David Healy, former owner of Healy Optical, has died at the age of 60. Mr Healy, who was born 26 January 1959, succumbed to brain cancer on Friday 7 June.
Mr Healy, who was the Managing Director of Healy Optical until earlier this year, was highly respected in the optical industry and a great friend to his many colleagues and staff.
His father, Peter Healy, started Healy Optical in Tasmania in 1975 as a regional optical frame and accessories wholesaler. He and David expanded the company to become a leading independent distributor of sunglasses and optics in high fashion and mainstream brands as well as high quality spectacle cases, cleaning cloths and clip on sunglasses.
Mr Healy… was highly respected in the optical industry and a great friend to his many colleagues and staff
Under David’s leadership, Healy Optical relocated from Tasmania to Melbourne 25 years ago, and represented brands including Marcolin, Tom Ford, Roberto Cavalli, Tods, Dsquared2, Lafont, Swarovski, Mont Blanc, Balenciaga & Cat, Charmant, Elle, Esprit, Aristar & Valmax.
As a testament to Mr Healy, Donald Ollington, Healy Optical’s warehouse manager, relocated from Tasmania to Sydney with David and continued to work with him until the closure of the company in May this year.
Additionally, two of Healy Optical’s sales representatives, Susan Laurie from Victoria and Cynthia Stanes from South Australia, worked with Mr Healy for over 20 years.
Grant Chick, who was national sales manager with Healy Optical for ten years, said Mr Healy was a great mate.
“I’ve known David for a long time and my father, Roger, was a great friend of David and his father. David was a great mate – we travelled abroad annually to events like MIDO in Milan. I, and others like Martin Coles and Colin Kangisser, who we would meet up with, have a lifetime of memories. He was a great communicator, a great socialiser and a lot of fun.
“David was also very community minded. He was an inaugural member of ProVision and because of the way he conducted his business, a preferred supplier to all the major buying groups.”
David Healy leaves behind his wife Kris and daughters Claire and Anna. His family asked for donations in his memory to be made to support brain cancer via Everyday Hero.