Specsavers Ireland eyes higher revenues as OCT scan technology rolled out

Revenues and profits rose at Specsavers Ireland last year as the eyecare specialist invested significantly in new technology that can be used for the early detection of sight-threatening diseases.

Accounts recently filed at the Companies Registration Office show turnover at the retailer climbed to €18.3 million from €16.7 million in the 12 months to the end of February. Pretax profits increased to €782,367 versus €235,618 a year earlier.

Specsavers, which operates close to 60 stores in the Republic, employed 128 people locally last year, as against 146 people in the prior year.

Staff-related costs, including wages and salaries, totalled €5.3 million, up from €6.2 million.

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Founded in 1983, the Specsavers group employs more than 32,500 people across its 1,978 stores in Ireland, Britain, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Spain, Australia and New Zealand. It opened its first store locally in 1990.

The group commenced roll-out of optical coherence tomography (OCT) equipment across the group last year, with stores in the Republic now also offering it to customers instore.

Early detection

An OCT scan can be used for the early detection of sight-threatening diseases such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. It uses light to take over 1,000 images of the back of an eye and beyond, looking right back to the optic nerve.

A layered image is created that gives the optician an accurate picture of the eye and its structures, which can then be stored so that any changes can be seen over time.

The scan means that eye conditions can be managed before they get worse with an OCT helping to detect glaucoma for example, up to four years in advance of other methods.