About Ferreira Optical

The 1970s

Ferreira Optical Limited (FOL) started out on September 1st, 1973 on Oxford Street in Port of Spain, with a small optical dispensary and laboratory, and four employees. From early on Ferreira Optical established a reputation for quality products, workmanship and a high level of customer service.

The 1980s

As the company outgrew its facilities, it continued to expand and opened the following locations: Long Circular Mall, Colsort Place and Tobago. In 1988, the opportunity arose to reacquire 100 percent ownership of the company. There was considerable risk in light of the deep economic recession but the Ferreiras made the decision to purchase all stock from its other shareholders.

The 1990s

As we entered the nineties, there was a boom in competition with a number of new optical companies opening. This spurred the company to action to define its market focus and to open additional branches in Chaguanas and Gulf City Shopping Complex. We also took our customer service training to another level by developing an employee training programme called Effective Quality Customer Service (EQCS), where customer service standards are defined from a customer’s perspective.

The 2000s

In 2003, expansion continued with the opening of the Trincity Mall branch. In 2006, after twenty years of managing the day to day operations, Colin Ferreira took a bold step and resigned as CEO to emigrated to the USA. Sean Francis was promoted from the Chief Operating Officer to his present position of CEO. He holds the same strong spiritual and corporate values as the company’s previous executive leaders and with his MBA degree and unique strengths, continues to provide the necessary leadership for the challenges of the times.

The 2010s

After 37 years of maintaining the market leadership position, Ferreira Optical continues to grow. The company’s ability to leverage its years of experience and value system to constantly evolve is key to its continued success. With customer focus always at the forefront of its initiatives, Ferreira Optical went a step further to develop its own line of Designer eyewear – Emmanuel Nissi – designed specifically for Caribbean people and distributed exclusively at all its branches. The business now consists of eight retail locations throughout Trinidad and Tobago with full optometric and dispensing facilities, a laboratory and head office with a total of approximately 160 employees.