MASON, Ohio—Several new Pearle Vision EyeCare Centers are planned to open soon in central Florida, according to a recent company announcement. Licensed owner Kim Dawson will open the first of three EyeCare Centers in the Windermere and Winter Garden areas of Florida in 2020, the announcement noted. Pearle Vision’s area development program grants territories to qualified candidates to develop and open new locations, the company has noted of its franchising program. This type of development program allows for steady and predictable growth in a specific territory with a specific business team.

Pearle Vision is a division of EssilorLuxottica and operates about 475 U.S. locations, about 400 of which are franchise businesses.

Dawson, who has more than 20 years of experience in the health sciences field, said this Florida opportunity is an ideal way to combine her passion for health care with personal business goals. “I saw it as the perfect way to marry my business-owner mindset with my degree in health leadership,” she said in the announcement. Dawson has experience in the pharmaceutical industry and in chronic care management, and she recently earned a doctorate in health leadership and administration.

After searching for several years for the right franchising opportunity, Dawson said she was introduced to the Pearle Vision program and the retail and service aspects of the model appealed to her because of her medical sales background and commitment to community service, the announcement noted.

In addition, Dawson said she saw a need for eyecare services in central Florida. As a resident of Winter Garden, she said she has seen firsthand the tremendous amount of growth and development that has occurred in the area in the past few years. “This area of central Florida is showing explosive growth, and I want to be a part of that wave,” she said.