PEARLE VISION CENTER
Pearle Vision offers clients quality at an affordable price
19576 Holt St. NW • Elk River 763-241-2083 www.pearlevision.com
Pearle Vision’s reputation as an Elk River institution has only strengthened at their new location in Elk Ridge Center next to Aldi. Formerly located at Elk Park Center, the 14-year-old Elk River business is owned by Gary Tonsager with a dedicated staff of opticians and optometrists, including Dr. Kimberly Watson and Dr. Erika Januschka.
Pearle Vision is a retail optical facility offering eye exams, eyeglasses, contact lenses, and eyewear adjustments and repairs. Their dedicated team of optometrists works out of the store six days a week.
“This has been a great location for us,” Tonsager said of the Elk Ridge Center location, “and the improved design has been very helpful.” This includes the two new exam lanes that make doctors more available to their patients while the full-service lab provides same-day service in most cases.
Pearle Vision boasts over 1,000 different styles of frames to choose from in stock, including the designer lines of Prada, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, Oakley and Ray-Ban. They also offer a large selection of magnetic clip-on sunglasses and are getting a large selection of totally rimless glasses.
Pearl Vision Lab Manager Larry Baker demonstrates the new, fully digital eye exam equipment.
A recent innovation in the business that is very popular with customers is the “Clear Look Eyewear Selector.” The machine lets customers photograph themselves wearing up to four different frames. The photos are then displayed simultaneously, helping the customer make up his or her mind at a glance.
Customers can also schedule eye exam appointments on-line at www.pearlevision.com.
Most people need a complete eye exam every one or two years. Even if a person’s vision hasn’t changed, the optometrists at Pearle Vision say the exam is an opportunity to check for glaucoma, cataracts, macular degeneration and other eye diseases.
Eye exams are conducted with the Topcon digital retinal-imaging camera, which is fast, painless and comfortable for patients. It also records the condition of your retina, which is very helpful when patients return for an annual exam.
This year, Pearle Vision of Elk River brought their eye exam into the 21st century. “We’re now fully digital,” Tonsager explains, “We replaced the old projected eye charts with an LCD screen and we now operate all the adjustments by computer.” Tonsager says that the information they gather during an exam is seamlessly shared with the front desk over their computers, so by the time you get out of the exam room, the rest of the staff knows exactly what help you need.
New optometric tech Alyson Fondie says working at Pearle Vision is more like being with family than a job.
“I absolutely love working here,” Fondie said, “It’s such a friendly atmosphere and everyone is so understanding. You can’t help but feel welcome when you’re around this wonderful team of people.”
It is clear that this upbeat, positive atmosphere fuels the clinic’s purpose and drives their service to new heights. Brenda Breyen, the store’s manager, agrees. “We thrive on providing the best customer service possible and providing quality products at affordable prices,” she said.
Pearle Vision Lab Manager Larry Baker demonstrates the new, fully digital eye exam equipment.
Pictured is the interior of Elk River Pearle Vision’s new location west of Highway 169 in Elk Ridge Center, next to Aldi.
Pearle Vision’s in-house lab allows most glasses to be manufactured on-site. In many cases, customers can get their new glasses the same day.
Contact lenses also are available at Pearle Vision, including tinted lenses that change your eye color. Technology has allowed more and more people to use the option of wearing contacts and the costs have come down significantly.
You can also donate your old eyeglasses to people who need them in countries as far away as Ethiopia and Thailand. Owner Gary Tonsager was part of a team of doctors that went to Benin, Africa, last year to do eye exams and give out donated eyeglasses as part of the OneSight program. They brought more than 1,000 pairs of used eyeglasses along for the trip, many of which were collected at the Elk River Pearle Vision in a box in the store’s vestibule. More than 7 million exams and pairs of eyeglasses have been donated since the program began. The team also performed thousands of exams while in Africa. For more information, visit www.onesight.org.
The Elk River store is a member of the local Chamber of Commerce and the owners have been very community minded. Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Call 763-241-2083 for more information, or visit www.pearlevision.com.
