By Lauren Taylor

If you’re going to San Francisco, be sure to wear… some frames from Rockaway Beach Optometry. And if you’re going to San Francisco, you should meet the creative people at Magic Design, who recently created a new office space for Rockaway Beach Optometry.

Owned by Jennifer Quirante, OD, and founded in 1997, the practice had outgrown its location near Rockaway Beach and recently moved to the more suburban area of Pacifica, Calif., just a few miles south of San Francisco. The new office is 15,000 square feet, with an extra exam room, pre-exam area and private office space that the old location lacked. An added lens lab ensures that eyewear can be made efficiently and to custom specifications. The biggest change, however, is the expanded optical area.

“Our old location had a tiny optical area, about 8 feet by 10 feet,” explains Dr. Quirante. “Now it’s half the square footage of our office. It’s more of a showroom feel.”

A major focal point of the practice, the dispensary features frames from brands like Oakley, Ray-Ban, Gucci, Juicy Couture, Koali, Dior, Tattoo and Sigrid Olsen. As can be expected in a coastal location, especially California, many customers are looking for recreational eyewear for water sports as well as land sports, such as cycling.

“We have to choose lenses and frames with different features to create practically a custom design for each customer,” says Dr. Quirante. Their new lens lab makes this job easier. They can add extras like mirror coatings and durable, polarized prescription lenses to sport sun frames, as well as fill everyday ophthalmic eyewear prescriptions. Although Pacifica is known for its surfing, many customers also want eyewear for snow sports. “Our customers want eyewear that can go from everyday to specific sports,” says Dr. Quirante.

When working with Magic Design, Dr. Quirante wanted something bold and different, so she chose a color scheme consisting of bright orange and green shades throughout the office.

“Color is very big these days in dispensary design,” says Margaret Furman, marketing director of Magic Design. “Dr. Quirante selected her own colors and we assisted with a painting plan to show where the colors go, all part of our Magic Design ‘total package’ design service.”

The dispensary’s walls are a light shade of green, while the reception area is marked by a bright orange wall with the practice’s name on it. “I’ve gotten a lot of great compliments,” says Dr. Quirante. “It’s not a standard doctor-looking office.”

Dr. Quirante wanted to keep her office design open and clean, which is exhibited in the simple wooden tables and cabinets seen around the office. The dispensary’s display cases are made from the same material. Wooden floors also keep the areas from looking too cluttered. The simple design keeps patients at ease.

When picking a spot for a new office, Dr. Quirante moved away from the touristy beach area and closer to the suburbs, to a convenient location in the Linda Mar Shopping Center, says Furman. Since her client base is mostly local residents, it made sense to move closer to them, especially with the new development happening in Pacifica. As business grows, Dr. Quirante strives to meet the needs of her customers. Although the practice started with just Dr. Quirante and one other staff member, she has since added another doctor, Yolanda Scheer, OD, who has a specialty in pediatric optometry, as well as four additional staffers.

When Rockaway Beach Optometry needed room to grow, Dr. Quirante knew it was time for a unique facelift as well. And thanks to the help of Magic Design, the OD was able to create an office design where you won’t find any San Francisco Bay blues.