New Clapham Junction Specsavers opens on St John's Road

SPECSAVERS CLAPHAM JUNCTION celebrated the opening of its new store on St John's Road yesterday (Monday, February 21).

To mark the occasion The Mayor of Wandsworth, Cllr. Richard Field, was met by Specsavers Retail Director, Millie Bryant, Dispending Optician, Neil Bryant, and Ophthalmic Optician, Yannick Dyant.

They were joined by Specsavers CEO, John Perkins, who had flown over from Guernsey to celebrate the new store opening and support the team on this special occasion. Cllr Richard Field and John Perkins were given a tour of the store and introduced to the team.

Specsavers Clapham Junction has been serving the local community for over 25 years and now as a result of the re-location to a larger store site, this investment totalling around £700,000 means that customers will also benefit from the very latest state of the art pre-room testing diagnostic equipment, including a dedicated hearcare centre, eight consulting patient testing rooms, an eye refract room, on-site laboratory and a dual room offering enhanced customer service facilities, particularly for hearcare customers.

An OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) 3D scan, which is hospital-grade, advanced diagnostic, eye scanning equipment is available for sight tests. It can help detect several eye conditions, including glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy up to four years ahead of them presenting via a standard eye test.

The OCT scan uses light to take more than 1,000 images of the back of the eye and beyond, looking at the optic nerve and creating a cross-sectional view. The optometrist can then store the customer's OCT images and monitor for any changes over time, which is a real benefit to someone's overall eye health.

Hearing tests and hearcare clinics are available, with clinical services including a full 15 minute hearing screener test, being used to identify that the hearing is within the acceptable range, and a full one hour hearing test which produces a very accurate audiogram, to then potentially dispense hearing aids.

The store offers a wide selection of hearing aids, a dedicated aftercare service and wax removal. It also provides options for a range of hearing protection aids which are available for activities such as swimming, music, work, cycling or sleep plugs.

Specsavers generally encourage those aged over 50 to visit for a hearcare screening, with annual hearing tests being recommended for those over 55 years old. Loss of hearing can be an indicator of other conditions, so if it is picked up earlier, it may help to reduce the onset of certain conditions such as dementia.

As a result of the re-location to the much larger store, Specsavers Clapham Junction has recruited eight staff to meet the increased sight and hearcare clinics. The Directors at Specsavers Clapham Junction pride themselves on offering staff the opportunity to progress their roles and career which can be achieved by following the Specsavers Career Pathway leading to industry recognised qualifications to become a Dispensing Optician, Contact Lens Optician, various Managerial positions, Optometrists and Audiologists.

Retail Director, Millie Bryant said; "We are delighted to welcome our CEO, John Perkins who has flown in from Guernsey, and the Mayor of Wandsworth who are kindly supporting our new flagship store launch celebration, and are officially opening it to members of the public today."

Ophthalmic Director, Yannick Dyant said; "We are thrilled to host both the Mayor of Wandsworth and John Perkins, on this special occasion.

"We have made significant investments into the business so that we can continue to provide the very best eye care and hearcare services to the local Clapham Junction community."

Neil Bryant, Dispensing Optician & Director said; "We feel incredibly fortunate to have both John Perkins and the Mayor of Wandsworth with us today, to celebrate the first day of our new store being open.

Mr Bryant continued: "Our re-location has provided further career opportunities for local school leavers, graduates and the community, and especially for those people who might be looking to re-train in a new job and sector.

"As a group, Specsavers offer excellent training, job opportunities and the chance to progress. We are looking forward to welcoming our existing customers, plus new ones into the store over the coming months."

To discuss any eye or hear care queries, you can call the team at Specsavers Clapham Junction on 0207 9786626 or book an appointment here.