🠈  Visionworks  🠊

Visionworks of America

Visionworks of America is a chain of 700 plus optical stores. The chain had developed a variety of brand names including EyeMasters, Visionworks Eye Wear, Hour Eyes, Dr. Bizer's VisionWorld, Dr. Bizer's ValueVision, ValuVision, Stein Optical, Vision World, and Eye DRx.

The company was incorporated in 1988. In 2006, its parent company Eye Care Centers of America merged with Highmark, a Blue Cross Blue Shield Insurance firm, based in Pittsburgh.

Corporate Events

This page lists select events is the company's merger chain.

• 1984: Company was founded as Eye Care Centers of America (ECCA) in San Antonio, Texas.
• 1986: ECCA held an IPO
• 1986: ECCA acquired 20/20 Eye Care Inc. of Phoenix, Arizona
• 1986: ECCA acquired EyeMasters out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
• 1987: Sears, Roebuck & Co. acquired ECCA.
• 1988: ECCA acquired Eye Co., Inc. which it rebranded as EyeMasters.
• 1993: ECCA executives and Desai Capital Management acquired ECCA from Sears.
• 1996: ECCA acquired Visionworks.
• 1997: ECCA acquired Hour Eyes.
• 1998: ECCA acquired Dr. Bizer's Vision World.
• 1998: Thomas H. Lee Company acquired ECCA, which had 243 shops for $300 million.
• 1999: ECCA acquired World Vision.
• 1999: ECCA acquired Stein Optical.
• 1999: ECCA acquired Eye DRx.
• 2004: Moulin International Holdings Ltd. and Golden Gate Capital acquired ECCA, which had 378 stores for $450 million in a transaction financed by JP Morgan.
• 2006: The insurance company HighMark acquired ECCA.
• 2013: ECCA changed its name to VisionWorks and began reducing its number of brands.
• 2017: Centerbridge Private Equity acquired a minority stake in Visionworks (pe hub).

profile page

References:

1. Funding Universer - Eye Care Centers of America (Drawn 6/4/2019)
2. Private Equity International - Tom Lee in Eye Care Exit (Drawn 6/4/2019)

Directory Listings:

• Coconino County - Health: Visionworks
• Phoenix Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Pima County - Vision: Visionworks
• Pinal County - Health: Visionworks
• Boulder Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Colorado Springs Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Denver Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Fort Collins Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Grand Junction - Vision: Visionworks
• Pueblo Color - Vision: Visionworks
• Davis County - Health: Visionworks
• Provo Utah - Vision: Visionworks
• Salt Lake Sites - Optometry: Visionworks

Prev ~ ~ Index ~ ~ Next