Should i go to Spesavers? YES (Specsavers Opticians)

Member Name: nisbet74

Product:	Specsavers Opticians
Date:	26/08/09 (71 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Brilliant value for money

Disadvantages: Very busy

I have been a Spec Savers customer for about 8 years and I went elsewhere only once and ended up going back to them for various reasons. The biggest one is because of the price. I feel that you just get so much more for your money and they give a good professional service.

My local branch is located in the High Street in Falkirk. It's always busy which is probably the only negative side, but if I'm completely honest it's not a big deal because the staff seems to deal with the business of the branch so well. When you go in they usually greet you in a professional and friendly way. If there is a bit of a queue somebody will normally signal to you that they won't be long and apologise for keeping you waiting. The shop is always bright and modern with a huge selection of frames and choices of lenses and other services offered. The latest service seems to be hearing aids. The staff are always very smart in their uniforms and I think the shop must get refurbished at least every two years.

I go for my site test every year which I get for free due to me having diabetes. When I first used to get tested here I felt the test was over really quickly but over the years the tests have become longer and I feel more professional. As a diabetic you can develop problems with your eyes as you get older and the optician talks to me about these things and discusses it in depth with me now. During the test I guess they are very similar to all opticians and they put the weird multi purpose spectacle frames on then start testing different lenses whilst I am reading out letters, looking at red and green lines and numerous other patterns and colours. There seems to be two main opticians in the branch and I have dealt with both of them over the years. Both seem to be equally good. I even had contact lenses a few years ago and had a few problems. They were really helpful and patient with me at the time.

After the consult is over you are taken back through and handed over to a member of staff who will help you pick out glasses that will suit your style (if I have any) face, job, budget etc. Last year I had great help and the lady went out of her way to get a pair of glasses that weren't on display. They were perfect and I can be a bit clueless about what looks good so it's great to get this help. Not all of them are as good at this. I get the impression that this is the sort of thing that they are really good at and im sure they have had training to help in these matters. It's really a big deal for me as I am short sighted and I ware these all the time so they have to be practical and still look good.

One of the best things is the deals they do. They are famous for their buy one get one free deals and this is normally offered on all ranges even designer labels. The only brand excluded from this is Rayban sunglasses. In the past I have sometimes got a main pair of glasses and a pair of prescription sunglasses in the price range of £120-£150. Last year I only got one main pair of glasses and because I didn't take the free second pair they gave me a discount. Can't say fairer than that. You usually have to wait about 5 days to get the glasses made up. The price on the frames includes standard vision lenses and they always have extras available like photocromatic lenses or special coatings to reduce glare whilst driving. These cost extra but the pricing is quite clear. There is no pressure from the staff to take any extras.

My daughter also wears glasses for her school work. She is 10 and they offer her a huge range of glasses all for free! I'm not sure if this is part of a government scheme or not but I suspect it is.

The only time I went else ware was two years ago when I went to Vision Express. I went so I could pick up my glasses the same day. Within an hour. Service was really good to but much to the damage of my pocket. I think for two sets of glasses including prescription sunglasses it came to around £340! I would expect to pay more for a service where you get them in an hour but this was just too much for me. Anyway it's not my purpose to put them down. Spec Savers jus offer so much value for money. I won't cheat on them again. Price is a big issue especially with everyone being squeezed more and more these days.

Summary: Wouldnt go past them agin