Germany: Fielmann beats recession

Optical retail giant Fielmann has turned Germany's unfavourable changes to health insurance regulations to its advantage. The German optical market was hit when spectacle wearers lost their entitlement to prescription lenses under statutory reform last year.

'For €10 per year, the policy gives Fielmann customers access to stylish spectacles complete with Zeiss lenses, which they can replace every two years', said a company spokesman. 'Lenses are replaced free of charge in the event of breakage, damage or changes in eyesight. The premium for bifocals/varifocals is €50'.

Company sales continued to improve after one of the worst recessionary periods for the country's optical sector (a sales decrease of 31 per cent in 2004 compared to 2003). in the first quarter of 2005 Fielmann had boosted new orders by 33 per cent, with April alone being 37 per cent ahead of the same month last year.

Fielmann plans to establish 15 new branches in Germany and take on 300 new staff. The group operates 463 branches in Germany, 5 per cent of the 9,900 retail outlet industry.