Better Vision set to sell cheaper specs
Eyewear importer, distributor and retailer Better Vision Group will start to sell cheaper glasses in a bid to cater to all budgets.
Until now Better Vision has targeted the middle and high-end markets, selling Hor Van and Better Vision products respectively. The company won 16 per cent of the eyewear market last year, up from 10 per cent in 2005. To reach low-end customers the company will open shops in commercial buildings in community areas and capitalise on recognition of the Hor Van name in the mid-range sector, group managing director Pakee Pracharktam said last week. He said the company would spend Bt2.5 million on opening five branches this year. Thailand is home to about 2,500 optical shops and 800 of these are in shopping malls. The two big players are Top Charoen Optical and Krungthai Optic. Pakee said the low-price sector had room for competition because the big sellers are engaged in a price war and one-third of the population wears eyeglasses. He added that the company would meet competitors' prices but would not engage in a war. It aims to win customers with better-quality spectacles, service and developing long-term brand awareness. The company has taken on board a new management team to drive expansion. Penetrating the low-end market in this country will help it build brand awareness internationally, Pakee said. The company bought 22 shops in Singapore and Malaysia from Australian retailer OPSM Group for Bt200 million. It has closed some locations and opened others in these countries. Pakee believes disposable incomes in those countries are not as good as in Thailand. This is because people do not live with their parents for as long, and therefore have greater overheads. Brand awareness is low and price wars are common, Pakee said. The company expects it will take five years to build its brand in Singapore and Malaysia. Further along, Better Vision intends to enter China and Vietnam. Pakee said these countries had huge market potential. China has a huge population and eyeglasses are a symbol of success. Vietnam is on an economic surge, he added. The company will need bright, efficient, Chinese-speaking staff. It learned a lesson four years ago in China when it was forced to pull out of the country because of language problems and complicated laws.
Nitida Asawanipont The Nation
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