Since 1984, we’ve made quality, affordable glasses accessible to everyone —and that spirit still drives us today.
We care for over 42 million customers worldwide, with support from more than 46,000 partners and employees.
It’s 1984, on the tiny Channel Island of Guernsey, when optometrist couple Doug and Mary Perkins lay the foundations of their new optical business. They revolutionised the market by making affordable glasses accessible to everyone. But that wasn’t all: They also pioneered what we now know as the joint venture partnership model, meaning every store is part-owned by one or more store partners.
Although we’ve grown significantly, the Perkins family remains closely involved. While Doug and Mary expanded the business into Australia, New Zealand, and, most recently, Canada, their son John took on the day-to-day operations as Joint CEO. Daughter Katherine leads internal audits, and their youngest daughter, Julie, introduced Specsavers to the Dutch market in the 1990s.
The couple won’t even think about retiring – they will continue until everyone has access to the best eye care.
In 2005, Specsavers and Louis Nielsen came together with a shared ambition: to make top-quality glasses affordable and accessible to everyone.
By joining the Specsavers family, Louis Nielsen became part of a global community united by a strong purpose – to change lives through better sight. It’s a story built on shared values, mutual trust, and the belief that anything is possible when we stand together.
Specsavers and Louis Nielsen prove that family isn’t just about who you share blood with – it’s also about who you share your dreams with.
Learning is part of our everyday work - not just through classroom courses or webinars, but even more so in the tasks we take on each day. Research often explains how we learn using the 70-20-10 model. It might sound complex, but it’s actually quite simple. Let’s break it down.
There's an old Chinese proverb that sums it up perfectly:
"Tell me, and I forget; teach me, and I remember; involve me, and I learn."
Research supports this idea. Only 10% of what we learn comes from formal training - such as classroom sessions, reading a book, or watching a webinar. Another 20% of learning happens informally - through conversations with managers, colleague feedback, or peer-to-peer sharing. That leaves 70% - the biggest part of how we learn - which happens by doing. It's in the moments we roll up our sleeves: helping someone, solving problems, trying something new, or being part of a team and delivering work. That's how learning truly sticks — and how we grow every single day.
At Specsavers, we're committed to making eye and hearing care accessible to everyone. But that's not a journey we can take alone. It takes collaboration - across countries, teams, roles, and even the wider industry - to make a lasting difference.
Whether you join us at our support office or work directly with customers, you’ll be part of something bigger - helping care professionals everywhere become even better at what they do. And just like we invest in our own people, we also invest in the growth of the entire eye and hearing care industry.
Viewpoint is our free online learning platform for professionals, students, and the wider industry. It offers:
Practical clinical handbooks, expert-led videos and interviews, e-learning modules for students to help them earn CET points, and more - all developed with top industry experts.
Specsavers hosts one of the industry’s leading events - the annual Clinical Conference. It’s open to everyone at no admission cost.
The Clinical Conference is an opportunity to stay ahead of the curve, hear from leading experts, and connect with opticians, optometrists, hearing care professionals, students, and others across healthcare - all brought together by one shared commitment: making better care accessible to all.
From expert talks and the latest clinical insights to real conversations with peers who get it - it’s the place where research meets practice, skills sharpen, and careers grow.
Clinical Conference is held in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and the Netherlands, and programmes and sessions are available in the local language.
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StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
06/13/2025
Summary
Relocating for work is a big decision, but with the right support, it can be one of the most fulfilling choices you'll ever make. For Joanna Przybylska, accepting a role at Specsavers in Kristia
Teaser
GPTWContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/12/2025
Summary
Companies can shout as loud as they want that they are a great place to work, but saying something about themselves won’t really mean a lot. But if employees say it, it means a lot more. Hence
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
05/27/2024
Summary
Specsavers is known as a family-owned business with a unique family-like atmosphere that has awarded it a status as one of the best workplaces in Finland. In Specsavers Savonlinna in Eastern Fin
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/29/2024
Summary
Shopping centre Redi in Kalasatama, Helsinki, has housed a Specsavers store since its completion in 2018. Eija Kauppinen is Specsavers Redi's store manager and a Specsavers employee since almost
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/22/2024
Summary
Jazzmin Hobbelen (28) is working as a sales assistant at Specsavers and training to become an optician. She accidentally entered the optical branch: after an education in marketing and communica
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/15/2024
Summary
From old school to a modern clinical assistantMeet one of our newly trained clinical assistants, Claudia Blomdahl Reuter, from the store in Eslöv, who has worked in the optical industry in vario
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/08/2024
Summary
Retail partner Christer Folke Westlund from Kongsvinger has been named Leader of the Year at Specsavers twice, the last time in 2023. Read his story here.Christer Folke Westlund from Kongsvinger
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StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
04/01/2024
Summary
Ester Eggengoor (44) is a hearing care specialist at Specsavers in Hardenberg. After years of working in the insurance business, she started looking for a new job and saw an opening in this – at
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StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
03/18/2024
Summary
Throughout primary school, Luckas Bossen's teachers believed he was slightly unintelligent and lazy. But he was neither – he had dyslexia. Unfortunately for Luckas, it was not until the 8th grad
Teaser
StoresContent Type
ArticlePublish date
03/11/2024
Summary
Meet one of our young optical partners, Wanwisa Vallberg, who runs a Specsavers store in Skärholmen outside Stockholm with her retail partner. As an optical partner (store owner), she can focus
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