Today we’d like to introduce you to Victoria Kravchenko.

Hi Victoria, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.

I immigrated with my family from Russia in 1995. My parents brought us to the land of opportunities and for better lives. In 2009 I graduated optometry school with my doctor of optometry degree and started practicing optometry profession. I worked in many retail locations in NYC practicing primary care optometry. Optometry field has always been appealing to me because it involves both areas-healthcare and fashion. I love fashion and love styling patients with eyeglasses wardrobe, which I didn’t get to do much while being employed, because my main area of practice involved medical side, taking care of patients by providing comprehensive eye exams. When I opened my own practice in 2023, it gave me an opportunity to practice optometry more freely by making my own decisions about what medical/vision plans to take and also making a selection of eyewear brands that I would like to carry in my optical boutique. Being a business owner, I have to wear many different hats and make my own decisions, whether they are right or wrong. The best part of being an entrepreneur is learning from past experiences, making modifications and evolving as a professional and individual.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?

Running my own business is one of the most challenging things that I had to face. One of the obstacles initially was lack of available commercial space and finances. There were not too many successful practices that were up for sale, so I had to modify my plan and decided on opening cold start after 1.5 years of searching, which has its negatives and positives. One of the negatives is I needed to do heavy marketing in order to bring people in. Lack of staff, good employees are difficult to find. The second biggest challenge was a build out from scratch. It took a while and we faced some issues with the space that I leased, luckily my landlord was very accommodating and worked through all the problems that occurred during construction process. Moreover, I went over my financial budget (got a healthcare loan) because I underestimated the cost of construction. Luckily I had a great team of people working on my project, starting from my financial institution and my contractor, lawyers, accountants, etc. and I am forever grateful to all the support that I received. I had to get additional funds to complete the project. One of the biggest challenges is not having a life-work balance. I currently work 6 days a week, 3 days at my own practice and 3 days employed in another practice to supplement my income. I have 3 children, whom I love dearly and since opening my practice I haven’t been able to spend as much time with my family. Being a mom and a business woman is not an easy task and I am sure a lot of females, who have families can relate to this.
I am still learning and I have to wear many different hats in my practice. Eventually, when things will pick up I am planning to hire more stuff. Being able to manage the optical side (inventory, sales, orders, etc.), administrative side, healthcare side takes a lot of time and devotion. I don’t like doing things half way. I am all in without shortcuts. I give the best care to my patients and nurture everyone to ensure that my patients’ satisfaction is my top priority. My family had to sacrifice a lot of things in the last 2 years, to stay disciplined, which is a huge adjustment to the lifestyle. I am hoping that one day my kids will see the product of my hard work. Positives about a new practice is the freedom of establishing your own business culture and making your own decisions. I am making an impact on other people’s lives and it’s very rewarding.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?

I specialize in optometry and I own my optical boutique. We offer comprehensive eye exams and eyeglasses and contact lens services. We specialize in myopia control, dry eye treatments and Neurolens for patients suffering from headaches and digital eye strain. Our motto is quality over quantity. We hand pick our luxury designer frames and some high end independent designers. We get to know our customers on a personal level to better understand their lifestyles and their personal styles. I believe in advancing and getting equipped with high end technology and offer wide range of solutions to fulfill all the eyecare needs. Another thing that sets our practice apart from others is my ability to listen: every individual is different and there’s not one solution to all. We do fun events in the store to bring the community closer together.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.

Opening a practice is one of the largest risks that I had to take. I have always being a very ambitious person and I teach my kids the same mind set. I am not afraid to take risks. I figured what’s the worst thing that may happen if my business fails-I will always have my career and I will go work for someone else and will always be able to sustain myself and my family. By not taking risks we are limiting ourselves. To have financial freedom and freedom to make our own choices and to make a difference in people’s lives is a beautiful thing. We constantly have to grow as individuals and professionals. I also believe in spiritual evolvement and read a lot of books and attend/watch seminars on this topic. By expanding our minds, we make room for growth in so many aspects of our lives. Life is a constant evolution and growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://a2zeyecarenj.com
• Instagram: a2z_eyecare
• Facebook: A2Z EYECARE
• LinkedIn: VICTORIA KRAVCHENKO
• Other: https://shop.a2zeyecarenj.com