Charlie Collins This is Me

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1. 1. www.visiondynamics.com

   www.visiondynamics.com/page/ne - [Cached]

   Published on: 1/30/2008   Last Visited: 6/22/2008

   CHARLIE COLLINS, who was diagnosed as a child with juvenile macular degeneration, owns Vision Dynamics, a one-stop shop in Cheshire for people with impaired vision.
   ...
   January 30, 2008 n 1997, brimming with enthusiasm and a ready-made (if small) customer base, Charlie Collins decided to launch his own business in Cheshire - a store that sold optical magnifiers and visual aids for those with low vision.
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   Collins, his brother and two of his four sisters had been diagnosed as children with juvenile macular degeneration, a genetic disorder that impairs vision.To read, they needed magnifiers and optical scanners.They needed talking clocks and talking telephones.For fun, they needed large-print playing cards and tactile chess sets.
   
   "I knew I had a few customers - my family," Collins said.Just one problem: "I also knew they would want a discount."
   
   Collins, then 29, wrote a business plan, secured a $105,000 business loan from AT&T Capital Corp., and with his father's help, transformed a former dance studio at 470 W. Main St., into a brightly lit 800-square-foot showroom called Vision Dynamics.
   
   In 10 years, the company has become a profitable, one-stop shop for people with impaired vision, as well as a contract provider for several state and federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said Collins, now 40.
   
   What's on the shelves or online at www.visiondynamics.com?Everything from a 65-cent signature guide to a pair of magnifying toenail clippers for $9.95 to document magnifiers priced in the thousands.
   
   The store also carries $139.95 telescopic glasses "perfect for viewing TV," $99 ZoomText keyboards "for anyone who struggles to see the lettering on their keyboard," and talking calculators, talking watches, even an upbeat, talking scale."You've gained two pounds - have a nice day," Collins said, parodying its patter.
   
   Since 1997, Vision Dynamics has tripled its square footage, adding training and rehabilitation rooms and an office for a visiting optometrist.
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   "This is a full-service company, pretty much owned and operated by a bunch of people who can't see a damn thing," Collins said.
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   Collins hired Hays, a former customer, six months ago.
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   "She was sitting at home," Collins said.
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   Collins was not always comfortable with his failing eyesight, or himself.
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   After barely graduating from high school, Collins worked at odd jobs for several years, earning enough to buy a small dirt bike that he rode through the woods."You can't hurt trees," he said.
   
   "I had no goals, no vision, no future."
   
   When he needed a motorcycle part, the 22-year-old would stop in at Willow's Motor Sports in Cheshire.
   
   "One day, one of the co-owners asked me if I would like to sell motorcycles," Collins said."All I could think was why would he ever ask a dumb, blind guy like me a question like that?"
   
   Collins said he would think it over.The next morning, after a fitful night, he returned to the dealership.
   
   "I had a 90-day trial," Collins said.
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   Sales took off, said Jim Tabor, the co-owner of Willow's who hired Collins.
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   "Charlie was a good salesperson," Tabor said."I knew he had problems with his vision, but I figured he could do the job.I just liked his personality.It's more about enthusiasm."
   
   Three years later, Collins was promoted to vice president of Willow's.
   
   "I had it all the time.I just didn't know how to tap into my gifts," Collins said.
   
   After a few years, however, he realized something was missing.
   
   "I knew I needed to move on," he said."I didn't want to sell motorcycles forever.I took a year off - that year, I worked on Charlie.That's when I decided to open a store that sells magnifiers."
   
   A month ago, Collins expanded the store to accommodate a special fitting room for customers in need of special lenses.
   ...
   Collins and Kinkade have known each other for 10 years.

2. 2. Vision Dynamics: Normal Contrast

   www.visiondynamics.com/page/ab - [Cached]

   Published on: 6/22/2008   Last Visited: 6/22/2008

   My name is Charlie Collins and I own Vision Dynamics.I was diagnosed with Juvenile Macular Degeneration in early childhood.
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   Best, Charlie Collins
   
   Charlie Collins also won the Employer of the Year Award!
   
   Click Here to View his Award
   ...
   Charlie Collins
   ...
   Charlie Collins
   
   Phone: (203) 271-1944Fax: (203) 271-3997Email: support@visiondynamics.com

3. 3. www.visiondynamics.com

   www.visiondynamics.com/page/NE - [Cached]

   Published on: 9/2/2003   Last Visited: 6/22/2008

   Charlie Collins
   
   Founder and President
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   Charles Collins, a 36-year-old entrepreneur, founded Vision Dynamics six years ago; he claims it's the first store of its type.In addition to Collins, who is legally blind, the store currently has six partially sighted employees and a sighted person who does outside sales.
   
   Collins is a visionary.Believing that sight impaired people should live as independently as possible, he has created a unique retail business by offering them the tools as well as teaching them the skills to do so.L&T spoke with Collins about his retailing approach, his customer service philosophy and his plans to expand Vision Dynamics.