editor's letter

What do consumers want? Made-for-me products and personalized service. The problem? Most suppliers confuse quantity with quality—make 10 different flavors of water so people will think you're meeting their wants. That trend is what The New York Times recently referred to as pseudo-personalization. And, it's not what consumers really want.

In response to online retailers like Amazon and TiVo, who make purchasing recommendations based on customers' past buys, a survey found that not only do eight out of 10 customers like such recommendations, but 56 percent said they'd actually share their data in trade for that personalized service.

Some companies do get it. Like Nike, for example, with its new Nikeid.com Website where consumers can design their own shoes.

So, what does all this have to do with you? A lot. Optical is relatively flat, but it shouldn't be. There is, after all, absolutely nothing more personalized than freeform lenses. And what about a pair of polarized polycarbonate PALs with AR? Talk about personalizing product to meet an individual's needs.

So, what's missing? Telling the tale. And, positioning eyewear available from you for exactly what it is. Personalized!