More than 30 million people in Russia have vision problems which they don’t correct. For many, it’s caused by a lack of information about the necessity of a regular eye check-up to identify problems and find the appropriate solution. In 2017, Essilor launched a national Crizal Healthy Vision program with a dual purpose: to educate people about the need to take better care of their visual health and help children in acute need of vision correction.

Through a national advertising and communications campaign, Essilor and its partner in Russia, Luis Optica, worked with 915 opticians to offer a month of free eye check-ups – screening 21,000 people across 261 cities. In addition to print and digital communications, an hour-long show on national television devoted to vision, featuring eye screenings and discussions with health and eye care professionals was presented by Andrey Malakhov – a well known TV personality who is also a Crizal brand ambassador for Russia. The campaign is estimated to have reached 53 million people.

The second objective of the Crizal Healthy Vision program was to bring vision correction to disadvantaged children, to underline the importance of protecting visual health from a young age. From World Sight Day in October 2017 to the end of the year, Essilor and a network of customers provided free screening and eyeglasses to nearly 400 children at children’s homes, kindergartens and special needs centers. The program covered eight cities across six regions stretching from Novosibirsk in Siberia to Saint-Petersburg in the north.

Essilor’s Crizal Healthy Vision program was recognised with a Silver Mercury Award for the advertising and marketing campaign promoting its work in communities across Russia. It also gained a best social project of Russia award from the national Fund for Social Projects and Programs.

The Crizal Healthy Vision program continues in 2018. Essilor is teaming up with 50 partners to screen and equip 1,000 children as well as continue to increase awareness of the need to regularly check visual health with eye care professionals.