Deccan Optical is synonymous with eye care in Hyderabad

​Hyderabad: Deccan Optical started in 1946 in Hyderabad but the seeds were sown first in Delhi in 1919 by the Kapoor family who ventured into optical business to serve the elite British Generals and VIPs of pre-independent India. Manish Kapoor says his great grandparents started Deccan Optical in Aurangabad in 1929 which was a part of the Nizam territory.

Like many who migrated from Lahore during the Independence struggle, the Kapoor family too shifted to Hyderabad in 1946 and had to leave properties in Lahore. With stores in Warangal and Aurangabad, they started expansion. Manish says, “Such was the demand that people stood in long queues at the shop.

My father was the first generation contact lens specialist in India and was called ‘Mumtaheen- e- chashme wala’ meaning a qualified dispensing optician. He was also a Professor at Sarojini Devi hospital and my grandfather was the official optician to the former President of India, S Radhakrishnan.”

Spread over 8,000 sft at Basheerbagh, Deccan Optical is the oldest optical store in the region. It now plans to expand and also looks into franchise segment. Manish says that in next four years, the target is to touch Rs 30 crore turnover.

A store would be coming up and is slated to open in Visakhapatnam in February 2017. Expansion plans to move down south too are in the offing with stores in Chennai, Coimbatore and major cities in Karnataka.

An issue that irks Manish and his family is the mushrooming of mediocre stores that sell goods of low quality.

Manish feels there is a need for the government to weed out unethical practices and at the same time feels the buying capacity of people has gone up over the years.

There is a huge potential for the market and wants to see Deccan Optical to be on top not only in South India but in the Asia-Pacific region.