Specialized Optical Lens Processing Equipment Repair Business in Central Virginia
Filament Business Advisors is proud to offer for sale a unique business that specializes in repairing, rebuilding and refurbishing extremely precise, high-end, sought-after equipment that fabricate dry-cut plastic eyeglass lenses for doctors, retailers, big box stores, hospitals, prisons, charitable organizations and the military. For nearly 20 years, thousands of parts, and machines, nationally and internationally, have been and currently are sent to this business when they need to be repaired or rebuilt. The owner also purchases retired machines at a very low cost and then refurbishes/rebuilds them to sell at a high return. Over the last 4 years, revenues have increased 367%, while net profits have increased 531%.
After a long career with the manufacturer that builds the machines, which range from $9,000 to $50,000 each, the owner saw an opportunity to help the purchasers maintain their machines. With the support of a subcontractor, the owner has yet to completely meet the demand for his services. The manufacturer does not support their older machines and refers customer calls here in a hand-in-glove relationship. Much of the production of their new machines has moved to China. These machines remain very popular and the need for support with both new and older existing machines continues to increase. The owner estimates that hiring employees would allow him to double sales of rebuilt machines along with improving the flow of machine repairs which are continually requested by customers. He has a substantial supply of retired machines along with a rolodex full of contacts for purchase of additional retired machines and new and used parts also available in inventory. Additional employees would allow him to refurbish/rebuild these and sell at a substantial markup while still selling them at half the cost of new machines. He is willing to be retained for a time after a sale to train buyers and employees.
The ideal buyer could be a manufacturer, machine shop or equipment rebuilder of intricate machinery with trained technicians looking for constant, profitable revenue in a lucrative niche market with little competition. The right buyer may have large, episodic contracts and is looking for a more predictable and scalable revenue stream. A good buyer with existing skilled electrical-mechanical employees has the ability to focus on smart and profitable growth with little marketing.
There is no shortage of need for glasses, and with an aging population, the $33b eyewear business is expected to grow at an annual rate of 8.4% for the next several years. At these prices for new machines, and thousands of machines in use nationally and internationally, most firms still choose to repair, not replace, which leads them here. A downturn in the economy will only increase the allure of repairing existing machines and/or purchasing professionally refurbished machines.