The Optical Women's Association is pleased to announce that Sue Downes, CEO of MyEyeDr., is the recipient of this year's Pleiades Awards. In this blog post, you'll get to know a little more about her amazing work, her contribution to the optical industry, and how she continues to inspire OWA members!
For those who are unfamiliar with the Pleiades Award, it's an award to honor an individual who has shown exceptional support in advancing the leadership role of women in the optical industry. This award is named after the star cluster "The Pleiades". The stars in The Pleiades cluster create one of the brightest clusters visible in the northern hemisphere. Working together, the women of the OWA have created an organization that is bigger and brighter than the sum of their individual efforts.
Sue believed that patients received the finest vision care from their local independent optometrist. However, she recognized that the demands of the 21st century patient were outpacing what the independent optometrist could deliver. With MyEyeDr., she provides independent practices with a management services team that could help deliver a great patient experience and meet the demands of a new generation of patients. From one office in 2001, she has led the growth of MyEyeDr. brand to over 200 locations across the mid-atlantic and southeast United States, and more practices are joining every month.
Sue has built a brand that is as unique as she is. She managed to create a brand identity for MyEyeDr. that connects independent optometry practices under one unifying mission — to provide the best vision wellness experience possible for patients. It's fun, it's fashion, it's a caring experience, and the results speak volumes about her leadership in the industry. Her real skill is in her ability to share that vision with her team and instill that same commitment to the profession that she has demonstrated over the past 30 years.
Sue had an extensive career in the industry before starting MyEyeDr. She was the Director of Managed Vision Care with Hour Eyes and Eye Care Centers of America. In April of 2015, Sue was named CEO of MyEyeDr. In addition to her work managing MyEyeDr. offices, Sue served on the advisory board for the Colombia Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually Impaired, and is a past board member of the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce.
She is also the recipient of several prestigious honors including, Montgomery County Chamber's "Spirit of Free Enterprise" award, VisionMonday's 2011 Most Influential Women in Optical honor, the 2012 smart CEO award for Entrepreneurial spirit and the 2015 ACG Corporate Growth Award.
Sue's many professional accomplishments are too long to list but for her proudest accomplishment is raising her two sons. Sue lives in Northern Virginia with her beloved husband, PJ, and has no plans to slow down — ever.
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