Contact Lens Sales on the Increase, Frame Sales Decrease

According to GfK Retail and Technology UK sales of contact lenses and care products rose almost 5% in value for the last year, adding £6million, while the frames market continued to fall.
The report shows frames as being the only segment of the UK optics market down in both volume and value. Volume dropped 3% and in value by 2%, which meant a slight increase in the average frames dispense to £68.10.
The figures also show a shift from lower price points towards the mid and high-end. In the first quarter of 2010, glasses sales valued as lower than £75 accounted for 45.1% of the market, whereas current figures show this has fallen to 42.1%. The luxury segment of the market (above £220) now accounts for nearly 5% of all sales in value.