I had a very enjoyable visit to Specsavers on Castle Walk on Thursday. The chain offers optician services for eyesight testing and sells glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses. It also sells hearing aids.
The Newcastle branch has been open for 25 years. It was good to meet some of the 48 employees - many of whom who have a lot of family links to each other, as siblings, parents and children or partners. Some have even found love while working together!
I was given a tour of the shop by joint owner Debra Fitzsimmons who showed me the different eye care equipment including the lens cutting machine.
We discussed how the business got through the pandemic. A skeleton staff ran the shop seven days a week dealing with thousands of contact lenses deliveries, emergency appointments and helping essential workers. They have been able to rebuild and get back on their feet through furlough and business grants.