Developing thoughts

PRACTICE MATTERS Developing thoughts

What a year it’s been – but despite everything the future looks positive, writes Phil Mullins

Positive outlook for industry

Often in my last Developing Thoughts article of the year, I look back over the previous 12 months and write an ‘end of term’ style review. This year, it’s hard to know where to begin. At the time of writing, there have been more than 1.4m deaths worldwide from Covid-19 – over 55,000 of them here in the UK. The pandemic is far from over, and there is more pain and suffering to come for families across the world.

Fortunately, no-one in my family or at NEG or Optinet have contracted this dreadful virus, and for that I am truly thankful. But with so many people affected, this year has shown that family, friends and health are everything – and we should never take them for granted. My real hope is that when we do start to return to some sort of normality, we remember this and continue to treat people just that little bit better.

Our working lives have been greatly affected by the pandemic. During the first lockdown, the entire world economy fell off a cliff. The UK GDP shrank by more than 20 per cent –with many businesses going to the wall with others struggling to keep afloat. Fortunately, many UK independent optical practices were able to take advantage of government support packages. With GOS payments, emergency eyecare and monthly patient payments, many independents managed to remain in business. In fact, few of our colleagues have had to close for good. Nevertheless, just one independent closing is a sad day for the sector.

SEEDS OF RECOVERY Thankfully, the second quarter of 2020 following lockdown was a period of recovery with the economy growing by 15 per cent – a growth felt by practices across the country. Although it’s not the same for every practice, many NEG members have been reporting record weeks and full appointment books – albeit in reduced numbers. Patients who are being seen

This year has shown that family, friends and health are everything appear to be in the mood to spend and treat themselves. We can’t say if that will continue into 2021, but this has certainly been a lifeline for many practices – who are now better equipped to take on whatever the new year brings.

We are currently too early into the second wave of Covid-19 to tell what impact it will have, but with practices able to remain open it shouldn’t have the same impact as the first. For this reason, our industry is positive about the future. Having spoken with both practice owners and suppliers, the general view is good – and everyone is looking to next year with many new projects and exciting products in the pipeline. This includes NEG. We have been planning for months new products, services and support for members ready for launch in 2021, so keep an eye out for updates in Vision Now and your inbox.

But what about your practice? What do you have planned for the year ahead? In my November article, I wrote about creating your own destiny; being different and making decisions that are best for your business. We know this year has upset the market, with more people buying online, but news coming from Europe is showing that High Street business is picking up again.

Many people are now looking to spend locally, which is great news for independents and we need to engage with these new patients. This doesn’t mean that social media and websites are now the mainstay of practice promotional activity –but do throw out the boring stuff. Show how you are different, be that your dry eye clinic, specialist contact lenses, advanced eyecare, diabetic screening, sports vision, low vision aids, and so on. The list is potentially endless for independent practice – and that’s what makes it exciting.

So if you haven’t started already, sit down this weekend with a cuppa or a G&T and start writing your plan for 2021 and beyond. Think about what you’re going to focus on, and how you’re going to get the message out to your current patients – as well as all those new patients now looking to buy local. I hope you have enjoyed reading Vision Now this year and thank you for your continuing support of NEG. We would all like to wish you and your families the very best for the festive season – and we look forward to working with you in 2021.

Nothing is more important to us than delivering the highest standards of product quality and service to you and your patients. That’s why we’ve invested signifi cantly to bring our MyDay® product range back to the market – moving forward to be fi tter, stronger and smarter than ever. FITTER – An aggressive expansion plan delivered through unprecedented manufacturing investment. STRONGER – Over 300% increase in capacity.*

SMARTER – A fl exible stock management process with dualsourcing to deliver uninterrupted supply. MYDAY® – MOVING FORWARD TO BE BETTER THAN EVER FOR YOU AND YOUR PATIENTS.