If only we’d have known!
Happy New Year anyway.
I was looking through some notes for a newsletter that never went out in early 2020. I was about to get rid of it but I read through it and was struck by the complete difference that year made and I thought I’d share it with you. It’s interesting to see what our plans were and how we’re actually realising some of them still. What plans did you have that were slowed down last year?
2019 was quite a year for Bottomley Opticians and I wanted us to take some time out to think about what we did well and what we need to get better at in 2020. I’m going to try and refrain from any easy 20/20 vision puns as the industry press has already worn them out.
Sometimes it’s a lot easier to see the bigger picture from further away so we closed the whole company for a day and went to Holdsworth House where we had the conference room to review and reflect on 2019 and look forward to the challenges of 2020 and plan how we can be even better at Bottomley’s.
I was very ably assisted by our practice managers Nick and Nareece. Nareece Forrest gave us a brilliant presentation on how we can improve on looking after you and I’m pleased to see the effects of that talk already in action.
Nick Cossins gave us a great rundown of the year and I was quite surprised by the long list of things that happened in 2019 and I’d like to share a few of them with you.
- New Nick – It feels like we’ve had Nick B with us for well over a year and It’s great to have him aboard but it was only in 2019!
- We went to Munich to buy wonderful eyewear that certainly became quite a few of your favourite new glasses.
- We went to Paris to do the same with different people from different parts of the world. We just need to be in that position of always having something special for you.
- We went through 3 coffee machines and 2 water boilers. I’m not sure just how many excellent teas and coffees we actually made but it was a good few!
- We invested in a posher bean to cup coffee machine. Come in and have a coffee with us now and experience the luxury!
- We started getting more google reviews. Thank you so much for this! It really does help us meet new clients like you who get what we’re about and help us keep improving what we’re doing.
- We got more FaceBook reviews and more interaction on Instagram. Again, thank you for this too! It helps people discover why its #BetterAtBottomleys.
- We took on 2 clinically excellent optometrists with a real heart to serve you. It has been a while coming as we wanted to be more than happy with the fit but it was worth the wait!
- We won the National Opticians of the year award! This is a real feather in our cap and we’re all very proud of it.
- We introduced 45-minute eye exams in Halifax and in Lindley. This gives you time for a thorough examination and to talk about any specifics in a relaxed manner with our Optometrists.
- We introduced the fitting appointment because it’s really important we have an expert available to be with you when you come and experience your new eyewear for the very first time. We want to ensure you are thrilled with the vision, style and fit.
- We made the decision to do a refit at Halifax! This is already keeping me awake at night but I know it is going to be amazing when completed. We’ll keep you posted on this when we know more.
- There are other things we did last year like writing more newsletters which keep us busy. There were more talks and sessions on the day but I’m running out of space to tell it all! I just want to thank you again for helping us do what we did in 2019!
I think we are still optimistic and I’m excited for the time we can welcome you all to come and see us in 2021 just like we used to. For now though, we’re still open to help you with your eye care and eyewear all in a Covid safe environment.
Book your time with us on hello@bottomleyopticians.co.uk for Halifax or call us on 01422 331031
or hello@bottomleyopticianshuddersfield.co.uk or call 01484 643692
May all your plans, new or reanimated work out well for you,
Jim Bottomley
