New: NuPolar 1.74 lenses from Younger Optics
05/26/2022

Tags

#OphthalmicLenses

#PolarizedLenses

#OpticalIndustry

#NuPolar

When NuPolar® polarized lenses were introduced in 1995, polarized lenses were less than 1% of Rx lens sales in the US, and they were only available in one material – CR-39 Hard Resin.

Boy, how things have changed! Polarized lenses are now close to 10% in the US, and that share should continue to climb with the introduction of a product we have all been waiting for – NuPolar 1.74. This product release is very timely, because the fastest growing segment of lens materials is high index, particularly 1.74. NuPolar 1.74 lenses offer all of the well-known benefits of the NuPolar brand, such as color uniformity, heat stability, wide Rx range, consistent curve control, true gray color, superb adhesion and of course, high polarization efficiency! Now eye care practices can deliver all of these benefits to their higher prescription patients in a very thin, attractive, ultra-high-index lens.

Check the polarized sales at your eye care business, and if you are not at 10% or above, NuPolar 1.74 lenses may be just the product to help you climb to the next level. Believe me, the higher you climb with polarized sales, the better the view, for both your patients and your bottom line.

Do polarized lenses work with digital displays?
05/26/2022

Tags

#OpticalIndustry

#OphthalmicLenses

#NuPolar

#PolarizedLenses

Our lives have become more and more reliant on digital displays, including our phones, tablets, watches and car dashboards. In the past, some LCD displays were difficult to see with polarized lenses, because these screens contained polarized films aligned conversely to the polarized films in sunglasses.

Boy, have times changed over the years! Display manufacturers have eliminated this problem by realigning the film used in their instruments. This is a great development! Now that this problem is rapidly disappearing, we can enjoy the enormous benefits of polarized lenses without downsides, and optical professionals can enthusiastically recommend polarized lenses without worrying about this issue of the past.

Recently, Younger Europe made a great video discussing this, and I am happy to share it below! Just one less thing to worry about when prescribing and wearing NuPolar polarized lenses!

Vision Expo East 2022
05/26/2022

Tags

#OpticalIndustry

#Events

I would personally like to thank everyone who traveled to Vision Expo East in NYC and visited the Younger Optics booth, especially those who followed me on LinkedIn. I would also like to thank my team members who worked the Younger booth; which was very active with many visitors. Everyone was in good spirits and enjoyed being out in the world, face to face again! All of the exhibitors and attendees deserve a compliment: congratulations on a successful show!

Younger highlighted its main lens brands, including NuPolar, Camber, Trilogy, and of course its full line of Transitions lenses, including the new Transitions XTRActive Polarized and Transitions XTRActive New Generation lenses. We also showed off our NuPolar Mirrors, NuPolar High Index, and the upcoming NuPolar 1.74!

I wish I could have attended this year, but I am sure going to be there for Vision Expo West in Las Vegas September 14-17th. See you then, and thank you for your support of Younger Optics.

Choosing the Right Business Partner
03/06/2022

Tags

#FreeFormLenses

Choosing the Right Business Partner May be Your Most Important Business Decision
In business, it is tough to go it alone. Having a great partner can make it infinitely easier for your business to succeed and prosper. The trick is finding the right one, since nothing can be worse for your business than having the wrong business partner!
In choosing a business partner, I looked for the following characteristics:
• Flawless honesty & integrity. If they don’t possess these traits, nothing else matters, no matter how talented.
• A different skill set than you have. For example, if you excel in sales and marketing, choose a partner who specializes in operations.
• A different approach to problem-solving. Get a partner who sees the world differently than you do. A different perspective really helps.
• The same fundamental principals. While it’s nice to see the world differently, you want to agree on fundamental ideas, such as what you hope the business to accomplish, and how to get there.
• Should be “Love at First Sight”. You should just “click” with the right partner and be able to finish each other sentences. It took me about five minutes to choose my partner at Younger Optics, Tom Balch, and the only thing I can’t figure out is what took me so long! 😄
I’m sure there are many more things to add to the list, but you get the idea. The business world is full of great partner combinations, like Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger. It makes success so much easier! It’s tough to go it alone.

Thanks to everyone out there for their support
03/13/2022

Tags

#FreeFormLenses

#CamberLenses

For my last post of 2021, I would just like to use this opportunity to thank everyone out there for their support of Younger Optics. Younger is closing the most successful year in its history, thanks to all of our customers worldwide, and to all of the eye care professionals throughout the world who have dispensed Younger’s products. In addition, I would also like to thank all of the people who have been active on my social media posts. It’s been a wonderful opportunity for me to talk to so many of you out there in the optical industry. I appreciate the feedback, and I’m happy that so many of you enjoy my posts about Younger, about products, about the history of our industry, general business, and anything else that I feel like sharing! I’m planning to continue in 2022 and beyond. Happy Holidays, and I wish all of you a great 2022!

Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway
03/29/2022

Tags

#OpticalIndustry

Those of you who read my posts regularly know that one of my heroes is Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway. Charlie celebrated his 98th Birthday on Jan 1st and is still going strong.

His wisdom is just so deep and insightful over a huge range of subjects. I have had the pleasure of speaking with Charlie on informal occasions several times, and he is no less impressive in person than in public.

Here are some of my favorite Charlie quotations. There is wisdom in these for all of us. Happy Birthday, Charlie Munger!!

“Knowing what you don’t know is more useful than being brilliant.”
“The best way to get what you want in life is to deserve what you want.”
“People calculate too much and think too little.”
“Those who keep learning will keep rising in life.”
“As Samuel Johnson said famously, ‘I can give you an argument, but I can’t give you an understanding.’”
“You don’t have to be brilliant, only a little bit wiser than the other guys, on average, for a long, long time.”
“I can’t give you a formulaic approach, because I don’t use one. If you want a formula, you should go back to graduate school. They’ll give you lots of formulas that won’t work.”
“In my whole life, I have known no wise people who didn’t read all the time — none, zero. My children laugh at me. They think I’m a book with a couple of legs sticking out.”

David Rips, President & CEO of Younger Optics

Camber - No progressive lens is more advanced
03/05/2022

Tags

#CamberLenses

#OpticalIndustry

As a lens maker, it's been fascinating to see technology change rapidly, especially over the last 10 years. One of the most interesting things to happen is the new technologies laboratories use to create free-form digital lenses. A lot of people thought free-form lenses would be the end of lens making as a craft, and that the lens itself wouldn't be as important as it once was. Quite the opposite is true. The incredible precision that goes into the design, calculation, and manufacturing of these lenses in wholesale laboratories has made the quality of the lens blank even more important. Camber lenses are among the most precise and advanced that we have ever made at Younger Optics. They are built with a special shape, like that of an elephant’s trunk, to become steeper toward the bottom. This gives the wearer the ideal base curve for each viewing area in a progressive lens. When combined with the latest technology calculations from IOT, and advanced measurements from a professional optician, Camber lens blanks are used to create completed progressive lenses that are of the very highest quality. Of course, Younger Optics manufactures Camber lens blanks in all kinds of materials and treatments because that’s what lens makers really love to do.

Every Business needs many “MOATS”
03/04/2022

Tags

#OpticalIndustry

Successful businesses, although they may seem large and powerful, are remarkably vulnerable things. One only has to look at the list of top corporations from 50 years ago to see GE, IBM, US Steel, auto manufacturers, oil companies, all of which, at the time, appeared invulnerable. Exxon, the most valuable company 50 years ago, ranks 22 now. All the rest are much lower. Business history is filled with “Roman candles” whose “moats proved illusionary and were soon too easily crossed by the competition.” Regardless of the size of your company, you need to constantly be building “moats” that provide an extra buffer of protection against your competitors. These can include Brand, Reputation, Patents, Technical Know-How, Degree of Difficulty, Superb Service. The list is endless and ever-changing. Low cost won't typically do it, as there is always someone who will do it cheaper. Price is a very weak moat. Since 1992 when I took over Younger Optics, “moat building” has been one of my preoccupations. Nearly everything we do is to strengthen those areas of the business that strengthen our moat. When making business choices, try ranking your alternatives by how much each one builds your company’s “moat.” Every business, large or small, can do this. Although the “moat building” materials will be different, the concept is always the same. Your business will thank you for it.

Blog

David Rips posts

Younger Optics USA

Younger Optics Australia

Younger Optics Europe