By Marge Axelrad
Editorial Director

Sodeberg's Craig Giles steers Soderberg's independent course.

ST. PAUL, Minn.--A perspective on the traditional and the modern co-exist at Soderberg, Inc.
In addition to holding on to the philosophies and the full-service optical approach initiated by the company's late founder, Fred Soderberg, the lab, one of the few employee-owned in the industry, has embraced the financial systems, new products and technological diversity that is leading the business into the 21st century.
As Soderberg celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, under the leadership of president Craig Giles, chairman Al Willenbring and an experienced top management team, the company is more committed than ever to its mandate to be a fundamental resource to help its thousands of independent ECP customers grow their businesses.
Soderberg is ranked as the second largest independent U.S. wholesale lab in Vision Monday's 2004 Top Labs Survey, generating Rx sales of $27.6 million and total net sales of $51.1 million.
Headquartered here, Soderberg operates 13 branches spread throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio and Indiana. The main lab in St. Paul is both a Zeiss AR coating facility and iScience lens production center.
Within its full-service prescription labs, Soderberg also operates four contact lens labs. The company manufacturers and markets several of its own contact lenses under brand names such as Apogee, CV4 and Sharp-Vue.
Soderberg also operates five instrument service centers to support its ophthalmic instrument distribution business.
According to Giles, who spelled out some key goals to VM, Soderberg will focus on several "critical success factors" this year. These include communicating more effectively internally, both within the company and between customer service representatives and ECP accounts. Another goal is to reward and enhance leadership skills among its service and manager teams. Another is to continue to examine ways of providing continuous quality and efficiency improvements throughout the operation, counting on the important role of systems and up-to-date computer and lens processing technologies to streamline manufacturing.
Soderberg will consolidate its AR work from its branches in several phases throughout the year. "We are very positive about the outlook for AR. Our St. Paul facility is running between 25 and 27 percent AR, which is outpacing the average across the country and we are continuing to encourage our accounts to maximize AR for themselves."
The company is a big believer in the way technology and the internet can enhance lens ordering as more customers see how remote orders can improve control and customer service.
Soderberg has also initiated its participation in newer lens fabrication and processing technologies. Its iScience lens "is going well," Giles reported, and added "we're positioning it as a great value-added product, offering quick turnaround and no back orders as a way to enhance an accounts' overall bottom line."

Soderberg's management team. Right forefront--Al Willenbring, chairman of the board, and, from left, Craig Giles, president, Bob Grundtner, treasurer, Bernie Bleske, corporate production manager, Gary Johnson, vice president-ophthalmic instruments and Tom Lyon, vice president-sales.

In addition the company's freeform lens surfacing initiatives, including DAC Vision's RxD lathe system, are representative of the kinds of ground-breaking moves that Soderberg will continue to explore. "If you're going to lead, you need to push ahead of the marketplace at times. Being a 60-year-old company doesn't mean we shy from new ideas or methods, and we want to convey that 'can-do' message to our accounts," Giles commented.
Giles said he sees Soderberg's commitments to categories like contact lenses, industrial safety and ophthalmic instruments as critical to deepening its ties with independent practices.
The company supplies a wide range of products to fully equip an optometric or ophthalmologic practice, from exam chairs, slit lamps and hand instruments to testing equipment, diagnostic lenses and surgical instruments. As Gary Johnson, vice president of instruments, pointed out, "A lot of wholesale laboratory companies abandoned instruments over the years. But when an MD or OD is coming out of school, their first goal is to make a friend of a trusted ophthalmic instrument person. Our instrument sales force and our team plays a consultative role to those doctors and provide a lot of advice to them about how to set up a practice and put together their office."
Soderberg's Preferred Select buying group is another avenue of growth for 2005, Giles said, as Soderberg looks to expand its many connections to their independent accounts' business.
In addition to a large range of frame collections, Soderberg is now the exclusive U.S. importer and distributor of the Vuarnet product line. That company, marking the 45th anniversary of its Legends line and its accompanying range of specialized plano and Rx sun lenses, will receive renewed focus from the company going forward. "Vuarnet's lenses and the potential of prescription sunwear is a way we can create programs that create points of distinction for our customers in their markets," Giles said.
Giles himself started out as a certified optician, and later he earned a business degree. He worked his way up through Soderberg, earned an MBA and was named president of the group in 2004.
Giles also credits Soderberg's membership in the Lightbenders lab group as another valuable resource for helping the company stay its course.