US Vision
Encyclopedia
U.S. Vision, a wholly owned subsidiary of Refac Optical Group, is an international Optometric dispensary chain. The vast majority of these locations are leased spaces in large department stores such as J.C. Penney
, Boscov's
, and The Bay
. As of May 8, 2007, 500 locations in 47 states and Canada are in operation, consisting of licensed departments and freestanding stores. In early 2008, due to an acquisition of BJ's Optical Centers located in many BJ's Wholesale Club
s, that number has grown to approximately 650 locations. U.S. Vision deals mainly in prescription eyewear
, contact lenses, and Optometry
offices.
, and named the new combination of manufacturing and sales U.S. Vision.
, Saks Fifth Avenue
, Bloomingdales, Lord & Taylor
, Kohl's
, J.C. Penney
, Sears, Boscov's
, Carson Pirie Scott
, and Marshall Fields, and named by simply adding Optical to the host store's name (exp: J.C. Penney Optical, The Vision Center at Saks Fifth Avenue).
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
, Boscov's
Boscov's
Boscov's is an American department store founded by Solomon Boscov in 1911. The first store was in Reading, Pennsylvania, and today 40 stores are spread throughout the Mid-Atlantic states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, and Delaware....
, and The Bay
The Bay
The Bay is a chain of 91 department stores that operate across parts of Canada. It is the main brand of Hudson's Bay Company , North America's oldest company. It has its headquarters in the Simpson Tower in Toronto. In French, the chain is known as la Baie, short for "Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson"...
. As of May 8, 2007, 500 locations in 47 states and Canada are in operation, consisting of licensed departments and freestanding stores. In early 2008, due to an acquisition of BJ's Optical Centers located in many BJ's Wholesale Club
BJ's Wholesale Club
BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. , commonly referred to simply as BJ's, is a membership-only warehouse club chain operating on the United States East Coast, as well as in the state of Ohio...
s, that number has grown to approximately 650 locations. U.S. Vision deals mainly in prescription eyewear
Glasses
Glasses, also known as eyeglasses , spectacles or simply specs , are frames bearing lenses worn in front of the eyes. They are normally used for vision correction or eye protection. Safety glasses are a kind of eye protection against flying debris or against visible and near visible light or...
, contact lenses, and Optometry
Optometry
Optometry is a health care profession concerned with eyes and related structures, as well as vision, visual systems, and vision information processing in humans. Optometrists, or Doctors of Optometry, are state licensed medical professionals trained to prescribe and fit lenses to improve vision,...
offices.
History
In 1885, William Well and Charles Ochs opened a retail optical store in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that is still in operation today. With this as a beginning, other optical locations were purchased, starting the first optical store chain in the United States. In the early 1970s the company purchased Wall and Ochs, combined it with a manufacturing facility in Blackwood, New JerseyBlackwood, New Jersey
Blackwood is a census-designated place located within Gloucester Township, in Camden County, New Jersey. As of the 2000 United States Census, the section population was 4,692...
, and named the new combination of manufacturing and sales U.S. Vision.
Location names
U.S. Vision, being a parent company, is known under many different names throughout the U.S. and Canada. Primarily operating out of leased areas in large department stores such as Macy'sMacy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
, Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue is a luxury American specialty store owned and operated by Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises , a subsidiary of Saks Incorporated. It competes in the high-end specialty store market in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, i.e. 'the 3 B's' Bergdorf, Barneys, Bloomingdale's and Lord & Taylor...
, Bloomingdales, Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor
Lord & Taylor, colloquially known as L&T, or LT, based in New York City, is the oldest upscale, specialty-retail department store chain in the United States. Concentrated in the eastern U.S., the retailer operated independently for nearly a century prior to joining American Dry Goods...
, Kohl's
Kohl's
Kohl's Corporation is an American department store chain headquartered in the Milwaukee suburb of Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, operating , 1,089 stores in 49 states. In 1998, it entered the S&P 500 list, and is also listed in the Fortune 500...
, J.C. Penney
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
, Sears, Boscov's
Boscov's
Boscov's is an American department store founded by Solomon Boscov in 1911. The first store was in Reading, Pennsylvania, and today 40 stores are spread throughout the Mid-Atlantic states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York, and Delaware....
, Carson Pirie Scott
Carson Pirie Scott
Carson Pirie Scott & Co., known informally as Carson's, is an upscale chain of department stores that have been in business for over 150 years. Their product price points are targeted to the moderate-to-upscale shopper...
, and Marshall Fields, and named by simply adding Optical to the host store's name (exp: J.C. Penney Optical, The Vision Center at Saks Fifth Avenue).