Coopervision to Purchase Sauflon

Coopervision to purchase Sauflon I have been down on Coopervision a little of late. I don't think they're a terrible company or anything, I just get a little tired of their stupid private-label game (see blog post about private labeling here) and I don't think they have superior products at this time. Their big lens "Biofinity" is, IMO, inferior to it's 2 major competitors (J&J's Acuvue Oasys and Alcon's Air Optix Aqua). Biofinity is not a *bad* lens, it's just not special enough for me to Rx it over what I consider to be other, superior products. However apparently they just inked a deal to buy Sauflon...a small, UK-based soft contact lens company. Sauflon is interesting for sure. Back before silicone hydrogels got big (about 2005), I really liked their non-silicone lens Sauflon 55UV. It had a great design and was very comfortable. I kind of forgot about them once silicone got big, tho because they didn't have a silicone lens (because they are a smaller company...not as "cutting edge" with new products, etc). But now I see that Coopervision is purchasing them. I hope Cooper keeps their products, as I see now that Sauflon has a silicone hydrogel daily disposable (one of only 3 I can think of available in the US), as well as a silicone hydrogel daily disposable TORIC (there is not another one of these on the US market at all...this is a unique product). Sauflon also makes contact lens solutions including a competing hydrogen peroxide soft contact lens cleaning/storage solution that compares with Alcon's Clear Care. That's interesting because Coopervision is not currently in the "solutions" market. Are they going to "GET" into it? That'd be kind of cool. Basically for a company who doesn't have a single product that I routinely Rx, maybe if they widely distribute Sauflon's products they could have a niche in the market. Now if they'd only drop the private label game. Here is the Sauflon press release about the acquisition.

Comments

  1. I have been waiting for the Clariti one day TORIC to be available for ages. As you mentioned, it's the only daily silicone hydrogel toric lens. I saw their press release back in January of this year, but I still don't see my local doctor's office nor any of the online retail carry them. Do you what their roll out plan on this one? Is it only available as private label to very limited subset of eye doctors?

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