Synsam Group

A VISION OF INNOVATION

SYNSAM GROUP

SUSTAINABLE A brick-and-mortar business dominating the Nordic’s optical retail sphere, Synsam Group are synonymous with constant innovation. We speak with Chief Innovation Officer Martin Daniels to discuss consumer-led improvements and forging a brand identity with sustainability at the fore Writer: Phoebe Harper Project Manager: Ben Weaver

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VISION

RETAIL We have built a culture of innovation into everything we do.”

As Chief Innovation Officer at the Synsam Group, Martin Daniels has been at the helm of their development since joining the visionary eyewear retail chain back in 2014.

With an extensive network of stores covering Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, Synsam are an established name within optics retail, spanning both Eye Health and Eye Fashion. In Sweden, Synsam have a strong number one position in the market which accounts for half of the Group’s business.

“We offer eye exams in all of our stores and prescription glasses are the majority of our sales. We also offer contact lenses, sunglasses, and some additional eye health related medical services in some outlets,” Daniels outlines.

“We’re a brick-and-mortar business, although many of our customers also engage with us via online channels.

You can book an eye exam, virtually try on frames, and even complete the purchase online, but most of our customers will come into the store at some point. With our second banner Ai Eyewear, customers can even perform an eye test online – albeit with certain limitation,” he continues.

Prior to joining Synsam, Daniels found his feet in the world of business with a working background in consulting at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). Reflecting on his journey into the optical sphere, he comments, “I was looking for a company with ambition to grow, to do something, to transform. I wanted to go into an industry that had growth potential and a product I could relate to, such as retail. It was more of a coincidence that it became optical retail.”

Daniels’ hope for transformation was soon fulfilled, as he joined the company at a defining time of renewal. When Synsam Group was EME Outlook issue 41 | 3

SYNSAM GROUP

OVERVIEW: SYNSAM GROUP • 480 stores across Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland • Also offer e-commerce and omnichannel • In excess of 3,500 employees • Four billion SEK Revenue (approx 400 million Euro) • Operate under Synsam brand in Sweden, Norway and Finland • Operates under ‘ProfilOptik’ brand in Denmark • Operates a second banner (Ai Eyewear) in three stores in Sweden • Franchise operations in Iceland and Faroe Islands • Eye exams, prescription glasses, contact lenses, sunglasses plus additional eye health related medical services

Martin Daniels, Chief Innovation Officer

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acquired by CVC Capital Partners in 2014, Daniels’ name was put forward by a contact at BCG. “An opening came along at Synsam taking part in the planned transformation and that was the role that I went into. It was a mixture between business development, strategy and product management.

Over time, that evolved into something new, more innovation focussed,” he comments.

After identifying a drop in business, Synsam undertook an extensive period of fact-finding to lead a company-wide transformation.

During this time, every detail of the stores was reviewed and reconsidered, using the figure of the consumer as the point of departure.

“What we did was to think about how we can build a differentiated offering in the market, so we’re not only competing with price and the physical locations of our stores. We reviewed the entire business from the store layout, the logo, the look and feel of the marketing, and the products, to the way that we present our assortment. We redesigned the stores and did things across the board,” Daniels adds.

Although a significant undertaking, the invaluable findings from this time continue to define Synsam as a market leader.

“Before starting the transformation in 2015, we found a lot of alarming insights regarding the way that Synsam was seen in the eyes of the consumer. In essence, most Synsam customers – 20 percent - said that next time they were going to go somewhere else to buy their glasses.”

From this disconcerting starting point, Synsam’s business proposal was renewed and updated.

Recognising the somewhat unique position that optics occupy within the retail sector as a relatively niche product serving a medical purpose, Synsam looked to other retail segments that championed a more

Johnson & Johnson Vision ACUVUE® is the no.1 selling contact lens brand worldwide* and part of Johnson & Johnson Vision. Our goal is to change the trajectory of eye health by helping people see better, connect better and live better. At the heart of this is scientific innovation and collaboration – the foundation for all our products and services.

In collaborating with our partners, and by gaining insights from our patients and clinicians we’re able to design and develop contact lenses that meet our patients’ lifestyle needs. It’s all part of our ongoing commitment to bring clear and comfortable vision to you, so you can focus on your life, not your lenses.

Johnson & Johnson Vision and ACUVUE® are committed to driving meaningful action on sustainability tackling key issues that affect us all - from recycling and reducing our carbon footprint, to optimising our packaging.

“We are proud to be working in partnership with Synsam to bring innovative contact lens products to the Nordic market, and improving the contact lens experience for new and existing wearers. Our partnership with Synsam is also reflected in our shared values of innovation and a focus on sustainability.“ Jonas Dinnesen, General Manager, Johnson & Johnson Vision Nordics * Source: Euromonitor International; Eyewear 2021 edition; value sales at rsp, all retail channels, 2019 data; “ACUVUE® family of brands” represents aggregated sales of following brands: 1-DAY ACUVUE®, ACUVUE® OASYS, ACUVUE® ADVANCE, ACUVUE®, and ACUVUE® 2.

For more information on proper wear, care and safety, talk to your Eye Care Professional and read the Instructions for Use available on the ACUVUE® website www.acuvue.se. © Johnson &Johnson AB. 2021. ACUVUE® is a registered trademark of Johnson & Johnson. PP2021AMB4847.

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“We are very proud to be working in partnership with Synsam to bring innovative contact lens products to the Nordic market and to improve the contact lens experience for new and existing wearers together.“ Jonas Dinnesen, General Manager, Johnson & Johnson Vision Nordics

*Source Euromonitor International Limited; Eyewear 2021 edition; value sales at rsp, all retail channels, 2019 data; “ACUVUE® family of brands” represents aggregated sales of the following brands: 1-DAY ACUVUE®, ACUVUE® OASYS, ACUVUE® ADVANCE, ACUVUE®, and ACUVUE®2. **Enhanced optical design compared to our other lenses.

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ACUVUE®, 1-DAY ACUVUE®, ACUVUE® ADVANCE, ACUVUE®2, ACUVUE® OASYS, HydraLuxe® and The Lens Your Eyes Would Choose™ are registered trademarks of Johnson & Johnson. © Johnson & Johnson AB. 2021 PP2021AO1D4355. For more information on proper wear, care and safety, talk to your Eye Care Professional and read the Instructions for Use available on the ACUVUE® website www.acuvue.se

SYNSAM GROUP developed, ‘customer-oriented’ structure and business model.

“Optical retail comes from a medically focused heritage,” he explains.

“Compared to a lot of other retail

OUR VISION We are the leading and most sustainable lifestyle company in optics and eye health.

OUR MISSION We give every customer the best service and the most sustainable solutions to look good and look good.

OUR BUSINESS CONCEPT We are a customer-driven and sustainable lifestyle company that offers affordable solutions for vision, appearance and eye health for the whole family through unique and innovative concepts for every occasion in life.

OUR VALUES Our values “Customer first”, “Innovation” and “Responsibility” must permeate the entire company’s operations, priorities, decision-making and how employees should act.

WE CONTRIBUTE TO SUSTAINABILITY Our ambition is to continue to strengthen our position as an industry leader in both eye health and eye fashion, with a clearly integrated sustainability perspective throughout the value chain. We aim to be a long-term sustainable company.

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sectors, optical retail has been relatively immature in the sense of looking at it from a customer perspective. Other areas are more developed in terms of online penetration, the way stores are constructed, products are presented, and the way that customers are met in the stores,” Daniels adds.

This functional, basic model of fulfilling a customer’s medical prescription whilst accommodating their most basic need for vision, allowed some room for differentiation and a relatively underexplored creative potential in terms of store designs and the display of products – not to mention the range of products that were on offer.

Indeed, this was the state of the industry across Europe in general just a few years ago when competitive pricing was the primary means of differentiation for market players.

“Over the past few decades in the Nordics, pre-2015, there was not a lot of innovation going on in the industry. The only major thing that had happened was the entrance of low-cost players around the millennium, then one or two smaller chains emerged. Other than that, the industry was very traditional and there was a lot of copying between competitors in terms of campaigns... the only differentiating aspect was price,” Daniels concurs.

This key shift from a medical focus towards a more personalised consumer approach entailed a renewed concern for aesthetics that applied to both the product and the stores themselves.

Most significantly, the Group launched Synsam Lifestyle – a pioneering glasses leasing service that further distinguishes the brand from competitors. Through this subscription service, consumers are offered the variety of three pairs of glasses minimum with no high upfront cost, rather a fixed monthly fee. Allowing for greater variety

Vasuma Born in Stockholm in 2005 from the vision of three friends, Vasuma has grown to become Sweden’s leading eyewear company.

An indie brand with personality, their cutting-edge designs fashioned from sustainable materials celebrate vintage influences and modernity, complimenting the individuality of the wearer.

Their products can be found in over 1,000 high-end opticians worldwide and for the past fifteen years, Vasuma have been a trusted supplier of the prestigious Synsam Group.

Vasuma has from the start focused on producing quality products that last.

Offered repairs and not least, pushed for the use of sustainable materials in both production of eyewear and packaging. With their efforts Vasuma hope to contribute to a more ecologically conscious eyewear industry.

depending on style, customers are also able to exchange one of these pairs every year with new lenses, in sync with the wearer’s changing vision. By tackling the customer problem of variety and cost, the Lifestyle Subscription effectively overcomes a pain point, in line with Daniels’ definition of what makes a ‘good innovation.’

“We started with the customer problem that we are trying to solve.

Equally important is something that suits your style and fits your needs.”

Effectively, this translates into a subscription to perfect vision, rather than the products themselves.

“Across our stores the products were presented either on the brand, frame, price point or sex, and that didn’t really make a lot of sense from a customer perspective. So, we redesigned the stores and the way the products were presented – we went from Him/Her to more of a lifestyle or style grouping of products,” Daniels explains.

RETAIL

Fittingly, Synsam also turned their attention to building their own labels, developing a portfolio of House Brands alongside their attractive offering of designer frames and sunglasses.

“We also found out that the brand of the frame was not as important for end consumers as you would think,

so that’s when we started building our own portfolio.

We curated the assortment and picked frames so that we could have more of an offering to the consumer – including a strong focus on sustainable materials and designs.”

Taking greater agency over their products, Synsam introduced their Recycling Outlet concept – a separate retail banner that combines sustainable eyewear choices with low prices. The concept dispels the myth that sustainable choices come at a greater cost. As Daniels explains, “We make this possible by re-selling old glasses in the recycling outlet store. It may be glasses the subscribers hand back to us when they do their yearly swap, or old collections that are removed from ‘standard Synsam stores’.”

In an increasingly digitalised world, Synsam values the power of face-to-face consumer contact and places great importance on this first physical point of interaction.

“We invested a lot of time money and effort into training our staff to become more EME Outlook issue 41 | 7

SYNSAM GROUP proactive and really engage with and understand the customer’s needs before recommending products.

“Rather than just a transaction, we really try to understand who you are and what your needs are. That goes into building more of a relationship business,” Daniels comments.

Sysnam Group continue to develop their physical presence, using their increasing network of stores to embody the concept of their modern lifestyle brand.

“We are pushing our digital channel, but inherently the eye exam is still

‘ALLA SKA SE!’ ‘EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO SEE!’ This charitable initiative from Synsam focuses on children with vision correction needs.

The initiative was launched after scientific research identified a link between childhood obesity and children that wear glasses, due to extended periods of ‘screen time’ and a reluctance to partake in physical activities where they may risk losing or damaging an expensive pair of glasses.

By pairing with various organisations, Synsam implemented a programme whereby children aged five to twelve can enter any Synsam store and receive a pair of sports glasses and prescription lenses completely free of charge.

“Although this comes at cost, these initiatives build a lot of goodwill with customers and employees. We want to be a brand that’s doing something to better people’s lives.”

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physical and so are the products.

There’s a strong preference for customers to try on the product, to see if it suits your face etc, so we believe strongly in the physical store network.”

The stores themselves are a constantly shifting phenomenon.

“We launched an early version and then we refine from that. We are now at version 12 or 13 of our store concepts. There are always new improvements. That’s the culture of the business that we’re now running, it’s constant innovation,” Daniels surmises.

Of course, the Group recognise the synergy that can exist between both digital and physical concepts, leveraging the possibilities of technology in-store to maximise user interaction and improve the consumer experience.

“We invested a lot in the digital side when reworking the entire business.

Organisation wise, IT, HR, Logistics we did a complete rebuild.”

Synsam Group are far from short-sighted when it comes to their responsibility as a corporate citizen.

Sustainability is embedded into operations and Synsam strictly adheres to the UN’s sustainability goals as outlined in Agenda 2030. In both 2019 and 2020, the Group was voted Sweden’s most sustainable optician in the Sustainable Brand Index.

The aforementioned house labels that Synsam built whilst undergoing transformation are instrumental in establishing the brand’s sustainable identity.

In Spring 2019, Synsam launched the “Fellepini x Sea2See collection – which is a spectacle collection made entirely from recycled ocean plastics collected by fishermen and transformed to glasses together with the Spanish partner company Sea2See. “We built these brands as standalone brands and invested a lot in those frames and building a sustainable identity through products and collections. This now represents over 50 percent of our volume.”

In a region that is reputed as a global leader in terms of sustainability and eco-innovation, most

RETAIL

“We are growing significantly - we are already one of the leading players worldwide in terms of organic growth and profitability. We’re strong performers in that sense” significantly, Synsam are leading the way in reclaiming their manufacturing and relocating the production of their private label brands from Asia to Sweden. The move to localised manufacturing has been a significant one and will occupy the Group for the year ahead.

“Previously, we had partners in Asian factories producing our frames.

Now, to become a more sustainable business, we’re opening a factory in the north of Sweden. It’s being built as we speak and the plan is to get access to the building this year and open production in the first half of next year.”

Synsam pioneers a circular collection, whereby all old frames are recycled, after being collected in-store. By championing a means of circular consumption, Synsam

collaborate with recycling centres across Sweden to sort materials.

“We also have collections made out of old frames that are being shred down into material that we can build new frames from,” Daniels adds.

The Group’s ethos of sustainability connotes a wider understanding of the term that extends beyond environmental concerns, as evidenced by the launch of their pioneering subscription model and charitable initiatives. Championing a 360 perspective of sustainability, Synsam are mitigating transport emissions by bringing the product closer to the end consumer and shifting towards sustainable production materials.

“We believe that sustainability is not an option, it’s a requirement for employees and for the customers,” Daniels states.

Looking ahead, the future is promising for Synsam Group.

“We are growing significantly we are already one of the leading players worldwide in terms of organic growth and profitability. We’re strong performers in that sense,” Daniels concludes.

Nevertheless, Synsam will continue to develop and grow through the lens of physical expansion, innovation, and sustainability.

SYNSAM GROUP info@synsam.com www.synsam.se

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SYNSAM GROUP S.t Eriksgatan 60, Stockholm Tel: Switchboard +46 8 619 28 60 info@synsam.com www.synsam.se

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