Vineet Chauhan, the Association of Dispensing Opticians New Zealand immediate past president, has re-joined the Essilor family as its New Zealand territory manager.

Chauhan brings more than 20 years’ experience in the eyewear and eyecare industry and nine years of working with Essilor specifically, said national sales manager Kumuda Setty. “As you can imagine, we are very excited to have him back on the team and hope that all our customers are too.”

Busy packing in Fiji before his return to New Zealand, Chauhan said he is delighted about the way it has all worked out. “I’m very excited to return to Essilor, to a role I absolutely love! I certainly didn’t expect to be able to start from exactly where I left off; the stars must have aligned in my favour.”

Though he’s familiar with the role, Chauhan said he is anticipating much has changed since the advent of Covid-19. “I’m keen to understand how retail consumers’ buying behaviour has changed since the pandemic, how New Zealand practices have adapted to this, and how their needs have evolved. Essilor is innovative, so I’m eager to learn what strategies it now offers its customers to meet their current demands.”

Chauhan is replacing Sam Cho, who has moved into a new role within the Essilor Group in Melbourne.