Mary Kane, Executive Editor
Mary helps to oversee the editorial coverage of
Vision Monday and its print publication,
VMail, e-newsletters,
VisionMonday.com and the
Vision Expo Dailies. She also covers general company news, industry developments and business trends, as well as professional associations news and features. She is also responsible for deadline queries and operational questions for
Vision Monday print editions and
VMail. Contact Mary at
mkane@jobson.com.
By Mary Kane
Friday, March 29, 2019 1:50 PM
NEW YORK—Think of it, just one week ago today many of us were in the thick of it at Vision Expo East. It was a very busy three days crammed with appointments, show floor events, celebrity sightings and parties that stretched into the night. Going into the final day of Expo, show organizers were very upbeat about the mood and momentum of Expo East. Initial pre-registration figures showed an increase in registration for key categories, including optical buyers, practice managers, optometric technicians and opticianry assistants, Vision Expo reported. And of the 7,000 companies present at this year’s Show, one-third of attendees represented new practices and optical locations. Here’s what co-owners of the Show, The Vision Council and Reed Exhibitions, told
Vision Monday about this year’s Vision Expo.
By Mary Kane
Friday, February 22, 2019 11:41 AM
A few months ago, I had an interesting commute home to Connecticut from New York City. If you know anything about commuting in and out of the city, “interesting” does not always translate into a positive experience, but this particular trip home would turn out to be an eye opener for me. As I made my way from the subway to the shuttle which would take me to Grand Central Station, I was struck as I often am at the hordes of people, coming and going in zigzag patterns, usually walking but sometimes running right at me. Actually making it to the platform can make you feel a bit like a running back who’s just completed a long run upfield and when you finally arrive you think, touchdown!
By Mary Kane
Monday, February 11, 2019 12:30 AM
During a recent visit to my doctor for a yearly check-up I was handed an iPad at the desk and was asked to review my medical history. Under my current medications, I was a little surprised to see my flu shot listed since I had received it in our N.Y. offices as part of a wellness program at Jobson.
By Mary Kane
Friday, January 25, 2019 10:38 AM
The exploding popularity of podcasts in the past year has made it one of the fastest growing and digestible forms of media to come along in quite some time. According to a recent CBS News poll, most Americans listen to podcasts and the percentage who do listen has seen a big increase over the past year. So what makes these “pseudo” streaming radio programs so appealing? Find out as we dig deep into the podcast craze and offer a few listening suggestions.
By Mary Kane
Friday, December 21, 2018 12:01 PM
Back in the fall of 2017, when we first considered doing a Weekend edition of
VMAIL we knew it was going to be a challenge to add a 6th edition to our
VMAIL repertoire. The fact that we were going to take a lighter look at the news and features surrounding the optical industry might seem like an easier task than reporting hard news, but bright and breezy can sometimes feel like a tall order. The
VM editorial staff knew that the anchor feature of the Weekend edition, Today’s Read, would always be our greatest challenge each week. And truth be told, in the early days the weight of it was a little scary for all of us on the editorial team. But in looking back on past Today’s Read features I can honestly say we rose to the occasion.
By Mary Kane
Friday, October 26, 2018 1:44 PM
One-hundred years ago this month, the influenza epidemic of 1918 was in full swing, killing about 195,000 Americans in the month of October. The
New York Times took a look back at the pandemic with a
story by Perri Klass, MD, a pediatrician and medical writer. She implored readers “to pay proper respect to the influenza of 100 years ago, get this year’s flu shot and make sure your children do, too.”
By Mary Kane
Monday, October 22, 2018 12:00 AM
As I write this column, people around the world are celebrating World Sight Day—ECPs, optometric companies and sight-related organizations are turning out in impressive numbers to support the 1.2 billion people worldwide who are in need of vision care. According to the World Health Organization, nearly 80 percent of vision impairment globally is avoidable—the leading causes of vision impairment are uncorrected refractive errors and cataracts
By Mary Kane
Friday, August 24, 2018 11:22 AM
NEW YORK—It’s been 30 years since Vision Expo West made its splashy debut at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, Calif. THere are some vital stats from
VM’s archives, the April 1988 issue to be exact, about the debut of Vision Expo West back in 1988: attendance was 6,199 with 287 exhibitors in 67,600 square feet of space with the educational program totaling 200 hours. Oh my, how things have changed.
By Mary Kane
Monday, August 13, 2018 12:00 AM
It’s been said that the eyes are the windows to the soul but in these tech-driven times, the eyes can also function as a diagnostic tool for our health. Something as simple as an eye exam can detect serious disease, such as high blood pressure, the onset of diabetes or a life-threatening condition.
By Mary Kane
Friday, July 13, 2018 11:41 AM
Right after Mary Tyler Moore died in 2017, I wrote a column about what a role model her character, Mary Richards, was for women in the 1970s business world. Mary’s weekly encounters with her gruff but lovable boss Lou Grant, were emblematic of what a lot of women were experiencing on the job some 45 years ago, especially when it came to equal treatment and equal pay. In
one episode, Mary asks why her predecessor earned more money than she does and Lou replies, “Because he was a man.” It was meant to be funny and rang true at the time, but sad to say, times are not changing fast enough when it comes to salary equity between men and women.
By Mary Kane
Friday, June 8, 2018 12:03 AM
It's always exciting to look to the future but, sometimes we need to look back first. The year is 1964, I'm a five-year old at the World’s Fair in Flushing, Queens and the future is all around me. On the 50th anniversary of the Fair, the Daily News
wrote about the futuristic aspects of the attractions and pavilions: “Model rockets featured in NASA’s exhibit promised a trip to the moon was just years away. Visitors to the futuristic IBM Pavilion sat on a moveable grandstand that carried them up to a theater. Ford showed off its radical new Mustang.
By Mary Kane
Friday, May 4, 2018 12:57 PM
Let’s face it, winter was a long, sloggy, cold mess this year, especially in the Northeast. Now that spring has sprung, everyone’s thinking about righting some of those wrong winter habits (overeating, binge-watching Netflix) and changing their unhealthy ways. Naturally, spring is when people’s thoughts turn to the outdoors and having a healthy, active lifestyle is top of mind. Spring is also the perfect time for ECPs to educate patients on how to eat healthier and take care of their eyes at the same time.
By Mary Kane
Monday, April 16, 2018 12:27 AM
Flexibility and instant access to information are key for today’s modern companies. As workplaces and organizations become more collaborative, companies need to be transparent and responsive to employees and customers alike.
By Mary Kane
Monday, April 16, 2018 12:00 AM
It’s hard not to feel a sense of community during Vision Expo. Seeing friends and colleagues from the industry, exchanging ideas at panels and Pop Ups and networking deep into the night brings people together. Although we are all in the “business” of vision care and eyewear, at the end of the day we are all helping people see better.
By Mary Kane
Friday, March 30, 2018 12:13 PM
Everybody’s got a Top 10 list. David Letterman’s
Top 10 followed his monologue every weeknight on his Late Night Show for years. Who could forget Top Ten Signs You’re Not the Coolest Kid. Even though Vision Expo is well in our rear-view mirror, we feel like we are still living it through
post-Expo slideshows. So here is a somewhat personal look at some special moments from Expo. We promise our Top 10 takeaways won’t be as ridiculous as some of Dave’s.