we want. We aren't stifled by
a big chain company dictating that we can only use
certain products.
Q. Are there any changes or plans for the future
for the store?
A. In our 10th year now, we are excited to be planning a renovation this spring. We are working with an interior design
specialist to be better organized for future growth as well as
create a new fresh look. We have had sustained growth in our
sales every year since we opened, and anticipate this to
continue. Therefore, we look forward to hiring more staff.
It's exciting times at Carey Optical, and we're loving every
minute of it.