Essilor, Luxottica, and VSP Global Form Think About Your Eyes Coalition

17 Mar 2010 - 03:22 PM

Dallas - (March 17, 2010) – Today, Essilor, Luxottica Group, and VSP GlobalSM announced the creation of the Think About Your Eyes Coalition. The new coalition will develop a public awareness initiative, launching in the second quarter of 2010, designed to remind Americans about the importance of eye exams, as well as the benefits they can provide to overall health and wellness.

“The Think About Your Eyes Coalition will strive to educate the public about the importance of eye health, which is often overlooked or misunderstood” said Kerry Bradley, President, Luxottica Retail North America. “As vision industry leaders, Essilor, Luxottica and VSP Global decided to join together to embrace this exciting opportunity to combine our efforts to help Americans keep healthy vision top of mind.”

Vision problems and eye disease can occur at any time, regardless of age. Many Americans have an uncorrected visual impairment that can impact their quality of life and lead to other physical and emotional complications. This public awareness initiative will provide insight on specific topics, such as eye disease, eye fitness and children’s vision, to illustrate that good vision care can ultimately improve a person’s ability to learn and have a healthier life.
 
The public awareness campaign will include components, such as television, radio, online and social media communications, with details to be finalized in the coming months.  In addition, The Think About Your Eyes Coalition will launch a consumer-facing Web site to coincide with the campaign.
 
“Through the Think About Your Eyes Coalition, we will help raise awareness of not only how important comprehensive eye exams are, but also what an important role an eye exam plays in monitoring your overall health,” said Rob Lynch, CEO of VSP Global. “A primary goal of this coalition will be to highlight all the preventative health benefits that a comprehensive eye exam can deliver, including the detection of diabetes, high cholesterol and other diseases.”
 
Wally Lovejoy, Senior Vice President of Eye Care Development for Luxottica Retail, will serve as chairman of the coalition and Ken Stellmacher, Director of Client and Member Marketing for VSP Vision Care, will serve as vice chairman.
 
Funding for the initiative has been provided through contributions of the coalition members. Industry leaders interested in joining the Think About Your Eyes Coalition should contact Wally Lovejoy at wlovejoy@luxotticaretail.com or 513-765-6340.
 
“We look forward to other leaders throughout the industry joining the coalition and supporting the important cause we serve,” said John Carrier, President, Essilor of America, Inc. “This is a great opportunity for our industry to spread the positive message of preserving sight and to support the eye care professionals throughout the United States who help millions see better.”
Last updated: Jan 02 2014