“Silmo Istanbul, where we exhibited for the first time, was marvellous in its 10th year. It was amazing to meet our business partners, meet new customers and experience that atmosphere.”

Hello Mr Tuncay, could you tell us a little bit about yourself and how your path crossed with the optical sector?
Hello, I was born in 1982 in Muş. I started my working life in 1999 in an valuable company serving in every field of the sector. Two years later, when I was only 18 years old, I founded my own company and I had contract manufacturing done by the company I used to work for under the Solingen brand ,and started sales and marketing in Istanbul with my brothers. Later, we started had contract manufacturing done by other factories and expanded to Anatolia. In 2003, we started importing to obtain better and more competitive products. When I look back from today, I am happy that I have been in the optical sector for 25 years, starting from the core of this profession and I am still doing my job with great enthusiasm. In the past, I worked in some non-governmental organisations such as Müsiad and Tobb. Currently, I am the Vice President of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce No. 73 Opticians and Watchmaking Committee. There, together with my committee member colleagues, we are trying to solve many problems of our sector and contribute to the development of our sector.
Could you tell us about the basic values and sectoral vision of Sarpa Optik?
Sarpa Optik was established in September 2001 in Sirkeci, Istanbul, the centre of the eyewear trade. When the 11 September attacks took place and the world economy entered a depressed period, it emerged as a brave example of entrepreneurship and took its place in the optical sector. Since the day it was founded, it continues its activities by growing steadily with the principle of honest trade. Working with its business partners with the principle of Win-Win based on trust, Sarpa Optik has always cared about the opinions, demands and suggestions of its business partners and has taken steps in this direction. Sarpa Optik is fully registered in the ÜTS system implemented by the Ministry of Health and is a domestic and national company and with its own capital, it has the success of launching its new collection steadily every 2 months. Sarpa Optik will continue its successful work in line with its sales strategy and growth targets with determination and determination.

How many brands do you have within the company? Could you share with us the basic features of your brands, interaction groups and their position in the sector?
We are actively in the market with our 6 brands as United Colors Of Benetton, Hemme Paris, Geoffrey Beene, which we distribute,  and Grey Flannel, Flannel, Solingen, whose rights belong to Sarpa Optik. United Colors of Benetton is arguably one of the most iconic brands of our time. Its optical and sunglasses collection offers classic and fashionable eyewear for men, women and children, blended with a variety of colour tones that set it apart from its competitors. It offers designs that mix and match bright hues and pastel frames, carefully designed to ensure comfort, fit and attention to detail that is unrivalled by other brands in its category, but never overdone, and that stand out for their own personal identity. Hemme Paris houses optical and sunglasses products made entirely from design and quality materials. The most striking, even timeless designs in our portfolio are found in this brand. Geoffrey Beene offers a range of high end optical products made from quality materials for adult men and women. Grey Flannel consists of top quality optical models that appeal to all age groups and has the widest range of models in our product groups. We have both optical and sunglasses models in our Flannel brand. This brand is positioned below our Grey Flannel brand in terms of price and contains alternative models that appeal to all age groups except children. In addition, the brand stands out with the quality mineral lenses used in the sunglasses models of this brand and classic men’s models. Solingen, on the other hand, has the most economically priced upper group quality optical and sunglasses models in our product groups.
Are there any new brands you plan to add to your portfolio?
As Sarpa Optik, we started with our Solingen brand in 2001, in 2003 we added our Flannel brand, then our Grey Flannel brand to our portfolio. Then we took the distributorship of our Geoffrey Beene brand. Then we took the distributorship of our Hemme Paris brand. In 2023, we collaborated with the UK-based Mondottica company and took the distributorship of our United Colors Of Benetton brand. We will not hold back from adding new brands to our portfolio that we believe will contribute to the sales, marketing and growth strategy of both us and our business partners and at the same time have a story and arouse excitement.

As Sarpa Optik, what kind of management strategy do you prefer in order to accelerate your growth?
First of all, I would like to say that our company has been growing steadily every year since its establishment. In fact, we ranked 169th in the list of tax record holders in 2019 in Istanbul Avcılar Tax Office, where we are affiliated. We have been on the list of tax record holders in other years. This is an indicator of Sarpa Optik’s success and contribution to the country’s economy. For this success, together with all my teammates, we always strive for the development and growth of the company. It is important for the success of the company that all employees in the company work comfortably and happily and their motivation is high. And we provide all kinds of support and contribution necessary for this. Sarpa Optik will continue on its way as a transparently managed family company with a solid infrastructure and strong capital structure.

How does your sales and distribution network function? What do you do to improve these networks?
As Sarpa Optik, we see our customers as our business partners and our only sales channel is our business partners. We care that our products are sold to the final consumer only through eyewear stores and we take every precaution in this regard. We apply the traditional marketing method with our marketing network spread all over Turkey. We have six marketing teams actively working in the field. Each team continues to work in its own region. Our teams go on regular tours every 2 months. When we prepare our collections beforehand, we make the planning accordingly. In each tour, we present to our business partners the new models of both the brands we distribute and our own brands, which we carefully design and contract manufacture in quality factories with the best material selection. We have a commercial relationship based on trust with our business partners and we provide the necessary support in terms of payment, service and spare parts after sales.
How would you evaluate the Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair, which was held for the 10th time with its new and larger service area, from the beginning to today as an exhibitor company?
Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair has become the meeting point of the Turkish optical sector by raising the bar of success since the year it was organised and has managed to be among the top 5 optical fairs in the world. This is really a great success. I sincerely congratulate the entire Silmo Istanbul family who contributed to this success. In 2023, we, as Sarpa Optik, took our place as an exhibitor company in Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair for the first time when it was held for the 10th time in new and larger halls. The fair was great for us. It was amazing to meet our business partners, meet new customers and experience that atmosphere. I wish the success of Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair will continue to increase and I would like to express that we will be happy to be a part of it.

Thank you very much for this great interview. Finally, could we learn your views on the evolution of our magazine 4 your eyes to digital publishing?
Obviously, as in every sector, it is very important to have a magazine or even multiple magazines in our sector in order to learn information from the real source. Before, we used to follow every edition of the magazine and learn a lot of information from there, but now the world is digitalising and many magazines have been digitalised both in the world and in our country. Therefore, we now enjoy every time 4 your eyes is published and we get a lot of information. I congratulate you for this beautiful work you have done and I believe that you will continue to do it in the best way. On behalf of myself and my company, I would like to thank you very much for including me and my company in this interview.

April 2024

“First of all, Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair fulfills a very important task for the optical sector, where I think that sharing and unity are lacking.”

Hello Mr. Volkan. First of all, could you tell us a little bit about yourself and your story of entering the sector?
Hello. After completing my university education and gaining countless important experiences, I visited the optical fair of the period during the search for sponsors for the WTA Istanbul Tennis Cup tournament organized by the construction company where I was the training and sales coordinator in 2005. After the contacts and fieldwork I made here, we agreed with Optimist Optik, the Turkish distributor of Tag Heuer, one of the most important brands of the period, to sponsor the organization. Before and during the organization, I had the chance to work with both Optimist Optik and Gökhan Şahinler and Banu Baran, who carried out the agency works of the company. After the organization, I entered the sector as the Training and Marketing coordinator at Optimist Optik. I would like to thank them very much for guiding me to enter the optical sector, which I have been in with pleasure for a long time and had the chance to work in very important companies and at the end of this long road, I established my own company.

You are the distributor of important brands such as Woodys and Randolph in Turkey. What could you tell our readers about these brands?
Randolph is actually a brand with very special sunglasses that have been in the spotlight for many years, which we often see on movie and TV screens, but are less known because they are not even in the European market. In its 51st year, the company has been the sole supplier of the American army for the last 41 years. This is due to the extra features of the sunglass lenses and the special metal coatings that comply with military strength standards. An important part of the Randolph sunglasses collection consists of products with mineral lenses. In addition to the advantages of mineral lenses in terms of abbe value and contrast, all lenses have blue light blocking. The lenses are extra impact resistant and each has a special coating that prevents side and back reflections. All sunglasses are specially coated with metals such as gold, silver and chrome and are made in America. They are also the daily choice of many Hollywood stars. Woodys is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and continues to develop its collection and philosophy by adding to it every year. The glasses, which are blended with unique colors with special lamination technologies, blended with unique colors, with a unique structure by baking acetates obtained from natural components for 2 weeks, help end users to reflect their own style in terms of optical comfort and wearing comfort. The frames, which have an above-standard structure in terms of optical requirements, aim to provide the customers of optical establishments with comfort, quality, style and a sense of being different with a wide range of models. Sunglasses with the same features as optical frames reveal their difference in harmony with the slogan ‘Designed for special people’ inside the stem.

Does Optic 844 plan to add new brands to its brands or create its own brands?
Since we are a newly established company, our priority is to position the two brands we represent in the right way and make them products that the industry can benefit from to the maximum. Apart from this, we closely follow new brands and technologies in the sector. Our company is actually part of a dual structure and Optic 844 is a marketing company. Therefore, it is within our future vision to launch the brands that we think will be successful in our country with different formations.

What differences and innovations do you aim to offer to the optical sector?
I believe in the great potential of our sector and I think there is a long way to go. Therefore, I want to work in accordance with this idea. First of all, I aim to contribute to the development of the sector with our Prooptic training area, which can be used by our dealers and all sector stakeholders who request it. I have prepared a training program consisting of 5 main modules that are suitable not only for the features of our own brands but also for the needs of the sector. Here, we aim to share new information that the sector needs in every field and to clean the information pollution that prevents the healthy growth of our business. A person who does not know himself cannot improve himself. The seller who does not recognize the products he sells cannot improve himself. For this reason, we attach great importance to product information and ensuring that this information is transferred to end users and this will always be our priority. Our priority is to be a company that not only sells products but also supports selling them, a company that produces information, not gossip. In addition, we aim to introduce different brands to the Turkish market in accordance with the needs of the sector, specially for companies that are regionally or structurally adapted to the needs of the sector.

What is your strategy for expanding your distribution and sales network?
As we are a newly established company, I have to manage this process alone until the end of the year in order to maintain uninterrupted training and information flow along with the product. Afterwards, we will expand the team with colleagues who are established in their regions and have the same vision. I believe in the importance of effective visits and the frequency of these visits. After the stage of creating our dealer network, we will try to create a structure where our new teammates will make frequent and effective visits and I will spend more time on trainings and information sharing.

In the light of your experience in the sector, how would you evaluate the current state, development and near future of the Turkish optical sector?
As someone who has witnessed the growth of the sector for the last 19 years and has frequently listened to our esteemed elders before that, I think that the growth will continue unabated. In fact, I have the idea that the potential is not used well enough and that we will reach much better points with projects and economic formations that will realize the growth rate and the use of idle potential together. I think it is necessary to raise awareness of consumers about using glasses, to learn that they can get extra benefits by having better glasses and lenses, to analyze their needs correctly and to work on the fact that using more than one pair of glasses will change their lives positively. We are working on this issue on our behalf. There are important examples of the contribution of properly informed consumers to the sectoral volume. I believe that the proliferation of these examples will bring the sector to a new threshold.

Do you follow international fairs and what are your thoughts on this subject?
I have been following international fairs for many years. I follow the innovations and developments even in the fairs I cannot attend. I think these fairs are an important source about how our sector can develop in our country. In addition, it is an indispensable situation for determining the areas where we are lacking and following the trends and habits of using glasses abroad. It also sheds light on how to see the product diversity of the sector and not to get stuck in a small pool of brands.

How would you evaluate the Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair, which is being held for the 10th time with its new and larger service area, from the beginning to today as an exhibitor company?
I met the sector with a visit to an optical fair. I had the chance to participate in every subsequent fair. This year, I enjoyed Silmo Istanbul with my own company and stand. First of all, Silmo Istanbul fulfills a very important task for the optical sector, where I think that sharing and unity are lacking. It is a unifying organization that eliminates the disadvantages of competing in an environment where the potential is not fully utilized. My priority regarding the fair has always been based on developing relationships, information and ideas. With this approach, I believe that every moment spent at Silmo Istanbul contains developments that will reflect positively on business development afterwards. Annual results may vary according to the economic conjuncture, but the pleasure of the sector being together does not change. I hope that the fair, which no longer fits in its old spaces, will continue to grow in the coming years as an element that brings the sector together. The award ceremony held this year was also an indicator of the point reached.

Thank you very much for this valuable interview. Finally, can we learn your views on the evolution of our magazine 4 your eyes into digital publishing?
Publishing has been digitalized in many areas. I congratulate 4 your eyes magazine for carrying the principle of impartial publishing to the digital environment in order to share the shares related to the sector with more people and wish them continued success.

March 2024

Silmo Istanbul, which was held for the tenth time this year, has grown very professionally, innovatively and in step with the times. We are very happy to be a part of it.

Hello Ms. Gülçin & Ms. Ayşenur… Could you introduce yourself to our readers and tell us about how you decided to enter the optical sector?
Hello. I am Gülçin Ündemir, I graduated from Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics and my first introduction to the sector was when I applied to ic! berlin’s job advertisement during my higher education in Germany. I got a part-time job at the company during my studies and when I decided to return to Turkey, the company offered me a job. In 2014, after 6 months of preparation, we opened the Turkish office of the German company and until 2020, we established our sales network in Turkey as a limited liability company with foreign capital and introduced the ic! berlin brand to Turkish Opticians and end consumers. Despite the difficult economic and political atmosphere of the country, we have achieved success with a gradually increasing sales curve and the support of our dear customers who trust us and our product.
With which aims and objectives did you decide to establish your company?
Together with my sister Ayşenur Ündemir, we established our own company Ündemir Optik in 2021 and continued our activities as the distributor of the brand from where we left off. There was no major change for us because we were already a very independent office as the German company’s representatives in Turkey. All the responsibility was on us and the management belonged to us. So there were no changes during the transition period except for some official arrangements and applications. We quickly decided to establish the company upon the suggestion of Germany because our relationship with the brand for 12 years and our increasing sales graph was enough to motivate us. We spent a lot of effort to introduce the brand in our country and achieve success, and we achieved our goal. Moreover, since we were now distributors, we had the freedom to incorporate new brands. However, thanks to our belief in the brand, we decided that it would be better to spend maximum effort on a single brand during the transition period. After three years, we have signed agreements with new brands and we are ready to expand our product portfolio with new, high-end European brands that fit our vision and working principles.

As we all know, you have been the distributor of ic! berlin brand in Turkey for a long time. Could you give us detailed information about the brand?
Founded in Germany in 1996, ic! berlin is the inventor of the screwless temple system, as readers may know. The glasses are handmade in Berlin from flexible, screwless, impact-resistant, stainless German steel and other materials such as durable natural rubber and carbon. It is a lifestyle brand and even a pioneer among lifestyle brands. The eponymous city of Berlin is in its Dna. It’s not just a brand name. As someone who lived in Berlin for 3 years and spends certain times of the year there, I am a witness to how the brand parallels the design language of the city of Berlin. Berlin is a constantly evolving, transforming, multi-layered European metropolis and we can see all these qualities that make the city attractive in the ic! berlin brand. It has always been very enjoyable for me to watch the development and transformation of the brand. Because it has always grown for the better and forward-looking. From my point of view, the fact that Germans do not compromise on robustness and technology, which is also part of their culture, their design approach that always prioritizes function and quality, and the fact that they do not give up their own line while following the trends is a strategy worthy of appreciation.
You introduced ic! berlin’s 2024 collection at Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair. How was the feedback?
The feedback was extremely positive. The collection is always getting better and this is reflected in our sales. New alternative models have been added to some of our best-selling models. One of the advantages of my close relationship with the brand and the company and having worked under their roof for a long time is that I am in dialog from the Production Manager to the designers. In this way, my feedback on the needs of my market is taken into account. Some new models that were found successful only in our market were added to the collection and the results of this were the good reactions we received at the fair.

Could you share with us the main features of your brands, their interaction groups and their position in the sector?
We define ic! berlin as a technological design brand. It is a light, functional, durable, user-friendly product. The collection is extremely wide and has a very good distribution within itself. Thus, it appeals to a consumer group in the premium segment that can have different styles. There is a product group called Core Collection, which has timeless and classic designs; a product group with more innovative and extraordinary designs, a product group that is more on the pulse of fashion; a product group that includes our collaborations with Mercedes Benz and AMG, which includes our partnerships with famous designers and brands; a product group with engineering marvel designs that include different materials and innovations, such as our newly launched patented carboflex collection made of carbon. All these different product groups are united by one common point: superior quality and being from Berlin. Our brand primarily appeals to the end consumer who knows the answer to the question “What is good design?”, who is eager and open to learn even if they do not know the answer, and naturally to the optical stores that are curious, love their business and are open to development. We are eager to improve ourselves and contribute to expanding the vision of the sector. I think we have an idealistic attitude in this regard and we are glad that this is the case.
What is your strategy for expanding your distribution and sales network?
We participate in national and international fairs. These participations are effective in establishing the first contact with our new potential customers. We make store visits in most regions of Turkey. We take our customers who have been loving our brand for a certain period of time on a factory tour and let them get to know the story of the product more closely, and this is usually very effective and reflects positively on sales. Since this is a lifestyle product, the person selling the product needs to know it very well and, moreover, love it. For this reason, we do not have an overly expansionist sales policy. We have not suffered any damage from this policy so far. Telling the story of the brand and educating the staff is our favorite and the thing we emphasize the most. We are open and moderate to serve and support opticians all over Turkey who are open to this, who agree with us to adopt a common strategy, and who look at working with us as a cooperation.
Do you follow international fairs and what are your thoughts on this subject?
Of course we do, we participate in all fairs in Europe. We find it necessary and enjoyable to keep the pulse of the sector. Because I think these world-renowned fairs are very important for following global trends and creating business opportunities.
As an exhibitor, how would you evaluate the Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair, which was held for the 10th time with its new and larger service area?
Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair, organized for the tenth time this year, has shown a very professional, innovative and contemporary growth. Silmo Istanbul, continuing its journey on its own with its Parisian partners, has managed to prove its strength to the professionals of the sector. We are watching this growth and development story with love and pride.
Thank you very much for this valuable interview. Finally, could we learn your views on the evolution of our magazine 4 your eyes into digital publishing?
It is pleasing to see your magazine keeping up with the times and this inspires us. The news and interviews in the magazine are always up-to-date and prepared with great effort. We thank you very much for the devoted effort you provide to the sector.

February 2024