OPTIC 844
Growing Stronger
“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