The Steiner Residence in St. Jacobs has found new life as the latest location for eye care provider, FYidoctors.
They opened their doors the first week of May and are holding a grand opening sale next weekend on July 15-16.
Calgary home office marketing manager Jalaine Lewko says with their sister clinic at The Boardwalk in Kitchener, they saw a great opportunity to expand the business to St. Jacobs when the building became available. She says they’ve seen the demand in Kitchener since opening in 2012 and so far the St. Jacobs community has been welcoming.
“It’s been really great. A lot of the neighbouring merchants and businesses around us have been super receptive, as well as the surrounding communities of St. Jacobs and patients in the Kitchener area as well,” Lewko said.
While the St. Jacobs space is smaller than their Kitchener one, she says they’ll still be able to meet the needs of the community.
The Steiner Residence was constructed circa 1858 and was designated a historic place in 1994 by the township of Woolwich. John Wideman purchased the property in 1856, where it’s believed he operated a business on the first floor and lived above it. The residence was named after the Steiner family who lived there from 1913 to 1993.
Since then, it’s been transformed into numerous businesses, FYidoctors being the latest.
There’s some exposed brick leading up to a skylight which provides natural light for patients to try on glasses. She says it was a pretty big transformation, while also maintaining the integrity of the historic property.
“Whenever we go ahead and acquire a new location or decide to move into a building that’s already pre-existing, our design team goes to do a full renovation of the location. We base our model and our look and feel from our FYidoctors flagship locations that exist across the country as we are a nationally based company,” Lewko said.
FYidoctors was founded by Canadian eye doctors with the idea that they could improve the quality of eye care available. She says they differentiate themselves by using current technology that can detect diseases and eye conditions that other eye exams might miss. They also have internal freeform lenses, which are customized for the unique needs of every patient’s eyes.
![FYidoctors opened its St. Jacobs clinic in May. Optometrist Amanda Klassen and receptionist Noelle Brown are welcoming the community to check out the fully renovated location on July 15-16 for their official grand opening. [Whitney Neilson / The Observer]](https://www.observerxtra.com/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/venture_fyi_post.jpg)
“Our technology is awesome. We offer an optomap retinal exam. This piece of equipment captures more than 80 per cent of your retina in one panoramic image while traditional imaging methods typically only show 15 per cent of your retina at one time. With the optomap we’re able to detect the common eye diseases, such as glaucoma, diabetes, age-related macular regeneration, and even cancer,” Lewko explained.
They also have an i.Terminal that accurately measures your face to ensure your glasses fit properly and comfortably
While it’s easier than ever to order glasses and contacts online nowadays, she recommends doing it in person with an optometrist, for your eyes’ health.
“Eye health is number one for us. By ordering your prescription online you’re not actually coming in yourself and getting an eye exam, which ensures that not only is your vision okay, but also for early detection of eye diseases,” Lewko said.
The St. Jacobs location at 1401 King St. North is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesdays from 10a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome or you can make an appointment at www.fyidoctors.com/st-jacobs, or by calling 519-664-2359.
