LD Vision Group

CG Petsky Prunier is pleased to announce it has advised online retailer of contact lenses and eyeglasses LD Vision Group, which does business as OptiContacts.com, on its sale to Hardy Capital, an investment firm led by Roger Hardy. Powered by a proprietary end-to-end technology platform, LD Vision Group manages a family of brands that has delivered 2.7 million orders to more than 1.1 million customers. In 2018, the company generated approximately $50 million in revenues with double digit EBITDA margins.

Founded in 2002, LD Vision Group was one of the first contact lens sellers online and is North America’s second largest independent online retailer of optical goods. LD Vision’s proprietary inventory management and prescription verification software, developed by its founder and chief executive officer Arshil Abdulla, allows the company to sell third-party contact lenses directly to individual consumers legally and efficiently. LD Vision is headquartered in Toronto and has offices in Vancouver and Buffalo, New York.

Hardy Capital was founded by Roger Hardy, who previously founded the pioneering brand in omnichannel eyecare, Coastal.com. Coastal.com, owner of Clearly.ca and Lensway.se, grew steadily to over $1 billion in aggregate eyewear sales across 120 countries and was listed on the NASDAQ before being acquired by Essilor in 2014 for $450 million. Mr. Hardy is joined by Sabrina Liak, who was previously with Goldman Sachs Investment Partners, and Joseph Thompson, who was previously with Amazon and Procter & Gamble.

“More than 70 per cent of North American adults have corrective vision needs, yet the eyecare industry continues to be plagued by high costs, low convenience, and inconsistent customer service,” said Mr. Hardy. “Arshil Abdulla, Fayaz Abdulla, and Sean Mitha are leaders in North America in technology, automation, and customer service in the category. We’re thrilled to be partnering with them to build a new platform for customers.”

All three of LD’s existing founders will stay as co-owners in the new company. “There are few bankers who understand the optical and e-commerce industry as well as John Fang. We are extremely pleased by the results that he and his team delivered on the transaction and cannot recommend him more highly,” remarked Arshil Abdulla.

CG Petsky Prunier served as the exclusive financial advisor to LD Vision Group.