John Nguyen with Kim Nguyen (left) and Molly Reay (right).
John Nguyen didn’t know much about optometry when his parents suggested the profession, but he’s more than made up for this ever since, by steadily progressing from employee to business owner to franchisor. Here, he shares his experience, insights, and goals.
Q: Can you tell us about your start in optometry?
When my parents suggested optometry, I didn’t know anything about the profession! I knew it was something to do with eyes and glasses, but I had no idea about the extent of examinations I’d be undertaking, or the depth of expertise optometrists have about eye health.
University was super fun and, even though we didn’t fire up our relationship until after graduation, it’s where I met my wife and business partner, Christine Wang. During my undergraduate studies, I worked with part of the OPSM group and then, after qualifying in 2006, as an employee at Zoom Optics under its previous owner, Alex Tran.
Q: When did you become a business owner?
Christine and I always had a common vision of starting our own business. Our first venture was buying Premier Eyecare, at Gladesville on Sydney’s lower north shore, in 2011. The store needed a lot of work, so it was a great opportunity to make something out of our ideas.
I’m not a big nostalgia person, but I look back at those times with fond memories. We were doing it all, from admin and ordering, to designing business cards and taking out the bins! Our bank accounts may not have been very full early on, but it didn’t take long for us to build that practice and get momentum.
So, in 2013, we asked Alex Tran if he was interested in selling Zoom Optics and it turned out he was. Taking over his two practices (Rhodes, in Sydney’s inner west, and Broadway, in the inner-city suburb of Glebe) was a very different proposition as they were already very successful businesses. Our challenge was to keep that success going while adding our own touch to help it succeed into the future. This was also the point of growth beyond a husband-and-wife business as we brought on a third business partner, Lennon Zhang.
We then purchased In Focus Eyecare, in Cherrybrook, in 2016. We’ve so far kept the name, but we will ultimately rebrand to Zoom Optics in line with our aim to become a national brand. We then saw successive openings of Zoom Optics locations in Macquarie and Parramatta in 2018 and 2021.
In 2023, we took the very significant step of launching the franchise element of Zoom Optics. Along with our inaugural franchisee, Daniel Tu, we celebrated the opening of Zoom Optics Liverpool.
Q: How similar are your seven locations?
Our practices are so diverse. Stores that are within seven kilometres of each other – just a stone’s throw in Sydney terms – can have vastly different customers. I’ve also seen changes over time. For example, Cherrybrook’s older demographic has expanded over the past five years to younger families of more diverse ethnicities. Similarly, our Broadway store, which is located near the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), has seen a fall in international student patients since the pandemic.
Recognising each location as its own store enables personalisation and responsiveness, particularly in the retail eyewear aspect. We support managers and staff to respond to customer needs by hand-curating the product range to suit the local demographic.
One aspect that’s the same across all our stores is a patient-first focus. Our main work can be boiled down to one line: Deliver eye care to the community. All our staff members are committed to this ultimate aim, and it’s also at the core of our developing franchise model, in which our franchisees will be empowered to make their own decisions, backed by our years of experience in business.
Q: How do you maintain an advantage in the current competitive environment?
Clinical services vary with demographics, and we are making use of our Zoom Optics network to provide maximum services to our patients without having to invest in every single piece of equipment for each store.
It makes good business sense to not overly duplicate specialty services.
For example, we are currently establishing dry eye expertise and equipment in our Macquarie location. Other practices within the Zoom network can refer patients for this specialised treatment, knowing that the Macquarie staff will refer the patient back for their ongoing routine optometry needs.
Similarly, we offer a same-day glasses service by having in-house dispensing in six of our seven locations. We don’t have the space to offer this in our Cherrybrook practice, but patients from there have the option to access our other stores if they need or want this same-day service, all without having to refer them outside the Zoom network.
I’m also pleased that six of our seven locations have practitioners with expertise in orthokeratology (OK). As the optometrist in the network with the most experience in OK, I make myself available to attend any location to help with more complex cases and to continue optometrists’ learning.
Q: What is your goal for Zoom Optics?
My ultimate goal is to be the ‘front of mind’ optometry brand across Australia, both for the public and within the profession. This is less about financial possibilities than creating a network for clinical and professional gain for all involved.
In the shorter term, I’m focussed on expanding our franchise model. Daniel, our first fully operating franchisee, is incredibly positive about the support he has received, all the way from selecting a location and mastering day-to-day operations, to business strategies and solutions. We are incredibly proud of the success he is experiencing and are delighted that he’s considering expanding to a second location.
Q: What changes have you seen in the optometry landscape over the past 19 years?
Of course, there have been massive changes in clinical techniques (I’m particularly excited about orthokeratology for myopia control) and marketing (I’ve witnessed the move all the way from the Yellow Pages to social media).
However, there are two other changes that I’m most interested in: the way that independent operators have held onto market share despite the increasing corporatisation of optometry, and the need for the profession to get a stronger advocacy voice.
Q: What is your view on the voice of the optometry profession?
I feel our industry needs stronger voices and self-advocacy. Optometry needs the same level of conviction as the medical profession when it comes to understanding our expertise and advocating for systemic change to enable our profession to offer the very best in patient care.
So many members of the public are like I was before I started uni, in that they don’t really understand the depth and breadth of expertise held within optometry.
I can either complain or do something about this. My approach will be to start within my Zoom Optics network. By building a community of owners, franchisees, staff, and managers who share my passion, I’m giving us a good chance of bringing our concerns and needs to the attention of those who can create change.
Q: Please tell us more about opportunities within the Zoom Optics franchise model.
I’ve chosen franchising as one way to grow the Zoom Optics brand because I want others to experience the good bits of business ownership without going through the hard times.
A franchise can be an ideal middle-ground between remaining an employee and starting your own business from scratch.
Franchisees can leverage my experience, expertise, and resources to help bridge any gaps in their business know-how. After being in business for 12 years, I’ve already made all the mistakes, and this allows me to fast-track others! I’ll support keen optometrists to enjoy the look on someone’s face when they can see clearly, and a parent’s joy when their child’s myopia hasn’t progressed for years, all within their own business.
If you’re interested in a franchise, I’ll work in partnership with you, with total respect for your skills, ideas, and goals. Being a successful practice owner is about far more than seeing 20 patients each day – I want you to become a leader of your business by getting behind your purpose, mission, and values, and empowering staff to do the same.
John Nguyen with Kim Nguyen (left) and Molly Reay (right).
