Framed
been enamored by the persona they
attempt to create. It boils down to
quality, value, shape, colour, style and
support systems by the vendors.
Andy Wolf, Anne and Valentine, Car-
oline Abram, Blake Kuwahara, Cutler
& Gross, Etnia Barcelona, Kirk&Kirk,
Matsuda, Face a Face, Res/Rei are
just a few of the amazing brands we
dispense.
Q. What is the secret to your
success?
Honours piling up
for MDO Opticians
By Denis Langlois
Q. What are the benefits of
operating an independent optical?
Residents of St. Albert, Alta., have Marian was an optical industry trail-
chosen MDO Opticians as the city’s blazer who became one of the first
best optical business for the past 10 opticians in Alberta in 1977. She was the
consecutive years. first woman inducted into the Alberta
It’s an important honour for the
third-generation, family-run business,
says owner Douglas Reinbold.
“Winning the ‘best of awards’ so many
times in our cities is important to us
because it shows we are listening and
staying connected to our communities,”
College & Association of Opticians Hall
of Fame in 2014.
MDO Opticians, now owned and oper-
ated by Reinbold, his partner Jackie Fox
and daughter Brittany, opened a second
location, Women with Vision, 15 years
ago in Edmonton.
he says. The MDO team includes 15 employees.
“At the speed our business is changing, Recently, we spoke with Douglas about
it is absolutely imperative to listen and MDO Opticians/Women with Vision.
adjust. We are like a small boat that can
turn on a dime, while the big companies
are like cruise ships taking a long time
to chart a course and change direction.”
MDO Opticians traces its roots back
nearly four decades to when Reinbold’s
mother Marian Deptula opened her first
optical shop in St. Albert.
48 Optical Prism | April 2019
A. Without a doubt the biggest reason
for our success is an unwavering
passion for the industry and our
clients. But also a “no fear” attitude
in changing the way our profession
looks at things.
Q. What eyewear products do
you carry?
A. We are independent from our
attitude to our collections of the
best in eyewear. We really avoid
cookie-cutter brands. We have never
A. Independents are always the
facilitators of change and open the
doors of new possibilities, creating
better ways to do what we do. We are
not encumbered by conglomerate
decision-makers focused on profits
for their shareholders. Instead, we
focus on making the experience for
our clients personal and caring. Our
decisions are based on a street level
of talking to our team and customers
to find out what their needs really are.
The best part is discovering a need
they never knew they had.
Q. What are your plans for the
future of the business?
A. Moving forward, we would like
to expand the Women with Vision
brand into every major city in Canada,
partnering with amazing optometrists
who are fiercely independent. OP