Global Market For Soft Contacts To Grow 6% By 2016

The period between 2012 and 2016 will be marked by steady growth of global soft contact lens sales, though the market will face certain challenges. The latest sector report from TechNavio suggests that the soft contact lenses market will deliver compound annual growth of 6% during that period.

According to the research company, several factors are working together to drive the development. Among them is the growing number of people affected by eye disorders, which is attributed to aging populations, long hours spent in front of computers, and unhygienic lifestyles.

As for the challenges facing the market, a particularly serious one could prove to be the durability of soft contacts. These lenses provide a short-term alternative, and are designed to last for a shorter time, the report explains.

The publication also notes the growing trend among vendors to bundle products. Market participants are increasingly adopting such strategies, meaning that they combine two or more products in a package so as to improve their offerings. A typical example is the sale of soft contact lenses in combination with cleaning solutions and storage cases. In addition to addressing the overall needs of contact lens wearers, these product bundles have greater appeal than individual products, because they represent a cost-effective choice.

>From the vendors’ point of view, packaged offerings are a way of maintaining reasonable pricing and lifting profit margins at the same time. Such strategies are making it possible to sustain market growth, according to TechNavio’s analyst team.