As I See It

Trust in Providence

True to its name, the city's beneficence can take unexpected forms.

By Paul S. Koch, MD, Editor Emeritus

Isn't it interesting how the economic downturn has affected us in ways we never anticipated in our business models? No business exists in a vacuum, so when one variable changes, that leads to a cascade of other changes; some predictable, but others not even on the radar screen. Here's such an example.

I have three laser centers, spread along a 70-mile stretch of Route 95 in Rhode Island and Connecticut. One location is based in our primary office. A second is a freestanding laser vision correction center that is beautiful and elegant. Our third location is a commercial center in the largest shopping mall in Providence. This always was a pretty cool spot, with people strolling in and out to ask a question, or maybe just to window shop and browse. When we did treatments, there would always be a line of rub-berneckers outside straining for a glimpse of live surgery. When Christmas came, we did a good business in gift certificates.

The center's one vulnerabiliy was that its business was inextricably linked to the mall's popularity. Foot traffic and activity were critical to its success — or so I thought.

Unfortunately, the economic downturn hurt the mall. Foot traffic went way down, and our formerly nice location is now in an almost empty corner. Our upscale neighbors left and were replaced with failed nail shops and the like. Mall security doesn't come our way very often, so young men felt safe coming to our neighborhood to make discreet commercial transactions.

One might think this was the death toll for our lovely laser vision center. After all, our steady replenishment of shoppers dried up and quite frankly I would be hard pressed to disagree. Things were getting tight for a while, but then the sky brightened and the birds began singing again because of a demographic never before tapped.

Those aforementioned young salesmen, some incognito and some wearing the color of their clans, didn't want to wear eyeglasses any more than the traditional mall-goers did. In fact, in their line of work having their glasses fog up or their contacts fall out at the wrong time might lead to them becoming a guest of the state, or maybe a statistic at the hands of one of their competitors.

One day, one of the entrepreneurs came in to chat. Some days later, another businessman in this underground economy stopped in. Like the well-heeled shoppers before them, they took brochures to read at home. When they returned to the mall to conduct their business, they stopped in again to ask more questions. Finally, one had his vision corrected. Then he sent in one of his associates. These new clients had no qualms about paying out of pocket; indeed, their line of work is predicated on that business model.

Coincidently about the same time one or two representatives from a competing outfit also stopped by for coffee and tea and made plans to have their eyes fixed, too.

Now, this was a problem, because we knew no good would come of having competitors meeting each other, even if we were presumed to be neutral turf. So we had to be honest with them. “You have to be gone by ten o'clock, because after that you might meet someone you don't want to see,” we'd tell one representative. Another would be warned, “Don't even think about showing your face before ten thirty — trust me on this.”

Isn't it curious how a slumping economy can cause one door to close while opening another to a completely unexpected opportunity? We wanted to sit tight through this slump because we knew it would eventually rebound with enthusiasm and we'd be sitting pretty. We are confident that when the economy improves, the nearby storefronts will be rented again, shoppers will shop, and foot traffic will return. When that happens, the quiet salesmen with their unspoken products will disappear. Until then, we appreciate their business and hope they send in their friends. OM

Paul S. Koch, MD is editor emeritus of Ophthalmology Management and the medical director of Koch Eye Associates in Warwick, Rl. His e-mail is: paulkoch@kocheye.com