"If They Don't Know I'm Here, They're Not My Customer" Richard Smith Eyemasters

Richard Smith has run Eyemasters his way for thirty years. No walk-ins. No signage. No discounting. No rushing. Studio-based, appointment-only, and entirely on his own terms. Here's what he's learned.

There are practices built to serve volume. And then there is Eyemasters.

Richard Smith has spent three decades doing things differently. We asked him how he built it, what it gives him, and what he'd say to anyone thinking about doing something similar.

What made you build Eyemasters the way you did?

"The customer sees a lack of time given by dispensers as a problem. As the population ages and retailers get busier, and the time they can give each customer is limited. I give two-hour appointment slots — every contact is by appointment to those who hold a current prescription. This is well received. Time to ask the right questions, time to listen to the answers, time to explain the pros and cons."

What does that model give you and your patients that a conventional practice can't?

"Time. Predictable contact is appreciated — they know I will deal with them. Continuity is a high-street problem; customers rarely see the same person twice. Ask enough of the right questions, and the customer will tell you where the real problem lies, and where they should spend their money becomes apparent.

They really appreciate extensive lens knowledge and a frame range that doesn't look exactly like everybody else's. I do not see walk-ins. I have no external building signage. If they don't know I'm here, they are not my customer. By the time they get here, another customer has either referred them or we've had a phone conversation. This means I have the client base I require — who understand quality and value, not just price. I have a printed price menu. All will pay for that. No discounting, ever. All at a time that suits us both."

What would you say to someone thinking about building something more on their own terms?

"This is an easy question to answer — it may seem a little ruthless. Dean Butler, who started LensCrafters in America and Vision Express here, famously observed two important things it would do folk well to remember.

First: your prospects are mostly not ill. They are not patients — they are customers. Deal with them accordingly. Patients go to ophthalmology. Customers come to you.

Second: you can teach a sales person optics. You can't teach an optics person sales.

I think he's largely correct. There will always be exceptions, but the harsh reality is this — if you don't have the extrovert personality and genuine interest in people, the road will be long, hard, and very difficult. If you have the personality, it will be long and sometimes hard, but not that difficult. Word of mouth is just fine, but it will not be enough. You'll be networking at full speed. That's OK — you like people, don't you."

Eyemasters has been operating for thirty years. Richard Smith works by appointment only from his studio in Pett, East Sussex. He can be contacted at richard@eyemasters.co.uk, by phone on +44 (0) 7768 056 902, or via eyemasters.co.uk. Appointments are available Monday to Sunday, 9am – 9pm.

If you have been quietly wondering whether there is another way to build an optical practice, this is the conversation worth having. Book a Free 20-Minute Independence Call.