For students only! You've made it this far — what's next in your career journey?
Hosted by Professor Shan Khan of Seneca College School of Opticians and Shelley Logan, Ontario Regional Sales for WestGroupe and OWA Canadian Membership Lead, this special event will feature an expert panel of industry professionals discussing post-graduation opportunities for a career in the optical industry.
Trudi Charest is the Co-Founder of Marketing4ECP's, a digital marketing agency focused on building digital advertising for the eyecare industry. She is well known for designing, developing, and facilitating training programs for eyecare professionals across North America.
Trudi is also a Licensed Optician with over 25 years of eyecare experience and holds a Human Resources Management Certificate from the University of Calgary. Her experience prior to starting Marketing4ECP's in 2015 includes corporate training in retail optical, territory management for Bausch & Lomb, clinical consulting with Optos, and the role of VP for Marketing and Training for Eye Recommend, one of Canada's leading optometric buying groups.
Trudi was one of 2019 Vision Monday's "Most Influential Women in the Optical Industry". She is an active OWA member and was elected to their board of directors in 2021. She is an international speaker, author, industry consultant, business innovator, and cancer survivor.
Helen Huynh is an optician with extensive industry knowledge and has spent the last 5 years as the Business Development Agent for Carl Zeiss Vision in Southwestern Ontario. She previously worked for HOYA Visioncare, Josephson Opticians, Pearle Vision, and Lenscrafters, to name a few.
From an early age, Helen helped out at her father's optical store in Burlington, Ontario, and developed her passion for the optical business. Her professional career began in 2003 as a student optician with the Luxottica brand, and from there, she joined Josephson Opticians, where she further advanced her optical knowledge and experience as the assistant manager of the flagship location.
Helen is passionate about training ECPs; she has spoken at BC/CAO conventions, has held lectures at Douglas College for the optician's program in Vancouver, and she has assisted CAO at their optometric assistants' workshops. In Toronto, she annually assists in lectures at Seneca College for the Opticianry program.
James Ahola is the Canadian Sales Manager for Tura. His 29 years of sales experience includes working as a sales rep, a retail salesperson, a retail manager, and a wholesale sales manager. He loves selling and the optical industry! Also an author and dynamic industry speaker, James draws on proven sales principles and his own field experience to deliver entertaining presentations that are educational and practical in everyday business.