Jose Alves, General Manager of Transitions
ORLANDO, Fla.—The 21st annual Transitions Academy came to a close Tuesday night with great fanfare as Transitions Optical recognized top performing partners from the U.S., Canada and Latin America during a closing dinner and presentation of its Transitions Innovation Awards. The awards were presented to optical retailers and ECPs across five categories, and the winners were selected from a field of three finalists in each category. The winners were:

Pacific Eye Care of Port Orchard, Wash., which received the 2016 Best in Growth Achievement award. Jamie Nelson, practice manager at Pacific Eye Care, accepted the award on behalf of the practice. The finalists in Best in Growth Achievement included Henry Ford OptimEyes and National Inc.

The Best in Growth Achievement is awarded to an individual or company that has demonstrated a strong commitment to Transitions Optical and photochromic growth.

Value Optical of Trinidad received the Best in Marketing award for 2016. Chris Lewis, chief executive officer of Value Optical, accepted the award on behalf of the retailer. Best in Marketing finalists included Wilson Eye Center and Heather Padgett, national marketing manager at HOYA Vision Care.

The Best in Marketing award celebrates an individual or company for employing creative and strategic marketing tactics to effectively promote the Transitions brand or family of products among customers or within their communities.

Professional VisionCare, Westerville, Ohio, received the 2016 Best in Patient Experience award. Raquel Miller, practice director, accepted the award on behalf of the practice. Best in Patient Experience finalists included Costco Optical (Canada) and Visionworks.

The Best in Patient Experience award celebrates an individual or company for developing a forward-thinking approach to consistently dispense Transitions lens products and meet individual patient needs.

New Look Eyewear of Quebec, Canada, received the Best in Training award for 2016. Marie-Josee Mercier, vice president sales and operations, accepted the award. Best in Training finalists included Walman Optical and Jennifer Lenhart, director of training and development at OnSight Optical.

The Best In Training award celebrates an individual or company for employing creative and strategic marketing tactics to effectively promote the Transitions brand or family of products among customers or within their communities.

Sheena Taff of Roberts & Brown Opticians, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, was recognized as the 2016 Transitions Brand Ambassador. Finalists in the Brand Ambassador category included Jennifer Lyerly, OD, and James Vann, OD.

The Transitions Brand Ambassador award celebrates an individual who best showcases their dedication to being an influential advocate of the Transitions brand. All nominees are evaluated on their performance in several factors, including commitment to photochromic growth; alignment to Transitions Optical and participation in programs and promotions; marketing initiatives; education and training efforts; and community involvement.