Store No. 40 to open
Horndasch keeps his laser focus on Wisconsin Vision
In the digital age, the brick-andmortar retail industry is littered with commercial carcasses, including vacant big-box stores and malls with missing anchors.
But Darren Horndasch, president and CEO of Wisconsin Vision Inc., is not blinking an eye.
Wisconsin Vision, which markets itself as the state’s largest independently owned family optical company, was founded in 1978.
At a time when many retailers are closing locations, Wisconsin Vision will open its 40th store in September at The Corners in Brookfield, where it negotiated a contract to be the exclusive optical provider in the new suburban mall.
“That (exclusivity) was a make-or-break part of the deal for us,” Horndasch said.
The Brookfield store will open on the heels of the company’s new store in Shorewood, which opened in May.
In addition to its stores in Wisconsin, the company also operates Eye Boutique stores in Illinois and Heartland Vision stores in Indiana.
Horndasch acknowledges that his stores cannot compete with the volume of selections and the prices of online retailers.
So how does a locally owned, brick-and-mortar retailer compete in the age of Amazon?
In this week’s column, Horndasch shares Wisconsin Vision’s recipe for success against national chains and online competition.
Quality of service. The health of the patient is the first priority, not filling an online order, Horndasch said. “Our staff are trained opticians. Our doctors do the entire eye examination. It is an extremely important value proposition for us,” he said.
Acceptance of most vision insurance plans. Horndasch says 65% of the company’s patients are covered by insurance. “You’re not going to get that on the Internet,” he said.
“The online vision retail experience is not designed for customers who want to use vision insurance plans to pay for purchases.”
Local pride and responsiveness. The company produces 400 to 500 pairs of eyeglasses per day at its lens fabrication technology lab in New Berlin. “We’re made in Wisconsin. It is our genesis. Everything is fabricated in New Berlin.”
Flexible storefronts based on location. The company’s store in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward attracts more walkin traffic than one of its stores in a mall, which cater to more patients with appointments. The Third Ward store, which is surrounded by more offices than its mall stores, also sells more reading glasses and “sunnies,” or non-prescription sunglasses. Meanwhile, the company’s store in Green Bay serves a substantial Hmong clientele, who have unique style preferences, Horndasch said. “This lends itself to the neighborhood we’re in. The key is to know the demographics. What are patients asking for?”
Fresh inventory. The company carries most of the popular stylish brands of glasses, including Ray Ban, Oakley
and Costa, and its display cases are updated every six months. What happens to the styles that are removed? “They (dealers) take them back. They probably end up on the internet,” Horndasch said.
Community involvement. The company invests in its Clear Days Ahead program. In partnership with Prevent Blindness Wisconsin and the Milwaukee Teachers Education Association, Wisconsin Vision started the program to bridge the gap between good vision and improved school performance for the children in Milwaukee’s poorest neighborhoods. Since 2010, the
company has provided 2,800 vision screenings to children in need and 820 pairs of eyeglasses at a total value of around $200,000. Why? “It’s the right thing to do for us,” Horndasch said.
After all, how can a child learn if she can’t even see the big “E” on the top line of the eye chart — or the blackboard?