How EDGARD Opticiens Turned Buying Glasses Into an Experience and Changed French Optical Retail

How a store born in Tours turned designer eyewear into a distinctly French retail experience and grew without losing its independent eye.

In a market often defined by prescriptions, reimbursements and efficiency, EDGARD Opticiens chose to look further. Since opening its first store in Tours on 23 June 2001, the company has helped move French optical retail towards something more expressive: a meeting point between healthcare, design, culture and genuine hospitality.

That idea has grown into a national network without being flattened into a formula. In 2026, the EDGARD group celebrates its 25th anniversary with 225 employees across 27 stores and its headquarters. Nineteen of those locations carry the EDGARD name, including two dedicated to children’s vision, while eight operate as Générale d’Optique franchises.

EDGARD Opticiens has mastered the art of delivering a premium experience at every scale. Whether in an impressive 600-square-metre space or a compact boutique, the brand preserves the same distinctive atmosphere, exceptional service and unique customer experience.

The scale matters, but the real story lies in how the group achieved it: by creating a consistent customer experience while preserving the local judgement of its opticians and the character of independent eyewear.

For Curated Optics, EDGARD reflects on the journey from one store to a French network, the principles behind its design-led model, the realities of today’s optical market and the three pillars guiding its next chapter.

1. What is the story of Edgard Opticiens? How did the brand begin, and how has it evolved since the first store opened in Tours in 2001? Also, how many locations do you currently operate in France?

Edgard Opticiens was founded in 2001 by Jean-François Porte and Julien Quesnel.

The first Edgard store opened its doors in Tours on 23 June 2001, working from the outset with independent partners such as Anne & Valentin and Theo.

A few years later, Jean-François and Julien partnered with two former colleagues to open the Edgard stores in Caen (2008) and Angers (2013), applying the same formula they had used in Tours.

By proving itself in other cities in this way, the “Edgard concept” began to flourish and the company gradually became more structured.

Over time, Edgard refined its positioning, defined its sales method, developed its visual and architectural identities and firmly established its corporate mission. A head office* made up of support functions was created, and other Edgard stores opened, either through new openings or acquisitions.

Each new store represents an opportunity for advancement and mobility for an employee already working within the group. Through its development, the Edgard group offers its teams genuine career prospects. In this way, it ensures that its customers receive the same experience at every new location, thanks to a manager who is trained and experienced in the Edgard sales method.

These commitments would inspire Edgard’s corporate mission: “To make our employees and customers proud and happy by living the Edgard experience every day.”

In 2018, a fundraising round involving regional investment banks made it possible to accelerate growth by acquiring independent optical stores in cities such as Bordeaux and Lyon. Little by little, this gave the group a national network.

To date, Edgard Opticiens has 19 stores, including two dedicated to children’s vision.

Alongside the development of Edgard Opticiens, Jean-François and Julien, through a partnership with a former optical-school classmate, also developed a network of eight Générale d’Optique franchise stores. Despite their clearly distinct positioning, bridges naturally formed between the two brands, particularly in terms of customer experience.

In 2026, the Edgard group celebrates its 25th anniversary. It employs 225 people across its 27 stores and head office.

Based in Tours, the group’s head office is made up of support functions serving the stores. Alongside Julien Quesnel and Jean-François Porte, Managing Director Julien Deruy leads the company. He is supported by the Network Director, Marketing Director, Finance Manager and Visual Health Manager, as well as three structured departments: Human Resources, Accounting and Communications.

2. What is the founding philosophy behind the Edgard Opticiens concept? What values and ideas define your brand, and what distinguishes your approach from traditional optical chains?

We consider ourselves both healthcare professionals and retailers.

We believe in the notion of “common sense in retail”, which encourages a certain relaxed approach. This allows us to offer a warm and friendly customer experience without in any way detracting from the prestige of our profession.

In our view, getting a pair of glasses is as much an act of healthcare as it is an act of pleasure. That is why we believe that taking care of a customer’s visual health can and should be a genuine experience.

The four values that shape our daily work are:

• Passion for the optician’s profession, eyewear creation and retail.
• Excellence in the satisfaction we generate and in our command of our expertise and services.
• Warmth and simplicity in our relationships, encouraging inspiration, fulfilment and delight for everyone.
• Empathy, recognising, welcoming, listening to and knowing how to appreciate others.

3. How do you view the current optical market in France and Europe? What opportunities and challenges do you currently identify for independent opticians?

We believe that the most important challenge for an optical and eyewear retailer is to offer all its customers a seamless experience across physical and digital journeys, before, during and after the purchase.

This requires a clear framework for the defining features of that experience, ensuring complete understanding and full commitment from the teams.

This internal training, supported by clear brand positioning that is never compromised, a clear image and consistent communication, makes us believe that the future will continue to be bright.

4. Do all your stores share the same product portfolio and brands, or does each store have its own identity? How much individual freedom do the stores have when selecting their collections?

We have a common product base across all our stores, with variations linked either to the maturity of the store, a broader inventory in terms of volume and product references or to its location, depending on our partners’ selective distribution policies.

To build our inventory, we stock collections in depth and replenish them regularly. We ensure that our inventory is highly representative of a designer’s collection in our stores.

The designers who join Edgard are selected collectively. A centralised product committee, made up of Edgard store directors and head-office employees, reviews the introduction of new designers into Edgard stores. Although it makes recommendations, it never fully imposes its choices on the stores.

Edgard’s optician teams have complete freedom when choosing their product references, store by store. Within the collection of the same eyewear designer, you will not necessarily find the same references at Edgard in Bordeaux as at Edgard in Marseille. Because the opticians know their customers, they are fully entitled to select an assortment that represents an eyewear collection for their store, according to their own sensibility and knowledge of their city. Finally, a well-chosen product is also a product that sells better. We know that this strategy is far more viable than having a selection imposed by a head office.

Furthermore, regular and direct contact with eyewear designers is very enriching for an optician. Immersing themselves in the story of a collection and learning how it was conceived, designed and then manufactured provides them with information and knowledge that can later be passed on to the customer.

Learning the storytelling behind an eyewear collection and then passing it on to the end customer is one of the pillars of the Edgard experience.

5. The optical market in France, which is heavily influenced by supplementary health insurers, is often described as highly competitive. Some refer to significant pressure from healthcare networks, or even unfair competition, particularly in cities such as Paris. How do you view this situation?

This is a widely discussed subject, but it is not our role to judge the practices of others or the way healthcare networks operate. It is a regulated system, with rules that apply to every player in the market.

What we can control, however, is our relationship with our customers regarding this subject. In our stores, we assist them with the process by managing the relationships with their supplementary health insurers ourselves and clearly explaining the coverage to which their policy entitles them. Our optician teams are supported by administrative managers employed within the group, precisely so that this subject, which can sometimes be complex for the customer, is handled with the greatest possible transparency.

Because of our premium product positioning, an out-of-pocket expense is often unavoidable. However, this is a deliberate choice: to offer a high-value “designer selection” rather than positioning ourselves solely around full reimbursement.

6. How important are design, atmosphere and the overall customer experience in an optical store today? Do you think the optical store is evolving more towards a retail or lifestyle environment rather than simply being a medical service point?

The two go together.

Wearing a pair of glasses is an integral part of a consumer’s lifestyle. It is therefore essential to welcome them into an environment that inspires them and helps them envision themselves wearing the product. An environment that engages all their senses, not only their sight.

Furthermore, because Edgard is clearly positioned around a designer eyewear offering, visual healthcare is associated with a profound sense of pleasure, as our products offer significant added value in terms of both design and narrative.

Finally, architecture, interior design and materials have a clear impact on the image we convey to our customers, on how well cared for they feel and, quite simply, on their well-being.

This well-being dimension enriches the medical scope of our profession.

Offering a different atmosphere in our stores has clearly contributed to the development of Edgard Opticiens.

7. Looking towards the future, what is the long-term vision for Edgard Opticiens? Do you plan to expand further in France or internationally, and how do you see the brand evolving over the next five to ten years?

Edgard will continue to develop its store network through quality-focused growth that compromises neither the quality of the customer experience nor the Edgard image.

To achieve this, our formula based on three fundamental pillars remains unchanged: the best location in the city, an experienced Edgard manager ready to take charge of the new store and our eyewear partners by our side to ensure a coherent product assortment.

We will continue along the same path that has driven us for the past 25 years!

Conclusion

EDGARD’s impact on French optics is not simply a matter of store count. The group has shown that a healthcare business can also be emotionally engaging, that premium eyewear can be presented through culture and storytelling, and that a national network can deliver consistency without erasing local instinct.

Its model brings together two qualities that traditional chains often struggle to reconcile: a repeatable experience and genuine curatorial freedom. Managers carry the EDGARD method from city to city, while local opticians choose the frames that make sense for their own customers.

The result is chain-level confidence without chain-like uniformity.

From one Tours address to a 19-store EDGARD network within a 27-store group, the company has helped expand the role of the optician: healthcare professional, retailer, storyteller and host.

As EDGARD enters its next 25 years, its most powerful proposition remains the same: better vision should also feel like a better experience.

A national network, an independent eye.