Curt Duff has been a Kentucky Licensed Optician for over
30 years. He is ABO/NCLE certified, an OAA Honored Fellow,
CLSA Fellow and an NAO Fellow. Curt is Executive Director of
The Society of Dispensing Opticians of Kentucky. He is
currently a contact lens advisor and ophthalmology residents’
trainer at The University of Kentucky Medical School,
Department of Ophthalmology. He is a graduate of the OAA 100
Hour Refractometry Course and has passed the ABO Masters
Exam. He is a past chairman of The Guild of Prescription
Opticians of America and was chosen 1998 Guild Optician of
the Year. He is past president of the Opticians Association
of America and served as Education Chairman of the Contact
Lens Society of America, and regularly lectures both locally
and nationally.
Mr. Duff responded to the following list of questions and
below is a summary of his responses.
Describe your practice, and the services provided.
I head an independent optical practice w/full service
contact lens and optical facilities. TKT is a family
operation, and I work closely with my daughter, Susan. I
purchased the firm from the former owner, Mr. John Durkin,
and we have been in operation for many years.
Will you please describe your organizational philosophy,
including any mission statement, vision, goals, etc.?
We do not have a specific mission statement, but as an
attempt at describing what we focus upon as an organization,
we provide specialty contact and ophthalmic needs to all
customers on a personal level at a reasonable price. We are
completely independent and Optician-owned. Our vision for
the future is to continue to develop our practice to meet
the demands of the future. In this difficult economy, I feel
strongly that Opticians need to find a niche and fill it.
Competitive Advantage plays directly into that philosophy,
and I feel comfortable that we meet that through our
specialty contact lens practice. Our referrals come from a
broad base of Ophthalmologists in the area, as well as my
service at the University of Kentucky Ophthalmology
department. I learned contact lenses at the Baylor Contact
Lens course and from many of the masters in my area, and
have been fortunate to carry that on. We also seek to find
new and different products for our patients and attempt to
buy successfully to be able to offer them at competitive
prices. We do not focus on price, but value for our
patients.
Duff polishing a contact lens |
President, Tinder, Krause
and Tinder
|
Duff reading a radiuscope |
Do you have a Strategic Plan for your practice?
Our plan is to continue to provide quality optical
service on a more specialized level for contact fittings and
elite and custom frames. Through this philosophy we feel
that we can meet the demands of our patients and vary our
activities from our competitors. Keeping on top of current
products and services is important.
What do you see as your biggest strengths and weaknesses?
Biggest strengths would be experience and personalized
service. Biggest weakness would be marketing and
advertising.
Are there specific opportunities and threats in your
local marketplace? If so, how do you effectively deal with
them?
Convenience and ease over time and quality are specific
concerns we face. We try to continue to be extraordinary in
an ordinary market, and feel we are doing that daily. We
face all the large retailers that all Opticians face, and we
feel that we provide services and products they cannot.
Repairs, lab services, and other services the big-box
retailers do not see as cost-effective.
Where do you see your organization in the next 10 years?
The optical industry?
Personally I feel we will be in the same or better
position than we are now – as long as we continue to
respect our referrals and pay attention to our customer
base. The patients we currently serve are significant to our
future success and we are attempting to make them
super-happy. Maintaining them is the key to our success and
sustainability.
I see the industry in a long-standing state of flux. I am
not sure where we are headed, but I do know that Opticians
must work together to maintain and grow our share of the
market.
Can you describe your competitive advantage? What do you
think makes patients come to you, and stay with your
practice?
Personal services and referrals from patients as well as
our referring Ophthalmologists are our biggest assets. We
have a warm and very comfortable atmosphere, and go above
and beyond the call of duty to meet the expectations of
patients. It is a significant part of what we do each and
every day. Our referral sources consist of both patients and
our referring docs. We also maintain excellent relationships
with our Ophthalmologists by providing their patients with
that “WOW’ factor. When they leave, we make certain they
are happy and maintain close communication with our docs. If
a problem arises, we handle it as painlessly as possible.
What, if anything, would you do differently in your
career?
I would probably further my education, which I see as
Opticians biggest weakness. In my state of Kentucky we are
required to have a license. I would enjoy seeing Opticians
educated at a higher level. We need to gain some consistency
regarding the education and training for all Opticians. In
many states, there are no requirements and that hurts us all
as a profession. I hope that can change in the future.
Are there tidbits of advice you might share with the
readers that you feel may help them better compete?
To find you niche and run with it – whether it be low
vision aids, designer eyeglasses or keratoconus/corneal
graft contact fits – and stick with it until you are at
the top of your market.
Conclusion
Curt Duff is an entrepreneurial, independent Optician and
has maintained a successful operation now for many years. We
can see from Mr. Duff’s comments that he focuses on close
relationships with both patients and referring physicians.
He seeks to find new products and services and always stays
in touch with current events in the industry. He maintains
an active continuing education program and provides for
learning opportunities for his staff. He sets the bar for
others and competes successfully.
The purpose of this initial profile is to provide some
examples of successful independents. The dream of owning a
practice used to be in the minds of all. Now, that may not
be the case. Existing firms are in constant fear of failure.
Why? Because we all may need to gain a better understanding
of how to better compete. Generally we all look alike. Be
different. Find out what can best meet the needs of your
target market and go after it. Folks like Curt Duff continue
to grow and thrive in this turbulent market, and you can as
well. In the next few months there will be others. Read the
articles and see how they are doing it. Emulate them, and
gain that “Competitive Advantage” in your market.
