A YORK-based online retailer of contact lenses has set its sights on generating revenues of more than £25 million after the acquisition of two businesses.
GetLenses, which has a warehouse and call centre at Novus Business Park, in Nether Poppleton, has acquired Dutch online retailers Vision Direct and Lensbase.
The addition of the companies, which sell contact lenses, contact lens solutions and prescription glasses, will expand GetLenses’ customer base in the Netherlands, Spain and the UK, and is expected to generate more than £25 million turnover in 2014.
Michael Kraftman, chief executive of GetLenses, said: “This cements our position as a market leader in Europe, significantly increases our customer base and enhances our ability to deliver a fantastic service to all our customers.
“We expect to complement this with further acquisitive growth in other European markets.”
GetLenses is the largest online contact lens retailer in the UK, stocking over a million lenses from global brands.
Its call-centre team in York is trained by opticians to meet industry regulations.
In 2012 GetLenses moved from Hudson Way, in York Business Park, to Opus Avenue in Novus Business Park, after growing its customer services and warehouse operations teams from five people to 20.
Vision Direct, which was founded in 1998, sells contact lenses and prescription glasses online in Europe.
The acquisition was financed by a new funding round led by existing shareholder Octopus Investments and included Fidelity Worldwide Investments, Hargreave Hale and Artemis Investment Management.
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