To wonder this about Specsavers?

[SweeneyToddIer]

I wear glasses and go to my local Specsavers- have done for over ten years. Every single time I’ve been there I’ve noticed that all of the staff in the glasses department wear glasses. I figured that they probably don’t all need glasses but maybe wear clear glass just to be more relatable and advertise what they sell.

Then yesterday I had an appointment for contact lens fitting so went to the lens department. The optometrist was telling me about different lenses and pointed out the ones in her eyes- I could see them from where I was sitting (they had a UV filter so weren’t entirely clear- there was slight colouration around the edges)

Then I moved to an assistant who did a session teaching me how to put in and take out my lenses. She demonstrated a few moves with her own lenses. Then I looked around and realised that nobody working in the lens section wore glasses. I had to go the glasses section to pay and, sure enough, all staff in glasses.

So, if you’ve ever worked in Specsavers, can you shed any light? 🤓

I'm thinking about booking a check up just to count the staff to glasses ratio 🤓😎

I work for Specsavers. It’s not a thing. At least at ours. They’re franchises, so I can’t speak for all of them. But several of our staff don’t wear glasses. And people who don’t wear lenses work in contact lenses. The audiology staff also don’t all wear hearing aids. A couple do, but they have hearing loss.

I assumed a lot of them just had clear lenses so they could model the frames.

Thank you!

Can I ask, the lovely woman who did the “teach” session with me on Friday wore contacts and it was super useful as she was able to show me techniques for removal on her own eye.

If someone working in your store has contacts, are they more likely to be given this work?

Ive been using my local Specsavers for near on 20 years and have a great rapport with the staff

I was rung but the supervisor a few years back, out of the blue, asking me to apply for a post

Never in my life did I say I wanted a job

So I asked why the phone call, and her reply was, I was a glasses wearer, had a complex prescription and really enjoyed and engaged when choosing new glasses ( plus I had worked in sales before ) so she thought Id be an ideal applicant

Now that's not the norm I know, but seriously if I was the type of person they were looking for, sounds right that then the majority of staff wear glasses

I went to specsavers a couple of months ago. I didn’t notice the staff in glasses, but after the usual consultation and a very low prescription (they basically said it’s up to me if I want to squint a bit or wear glasses, neither will affect my sight deteriorating), I decided against it as I don’t really like glasses.

The next week I was in my usual monthly team meeting of 10. I noticed everyone had glasses on except one, not sure why it didn’t register before. I said this to my unspectacled colleague, and it turns out he wears contacts!!

Sorry, very pointless story, but it had never occurred to me how many people need vision assistance as I’ve not noticed it before. People’s spectacles often suit their faces perfectly and it doesn’t register (at least to me!).

One thing that struck me was that about 75% of the team working in the private clinic nearby doing laser eye surgery wore glasses…. Not a great advert for laser eye surgery (I’m also bitter because I’m not suitable so have to stick with glasses/lenses).

I worked in Vision Express for a period and it was part of our induction to have an eye test and pick out a pair of glasses. We didn't have to wear them every day but we were certainly encouraged.

Everyone who works in Tesco eats food.

As does (almost) everyone who doesn’t work in Tesco.

I would say to get it. I did and I know so many people who have, no regrets from anyone. Just all wish we had done it sooner.

Note that the surgeons who do Lasik etc corrective surgery oftentimes tend to wear glasses rather than having the surgery too. They NEED their eyes to work to be able to do surgery - so they won't risk having the surgery, and would rather use glasses. That surgery won't give you perfect vision, and it can worsen over time - no surgeon is going to risk his career because his vision is getting fuzzy - particularly an eye surgeon who has to make very very fine cuts and have a very good sense of depth perception etc.

Fortunately these days glasses and contacts are cheaper than they have ever been, and glasses aren't "nerdy" any more - it's fashionable to wear them. I won't get surgery unless I absolutely need it and cannot safely function without it - and that includes surgery on my eyes.

Not necessarily, all the staff know the basics of contact lenses, but they work in the department if they show an interest. The only person who solely focuses on lenses is the contact lens optician, the staff doing the teach also work with glasses. This is how it is in my store anyway. Optics and audiology are separate, even the admin/office staff are separate. But lenses and glasses are the same team overall.