CITY OPTİK
Sincere Shopping
Silmo Istanbul stands out with its development, the number of exhibitors increasing every year and the innovations prepared by the exhibitors for the visitors.
Hello Mr. Faruk. Could you introduce yourself a little bit and tell us about how you entered the optical sector?
Hello, first of all, I would like to thank 4 your eyes team for this precious interview. I am Faruk Tepe, born in 1980 in Istanbul. Before 2007, I had the opportunity to get to know the optical sector while working in pharmacy – optics. I aimed to be a part of this sector and then decided to start my own business. This is how I opened the first City Optik store.
Could you tell us about your journey with City Optik and your branches?
About 20 years ago, I literally entered the optical sector by opening our first store in Esenyurt. From those early days when I did not have much knowledge about the sector and the work done; I have come to these days by improving myself. During this time, growing and branching was a goal I always desired. We are currently serving the sector and our customers with a total of 7 stores, 6 in Istanbul and 1 in Tekirdağ.
What do you pay attention to when determining the location of your stores? We know that you host your customers with pleasure with the cafe-bar in your store. Let’s talk about this idea.
We determine the location of our stores according to the population in the region and the shopping density of the neighborhood. We have been managing the cafe-bar catering project with pleasure since the opening. We serve our customers like guests coming to our home and ensure that they spend more quality and sincere time during their shopping experience. This has attracted the attention of our customers in all our stores and made us stand out with this stance that enables us to offer our customers a quality and warm shopping experience.
Street stores or being located in a shopping mall? What is your preference and what are the reasons?
Since we started the sector with street stores, it has always seemed warmer to me to do business with the logic of artisans. For this reason, in the past, I would have answered this question directly as a street store. However, our orientation towards shopping mall stores has been completely customer demand. The fact that the store is open 7 days a week makes it easier for us to reach our customers. I think we serve more customers in a longer time period in the shopping mall. Nevertheless, we plan to continue growing the City Optik brand with our street stores.
What are the most popular brands of optical and sunglasses sold in your store?
We have all kinds of products in our stores, from the most economical to the most expensive. In our best-selling category, of course, products such as Burberry, Tom Ford, Rayban, Silhouette, Lindberg, especially Prada, have been preferred for several years.
Do you include products from every segment in your store? How do you think having different product segments reflects on your sales?
Having products from every segment causes customer diversity. This means great comfort and convenience for the seller. Since our customers can find products of every price and brand in the aisles, they can get the service of the most suitable product for their budget and style.
Designer brands are very popular in recent years. Do you also receive requests from your customers in this direction?
Yes, there used to be a distinction between boutique and commercial products. Now, the effect of social media and the use of eyewear as a style completion product has eliminated this distinction. For this reason, we now receive requests from our customers in this direction.
What are your after sales services?
We conduct customer satisfaction surveys after sales, measuring the service quality of our customers increases our sales quality. The technical service department, where we deal with all products, is an important element for us. We pay special attention to reduce the waiting time of our customers by finding a solution to defective products from a single source in a short time.
How do you inform your customers about changes and campaigns in your store?
We usually prefer to inform our customers verbally when they come to the store. We announce the campaigns with visuals on the exterior showcases, including informative advertising texts such as in-store brochures and posters.
Are in-sector sales and training briefings sufficient? Do you organize training programs for your store employees?
We provide continuous training with our management staff during our store visits. We plan training programs for our employees in the digital environment in order to constantly benefit from innovations and changing technology. I do not think that there is no limit to any educational information. I believe that the more knowledge all sector employees have, the more efficiency will be obtained.
Do you follow international optical fairs and sectoral developments?
I participate in all international fairs, which is a great benefit in terms of informing the employees in our stores and renewing the product collection. I believe that all sector professionals should follow these fairs as intensively as possible. I think that fairs are ideal platforms to move in sync with trends and to be informed about the latest technologies.
How would you evaluate the 10th Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair, which was held for the 10th time with its new and larger service area?
Silmo Istanbul Optical Fair is a panorama of the last 10 years of the optical industry. Its contribution to the development of the sector is indisputable. I congratulate Silmo Istanbul for reflecting the growth and revitalization of the sector to us in an ideal way while growing and developing in the last 10 years. While the increasing number of exhibitors attracts attention every year, the innovations prepared by the exhibitors for us, the visitors, stand out more and more every year. In this sense, I believe that Silmo Istanbul has succeeded in achieving its goal when compared to the fairs of other sectors.
Thank you very much for this valuable interview. Finally, can we learn your comments on the transition of our magazine 4 your eyes to digital publishing?
Until two years ago, both our employees and customers were very satisfied with the new issue that reached our store every month. However, by keeping up with the new digital age and being online without compromising its innovative, up-to-date and solid stance, we can now easily access it from anywhere at any time. Thank you very much.
May 2024