EDITORIAL REPORT:
MS. KAY CHUA, EDITOR SDA-BUSINESS LUMINARY AWARD 2016
COMPANY:
FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE PTE LTD
NAME OF RECIPIENT:
MS. CAREEN LOW
ESTABLISHED FOR ALREADY HALF A CENTURY, FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE PTE LTD HAS GONE FULL FLEDGED TO BECOME AN EYEWEAR SPECIALIST CENTRE WITH OPTOMETRIST CLINIC SERVICES. THEIR NEW CONCEPT STORE IS FAVOURED FOR PROVIDING A FULL RANGE OF EYE CARE SERVICES WHILE PURVEYING A WIDE SELECTION OF QUALITY EYEWEAR. THE COMPANY PRIDES ITSELF ON USING A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO EYE CARE, BEING THE FIRST TO ESTABLISH A PAEDIATRIC EYE CLINIC TO INTRODUCE ORTHOKERATOLOGY ALSO KNOWN AS ORTHO-K FOR SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN. ORTHO-K HELPS TO DECELERATE THE PROGRESSION OF CHILDHOOD MYOPIA.
FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE ALSO OFFERS DIFFERENT TYPES OF CLINICAL EYES TESTS, INCLUDING DIGITAL SLIT LAMP PHOTOGRAPHY, AN EYE HEALTH EXAMINATION THAT SCANS FOR ABNORMALITIES IN THE FRONT SECTION OF THE EYEBALL. THEY ARE ALSO EQUIPPED TO EXECUTE OPTICAL COHERENCE TOMOGRAPHY (OCT) SCANS, A NON-INVASIVE 3D IMAGING TEST THAT AIDS WITH EARLY DETECTION, DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT GUIDANCE FOR RETINAL DISEASES AND CONDITIONS.
MANAGING DIRECTOR OF FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE, MS. CAREEN LOW, REVEALED THAT SHE HAS BEEN IN THIS SPECIFIC INDUSTRY ALL HER WORKING LIFE. TOGETHER WITH HER SIBLINGS, THEY TOOK OVER THEIR FATHER’S FOUNDING BUSINESS AND WORKED HAND IN HAND TO ACCUMULATE MORE SUCCESS. THROUGHOUT THE YEARS OF OPERATIONS, MS. LOW CLAIMED THAT SHE RARELY ENCOUNTERED ANY MAJOR OBSTACLES. SHE EXPRESSED THAT THEY WERE VERY FORTUNATE TO COLLABORATE WITH SUPPLIERS WHO PARTICIPATED ACTIVELY AND EVEN SPONSORED IN THE SETUP OF THE NEW CONCEPT STORE.
WHEN QUESTIONED ABOUT FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE’S COMPETITIVE EDGE, MS. LOW MENTIONED A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT SETS THE COMPANY APART FROM OTHER COMPETITORS. SHE SAID, “BEING ONE OF THE PIONEERS IN THIS TRADE, FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE HAS EARNED A STRONG REPUTATION FOR ITSELF OVER THE PAST DECADES. THE COMPANY IS FINANCIALLY ROBUST AND FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE IS INDEED SEEN AS A TRUSTWORTHY AND RELIABLE COMPANY.
MANY CUSTOMERS, OLD AND NEW, HAVE PRAISED FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE FOR THEIR REMARKABLE CUSTOMER SERVICE STANDARDS AND HIGH QUALITY PRODUCTS. REFLECTING ON THE COMPANY’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS, MS. LOW ATTRIBUTES MUCH OF THE COMPANY’S SUCCESS TO THEIR CUSTOMERS, WHO TRUSTED IN THEM AND PROVIDED THEIR SUPPORT FROM ONE GENERATION TO THE NEXT GENERATION. SHE IS GLAD THAT FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE HAS GROWN TO BECOME THE PREFERRED EYE CARE SPECIALIST IN THE EAST AREA.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP HAS VARIOUS DEFINITIONS. FOR MS. LOW, BEING AN ENTREPRENEUR MEANS RUNNING A BUSINESS NOT JUST FOR ONE’S PERSONAL BENEFITS BUT FOR THE EMPLOYEES AS WELL AS FOR CLIENTS. SHE BELIEVES IN THE NOTION OF BEING ‘A BLESSING TO OTHERS’. HENCE, MS. LOW ALSO SEES ENTREPRENEURSHIP AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONTRIBUTE BACK TO THE SOCIETY. A KIND LADY AT HEART, SHE SUPPORTS CHARITY ORGANISATIONS IN VARIOUS WAYS, AS SHE FEELS THAT THESE ACTS ARE IN LINE WITH THE COMPANY’S CORE VALUES. FOR 2016, THE COMPANY WILL SUPPORT AN EYE CARE CHARITY PROJECT BY SENDING AN OPTOMETRIST WITH SUPPLIES TO INDIA IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST.
HER SIMPLE YET INSIGHTFUL ADVICE FOR THOSE WHO ARE ASPIRING TO START THEIR OWN BUSINESS IS TO ‘BE A LEADER WHO DOES NOT DOMINATE’. INSTEAD, SHE SUGGESTED FOR BUDDING ENTREPRENEURS TO BE THE KIND OF LEADER THAT WORKS CLOSELY WITH EMPLOYEES AND SERVE CLIENTS WITH CARE AND HUMILITY.
CURRENTLY, FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE IS ENJOYING THE FRUIT OF THEIR LABOUR AS EVEN SUPPLIERS IN THE REGION ARE LOOKING UP TO THEIR BUSINESS CONCEPTS. IN THE COMING YEARS, MS. LOW IS WORKING TO SET UP MORE BRANCHES TO BE OF SERVICES TO MORE PEOPLE IN HER SUCCESSION PLANS.
FIRST EYEWEAR CENTRE PTE LTD INCORPORATES A WORK ETHIC THAT IS HARD TO RIVAL. A STRONG LEADER LIKE MS. CAREEN LOW, WILL DEFINITELY BRING THE BUSINESS TO ACHIEVE MORE MILESTONES