Directory:Health:Opticians
Opticians
I gave up paying £150+ for a pair of glasses some years ago when I discovered you could take your prescription anywhere and the competition started to get fierce. Increasingly dominated by some very big players like Boots and Specsavers, some local independents are nevertheless fighting back and providing the full professional service along with decent quality competitive frames and lenses. Beware the costs of coatings, tints, and transitions with lenses as this appears to be where the profit now lies so make sure you tot up all the extras. Also watch out for reglazing your existing frames - it can be a lot cheaper to buy new frames and lenses complete, especially for reading glasses where you don't want tints or transitions.
I have an aversion to listing big companies like Tesco because they get enough free publicity elsewhere. But these are hard times and not everyone can afford to pay for eye tests and fancy designer specs. So I'm going to break a rule and point you at the opticians hidden at the back of the Tesco store at Horwich. There you will get a genuinely free eye test with no strings attached or hard sell to buy expensive frames. For £10 you can also buy frames complete with prescription lenses, and they are actually not bad quality, which they will fit properly. I got a test, a new pair of readers and a pair of distance glasses to use as spares for £20 the lot. The testing is basic with none of the gadgetry you get in other opticians but it was professional and that is all I wanted - if you want the works you will have to go elsewhere. A reluctant plug for another chain - Boots and D&A (now the same company) are doing eye tests for £5 with a voucher you can print off from their website. I have had 2 eye tests in recent years at a branch of Boots and it was extremely thorough but beware the variable quality and ridiculous prices of the glasses they then try and sell you. Remember that the £5 eye test is a lure unlike Tesco where is seems a genuine public service. If you don't have to pay for your eye tests then please do use a local independent optician.
Having got a free eye test from Tesco and a spare pair of distance glasses for a tenner, I wanted a main pair of distance glasses and found this company whilst trying to avoid either (a) the Specsavers kind of cheap and (b) the Boots kind of silly prices. Tesco were OK until you want something added on like transitions or a tint, and besides I have an aversion to putting my cash in their tills other than for fish fingers and lemon cheesecake. Vision Direct are unusual in that they are big Internet traders but also have a full service opticians store in Bolton, where you can get a test and the glasses are the same price as online. I wanted CK glasses that were £195 for the basic frames in Boots. I got them from Vision Direct for £115 including all the coatings and transitions, same price as Selectspecs (who are fine until something goes wrong and then turn into the Internet trader from Hell). What I wanted was out of stock so I called - the order was placed on Tuesday night and I collected on Saturday and got professional fitting as well. Excellent service. They have another site: 2for1glasses which has some really good lower cost frames and as it suggests, 2 for 1 is the name of the game though they can be different prescriptions and can be shared between family and friends. You can get glasses sent by post but I would recommend visiting and getting the best of both worlds - Internet prices and personal fitting. If you want an eye test they have all the latest equipment in store. 15 Deansgate, Bolton, BL1 1HH. Tel: 01204 520055.
A successful independent local family-owned firm with branches in Bury, Ramsbottom, Walkden, and Radcliffe, with an emphasis on exceptionally high quality service and frames - nothing cheap and nasty. Great internet service for eye drops etc., very quick, very competitively priced and free P&P. Yates and Suddell also do online contact lenses at very good prices, and have recently added a range of glasses although you have to pick the latter up from a store. Hearing assessments and aids are available instore. Personally recommended, especially Ramsbottom. 0161 764 2209. Click here for full details of each branch.
© Evrose, 2012
