Dame Mary and Doug Perkins founded Specsavers in Guernsey in 1984 after having already built and sold a chain of optician stores in the UK. Mary studied optometry at Cardiff University, where she met Doug and after qualifying, they set up their first business in Bristol, which grew to 23 stores before being sold in 1980. With the deregulation of the optician profession in the UK in the 1980s, allowing advertising and greater competition the Perkins identified an opportunity to offer fashionable eyewear at accessible prices.

They launched Specsavers from their home in Guernsey and adopted a joint-venture store model, enabling local partners to co-own each store while the group provided supply, branding and support. Under their leadership, Specsavers expanded internationally to more than 1,000 locations in over 10 countries, with annual revenues exceeding £3bn and a workforce of over 40,000. Mary remains deeply engaged in the business’s culture and customer experience — traditionally visiting stores undercover and writing birthday and new-baby cards for staff — while Doug drives innovation, strategic partnerships and growth.

The Perkins family placed the business into a trust to maintain independence and preserve the founding values of quality, affordability and partnership. They both still play pivotal roles at Specsavers, guiding its long-term strategy, expanding services into hearing care and ensuring the business stays true to its original mission of accessible eye and hearing health for all.