{"id":48760,"date":"2026-04-10T01:54:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T08:54:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=48760"},"modified":"2026-04-09T09:58:40","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T16:58:40","slug":"shoppe-celebrates-25-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2026\/04\/10\/shoppe-celebrates-25-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Shoppe celebrates 25 years"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leo Franken, left, with Manny (the mannequin) and David Downing. The community is invited to join the 25th anniversary open house at the store on April 15. (photo from Spectacle Shoppe)<\/i><\/p>\n

On April 15, the Spectacle Shoppe will host an open house in celebration of Leo Franken\u2019s 25 years as owner.<\/p>\n

Franken, an optician, bought the Kerrisdale store in 2001. The location has been an optical shop since the 1960s, its name changing from Western Optical to the Spectacle Shoppe in 1999.<\/p>\n

Born in Amsterdam, Holland, he moved to Montreal with his family when he was 4 years old. His father was an optician as well and his mother helped in their store a few days a week, eventually getting her optician\u2019s licence. His older brother was in the teaching profession, working within the Orthodox Jewish community in Toronto.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad was an optician, and the idea was that I would take over the business,\u201d he told the Independent<\/i>. \u201cI enjoyed the field and, when he passed away in 1970, I was put in a position of keeping the practice afloat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Franken moved to Vancouver in 1978, because of the political instability in Quebec. At the time, the threat of the province separating from Canada was a real possibility.<\/p>\n

In Vancouver, he became a member of Congregation Schara Tzedeck and the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, and he worked at various places before the Spectacle Shoppe came up for sale.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt resembled the kind of store that my dad had and in a community that was similar to where I grew up in Montreal,\u201d he explained of why he seized the opportunity to buy it.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took a long time,\u201d he said of learning the commercial side of owning a shop. \u201cI still think it is my greatest weakness,\u201d he admitted, \u201cbut I just love the business and that is what keeps it going.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that love is what keeps him going, as well. Now officially semi-retired, he said he\u2019s working on retirement, but, \u201cit turns out, as long as I am healthy, I will be in the store at least one to two days a week.\u201d<\/p>\n

His wife, Marlene, has made the transition into retirement, after a career as an occupational therapist specializing in the psychiatric field. The couple has two sons, Sheldon and Josh, but each of them decided on a different career path.<\/p>\n

\"photo<\/a>
(photo by Cynthia Ramsay)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

David Downing is the primary optician at the Spectacle Shoppe. He has more than 20 years\u2019 experience in the industry, and is also the store\u2019s eyewear-fitting specialist. Visitors to the open house will want to say hi to him and Franken, as well as the rest of the staff, Denisa and Gabriele.<\/p>\n

They can learn more about the many types of frames the shop carries, including Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which \u201cblend technology with everyday style,\u201d said Franken, noting that the \u201cglasses discreetly integrate features that allow you to capture moments and stay connected, without compromising on design.\u201d The frames are available in a range of women\u2019s, men\u2019s and unisex styles.<\/p>\n

From April 15 to 18, the shop will feature the complete lines of frame brands LA Eyeworks (\u201chigh-quality and design from Japan\u201d), Etnia Barcelona\u00a0 <\/span>(\u201ccolourful and youthful look from Spain\u201d) and Lool (\u201clightweight metal and plastic models for a softer look,\u201d also from Spain).<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a business that makes people happy,\u201d he said when asked his main thought about his 25-year milestone. \u201cIf the client is happy, they refer more people. To see my clients keep coming back while their family grows, I share in the joy of continuing growth all around.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is grateful for all the support he has received, including from the Jewish community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been our privilege serving Kerrisdale and beyond,\u201d he said. \u201cWe thank you for your trust and support throughout the years. We are grateful for the many customers who have \u2018grown up\u2019 with us over the past quarter-century. We look forward to many more years of being an integral part of Kerrisdale and its community.\u201d<\/p>\n

The April 15 open house will take place from noon to 8 p.m. at the store, which is located at 5683 West Blvd.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Leo Franken, left, with Manny (the mannequin) and David Downing. The community is invited to join the 25th anniversary open house at the store on April 15. (photo from Spectacle Shoppe) On April 15, the Spectacle Shoppe will host an open house in celebration of Leo Franken\u2019s 25 years as owner. Franken, an optician, bought […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48761,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[24787,24786,24785,8353,24788,8354],"class_list":["post-48760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-annivesaries","tag-glasses","tag-kerrisdale","tag-leo-franken","tag-opticians","tag-spectacle-shoppe"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48760"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48760\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}