So extremely unprofessional from the start. Over the course of two months after I paid for an eye exam and my corrective lenses (both contacts and glasses) I got the wrong prescription four times and had about a dozen interactions with them before I finally accepted the fact that I still just have the wrong prescription for my glasses and contact lenses. They refused to give any discount when I asked. read more

This is a total turn around from my review 6 years ago, the management was friendly, the man fitting the glasses was great , very professional, they helped my daughter get a good pair of glasses and fixed my wife's glasses easily the man fitting the glasses knew everything about the lenses and was very good with his job. The manager was much nicer than last time I was here, I am glad they got a much better team in there. Bravo read more

I had examed which was in correct by a professional opthologist / i blame vision works , incomptency/complaim perscription affedting my eyes . blurry and watereyes caused to soo strong , i proved it today . fix both glasses or better business bureas . i will sue them . receptionist very rude , after 20 years customer service , let them pay all visions not professional people . go to fit small never again and breaks the nose piece ,get your address location incorrect . file lawsuit ! read more

STORE 1014 Auburn NY I have been going to EV for 30 years. Several weeks ago I purchased 3 pair of eyeglasses. Not cheap. I went in today 2\10 to pick them up. Two pair were fine. The third pair of frames were not what I ordered. I ordered Ray-Ban sunglasses. Totally different from the the rectangle framed pair she offered. My wife even took photos of the RAY-BANS and the other 2 pr. pair. I tried all 3 pr. on. Alyssa demanded that the RAY-BANS WERE not what I ordered. MY wife was with me. Alyssa continued to lecture me on what we had ordered. stating that the RAY-BANS would cost more $. This is a red flag moment. The mgr. Lauri was courteous and ordered the new pair at no extra cost. I doubt I will be back to EV. read more

On February 28, 2024, I went to the Auburn, NY Visionworks office for an emergency appointment, as my current glasses broke in half. It has now been over a month, and I am still waiting for my new glasses. I understand something went wrong with the first attempt to make the lenses, however I was never informed about this in the first place and only found out because I called the store several days after my promised date (3/13/24). When I spoke with the store manager about this, I was told the promised date does not mean anything, it just automatically and arbitrarily assigns a date at time of purchase. I was told the manager would reach out and try to get a better idea of when I could expect my glasses and get back to me. Nobody ever called me back. After several days of waiting, I went to the store and spoke with a different manager who also said she would try to get me a more definite answer as to when I could expect my glasses. She called on Friday, March 22 to let me know she had not received any answers, but had reached out to her regional director and the lab, and would get back to me on Monday, March 25, to let me know what was going on. It is now Friday, March 29, and I have still not heard back. I spent 20 minutes on hold just now trying to call the store and was put through to a centralized customer service line where they still do not have a concrete answer for me as to when I can expect the glasses that I have already paid for. read more

I am visiting from out of town, and I unfortunately broke the connection between the frame and my glasses, and it needed to be repaired. They said I would have to wait, which was no problem because I needed them fixed. The Wonderful staff fixed them no problem in less than 20 minutes! Thanks again! read more

I've gotten glasses at Visionworks in Auburn for a long time. This year, however - the customer service has DEFINITELY taken a nosedive. Three weeks ago, I got an eye exam and ordered new glasses. That was fine. Then, I asked if I could also order gas-permeable contact lenses, as they're the only kind my eyes can tolerate. Granted, RARELY does anyone order that kind now, but the staff gamely made some calls, said they were getting info from a distributor forwarded to them, etc. They would contact me with an update. Fine. Two weeks later, I get a message that my glassed were ready. Now, I hadn't heard a word about the contacts - but, I knew getting them might be a challenge, so I figured I'd hear an update when I picked up my glasses. Well, they hadn't ordered them, yet. Why? I really don't know. The young lady I spoke to said she'd "left a post-it note" for the doctor asking a question about them (when she did that during the two weeks that passed, I couldn't say) but THAT DAY when I was picking up my glasses, she went to back to the exam room to get the answer from the doctor so she could order the lenses (????). I was pissed that nothing had been done in two weeks, but I kept quiet at that point. The doctor was in with a patient, so the tech said she'd get the info she needed and order the lenses - then call me "by 5:30" (it was about 4:20 at that time) that day to confirm. No call. I tried three times over the next nine days to call to see what was up, but could never get connected with a live person. Finally, I just stopped in today to find out what was going on. I spoke to the young woman at the reception area, who checked my account/chart - and said it DIDN'T APPEAR THE LENSES HAD BEEN ORDERED!! I asked what was going on, why hadn't they been ordered...but she said she would have an assistant manager (indicating a woman behind her who was with another couple) speak with me about it, if I would have a seat. I waited another 15-20 minutes - during which the "assistant manager" finished up with the previous customers, spoke with another staff member, spoke with the young woman I had spoken with - then went in another room...that was the last I saw her. No acknowledgment - nothing. I was DONE - I went back to the young woman I had been speaking with and asked her to print out my prescription for me, as I will be taking it somewhere else to get lenses. Unbelievable - I 'm still stunned!! NO communication, NO apologies, NO service!! Absolutely NO f*cks given. I'm astonished, honestly...and DONE with Empire Visionworks in Auburn! read more

I just had an eye exaim in June. I lost my glasses. I need to order another pair. I live 4o miles away from the Visionworks store. I have the all the info needed for the new glasses on the bill. But I can't order them. I have to travel to the store for an appointment to order a new pair then travel back to pick them up. Probably wont go back. Tom Caprilla read more

My father made the trip to the store because of a previous good experience there a while back, and was so extremely pleased with the price and patience and extra help he got finding glasses he liked a couple of days ago (April 2021), that I came on here to leave a review. Yes, the automated phone answering thing is horrible, and when I called I never got through even after waiting on hold with the message running for 40 minutes. But the help he got from the guy to to find glasses he liked and the extra optional upgrades at a great price more than made up for it. Definitely recommend this place. read more

I showed up for my appointment 5 minutes early and had to wait 15 minutes to be helped and they tell me my insurance is not only bad but completely canceled. This makes me completely worried that my company somehow canceled my insurance only to find out it was the visionworks computer systems fault. I reschedule the appointment for 9 am. I arrived at 9:03 and had to wait in line for 4 minutes. When I was up in line at 9:07 receptionist told me that I was late and there was a 5 minute grace period and I would have to reschedule yet again, when I had arrived on time. Absolutely unacceptable behavior and I will be taking my business elsewhere in the future. I advise others to do the same. read more

My mother just turned 93 years old and received a letter in the mail from Empire Visionworks in Auburn saying it was time for her to schedule her annual eye exam. She has been going here for more than 20 years for her exams and glasses. When we went into the store to schedule the exam, the rude receptionist told her that she was TOO OLD TO HAVE AN EYE EXAM and that they do not provide eye exams to anyone over 80 years old. When questioned why (since clearly my Mom has been over 80 for 12 years now and she got an eye exam there every year), the receptionist rudely said that the eye doctor that was trained for the tests that eyes over 80 needed left and went back to Canada. Not sure what tests are specific to elderly eyes but I get the same tests as her at 64 years old from my eye doctor. Plus my Mom has had a different eye doctor at this place every time she goes. When told that this is AGE DISCRIMINATION and that many people who get annual eye exams are over 80, she just said there was nothing they could do about it - how about hire another doctor who has the proper training (sounds like BS to me)? Then the receptionist had the nerve to tell my Mom (who was fuming mad at this point) that she could go get an eye exam somewhere else and come back for her glasses!! I would have said HELL NO but my Mom is more polite than me and said nothing. But you can be sure that she will never set foot in this store again and she will be letting everyone that she knows how she was treated by this place. Also, I will be contacting the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust to inform them that they need to remove this company from their provider listing because they refuse to provide service to retirees once they reach 80 years of age. Bottom line - DON'T GIVE THIS COMPANY YOUR BUSINESS!!! If you do, they may REFUSE SERVICE (WITH NO PRIOR NOTIFICATION) to you based on some random excuse that they come up with or mainly because they won't pay for the necessary training for their doctors (got cataracts or an astigmatism - sorry no eye exam for you - our doctors aren't trained to help you LOL). read more

It was recommended for us to make the appointment online due to Covid-19 which we did 2 months in advance. Once we arrived for our appointment they told us that we weren't in the computer as having an appointment but that fortunately the computer leaves that spot open for a walk in..telling us we wouldn't have to wait as they now considered us as a walk in for that time slot. As we sat and waited to get called in approximately 10 other people arrived who did not have appointments except for 2 and every single person was seen before my husband..as a matter of fact we are still sitting here and it's been over an hour and he is just going in for his exam..we will never come back to this place again it's a complete joke!!! read more

Has tons of name brand frames I couldn't decide which ones I wanted. Was told about BOGO so I got two! Very happy with them. In and out- very pleasant experience. read more

My adult daughter and I have been going here for a few years mainly because it is in the insurance network. This is the first year that I would have given them five stars. In the past the doctor that I saw, while I am sure he did a thorough job, just acted like we were another number and couldn't wait to get us out of the exam room. This year we saw a new doctor, Dr Hunter I believe, and he was awesome. The time in his office getting the exam was about the same, but he actually took time to talk to me, explained things, etc. It is nice to be treated as a person and not just another appointment. I also like that the office does not have turnover with their staff, the techs have been there for a while and that helps. Every year when we order contacts Yvonne is awesome about letting us know about rebate opportunities as well. read more

Great business friendly staff just a great experience they listen to you they don't condescend you or tell you you don't know what your eyes are feeling they are great there read more

Had 2 Bad experiences there 6 months a part. First was when I went back to get my Glasses fixed, 6 Months old and screw fell out, they say 1 Year Warranty but never said you have to wait over 1 hour, Cant drop off either. They told me "New Customers waiting for New Glasses go first" Second time was a call the night before my appointment that I made 4 weeks prior to tell me "Insurance wont pay if you come in on the 28th will only pay if you come in on 29th or later and were Booked" Well why did you wait so long to check on Insurance?? So I cancelled the appointment & I think they were Glad, less work for them, Lazy Employees read more

Not happy with them at all..........Husband just got new glasses in March and the frame fell apart by end of June 2020. He went in and they adjusted the broken ones so that he would have them until the new frames came in. July 29th the boys had appointments and while I was there, I checked the status of his new frames. Could not find him in the system. Asked for his dob, gave it to them.......the lady is like well I have 2 people with that dob. We must of spelled his name wrong....she didnt realize that many ppl could have the same dob. I ordered the frames again for him and while looking them up, said Geneva area has those frames. The lady said I live in the Geneva area and can pick them up to have those frames here on Monday. Its Wed now and the order was never submitted. read more

My family and I have been customers at Visionworks for 19 years- the customer service declined rapidly. Tonight was by far the worst experience. I left my job early to get to the appointments for my daughters only to WAIT for 30 minutes. There is no place to sit- the place was swarming with people - not one worker was willing to come forward and address any customers! The girls that are waiting on the customers are so rude ! They have no interpersonal skills with the customers. My daughters went through their exams quickly - hopefully efficiently. My daughter was going to be late for her Lacrosse game so I asked if I could bring them back After the game to have the measurements taken for glasses- One of the girls (with attitude) replied "I guess- just be back before 7"! My husband arrived there at 6:15. Waited... waited... waited. Asked a women Danya? who they were waiting for . She replied "you have to just wait there is only one girl" once again rudely - and she refused to move from the chair she was sitting in! FINALLY at 7:10 someone fitted my daughters for their glasses. I can NOT believe the audacity of some of the workers there! How is this ok?!?! Rude and unbelievably unprofessional behavior. I have an appointment tomorrow - and this will be the last time I walk through the doors there! I called my Insurance company and asked for a list of new providers . After 19 years - we are leaving this place after repeated rude and condescending interactions . This place used to be great filled with friendly employees - I will spend my money on 5 family members elsewhere. read more

Good place to get glasses, but try not to get one employee, Gabriel, if possible. He was nice, but he made some odd comments. Before he helped us, there was an elderly couple ahead of us who wanted to get their glasses fitted, when we were ahead of them in the line. Because of this elderly couple, he seemed to be slightly angered. This was only the beginning of the "interesting" experience. Then he called my name, and we weren't ready to get our frames (we each had an idea of a good pair, but we were still looking). He then didn't have a place for us to sit, so we waited a minute to be seated. He suggested that the person I was with change their frames because of the look and fit. He said, "Take all of the time you need to look for another pair." Within 2 minutes of us getting up to look for a different pair, he came over and said "How are we doing?" He did this repeatedly, at least 4 times, and we were rushing to find a new pair of frames. This place is normally great place to get glasses, but this was ONE odd experience out of many times with 2 star service. read more

I have had multiple experiences with this store, but after my last phone call, I am compelled to review the eye center. My last visit was about 9 months ago when I had to get the dreaded bifocals at a fairly young age. I had employee insurance coverage but my bill still totaled well over $200. When I questioned the itemized charges (so I knew exactly what I was paying for), the sales help seemed aghast that I would question it. I still do not know what exactly I paid for as they didn't know either. Truly, once I was so frustrated that I said "I am just going to pay it", the bill became $20 more expensive as I walked to the register. They could explain this one- they forgot to add a co-pay. I swore I wouldn't return but my son needed an exam ASAP and I called this morning. Jessica, you should have been nicer or you wouldn't be named here. I called (and I must say I have a very friendly phone voice),I explained my son was moving and we needed a last minute appointment in the next week. Jessica at this point was very nice and said she would check. She came back on and explained that I should have called well before now as they are completely booked. Well, duh. I know I should have called sooner, I didn't. I asked if there was a small window that she could squeeze him into and day and any time, we weren't picky. She became very rude and told me that she had explained there were no openings and there still aren't. She suggested that he come and try as a walk in but he could be waiting up to three hours. (This was the point I asked her name because I knew I was going to complain). I reiterated and asked her to confirm that she was telling me that I should have called sooner and that there was no possibility of being seen unless He wanted to wait up to three hours. She said yes, that is what I am saying. I think she then hung up on me! read more

Came back after over paying for glasses to get my contact lenses "checked" because apparently that's necessary.. and they didn't even have my appt scheduled even though I had an appt card they gave me and everything. read more

I ordered glasses and was told that I would be called in 7 to 10 days. It has been 3 weeks so I called to find the problem. I was told they had been in, and they weren't sure if they were still there. I asked why I hadn't been called, and was told that they had texted me ... problem is that I have a land line phone, no texting. Then I was told it was MY fault for not telling them I didn't have texting. Not exactly what I wanted to hear! No apology because it was my problem. read more

My son had a scheduled appointment yesterday at 5pm, he took time off from work to be there, only to show up and was told his appointment had been cancelled, and they never called, nor emailed the cancelled appointment. Mind you this appointment was scheduled in August. I'm contacting other opticians for our eye needs, this wasn't the first time we've had a bad experience at the Auburn store. read more

Very poor customer service. I realize that we're in the middle of a pandemic, but a little more effort goes a long way. I recently purchased new glasses and made an appointment to pick them up and have them adjusted. My wait time was very reasonable, but when the associate announced my name she brought my glasses and expected that we do the fitting right there--in the "waiting" area. She explained because there were glasses "everywhere" and there was no space. I asked that I be able to sit at a table with a mirror so I could also see them. So, she agreed to go to a free desk. I sat down, she had me put them on and checked behind my ears. She then took them adjusted them, brought them back and asked me how they felt. She stood up and said thank you, have a good day--I was dismissed. I wasn't asked to try to read anything--they are bifocals--or anything. She just sent me on my way. Now I understand that new glasses can take some time to get used to, but when I arrived home I was not able to read the mail or a magazine. They, obviously needed to be adjusted. I cannot wear them. Needless to say I am very annoyed and disappointed because now I have to make ANOTHER appointment to go back and have them adjusted. This is not the first time I have had a bad experience with this store. I will return to have them adjust my glasses, but I will never go back. I admit, they have a great supply of frames...but their customer service is VERY lacking. read more

I had appointment for an exam, but when I arrived, there was no doctor on the schedule for that day. The receptionist offered no explanation or apology for my wasted trip. The appointment was rescheduled, but I may look elsewhere and cancel this one. They just didn't seem to care. read more

complaint about 333 Grant Ave 333 Grant Ave Auburn NY 13021 we were at this store earlier today and there is a bigger woman there with glasses and blonde hair. I went to this store yesterday and this woman was a jerk, she said it would be better if my child was inside. As true as this was, her tone of voice and such was uncalled for. Then she wasn't sure if the glasses I wanted were covered and she was still being short with me, and refused to show me the stuff at the store and on other racks. Then today my kid fell asleep and this woman was there again about 1330 today. she remembered me from yesterday and we asked if we could pay of the frames and let the insurance pay for the lenses, she ;let out a sigh and tried to tell us the optometrist was on lunch and come back in an hour, this was now pushing 2 pm. This ladies attitude was not welcome and this lady acted like it was stressful to just point us to a rack and let us look when we wait.. more or less pushing us out the door. This woman has been a joke for years and I don't know why you keep this lady employed, but she should be removed, if simply showing us a rack of glasses is that hard, she might as well leave, she is a very disrespectful and rude woman and should not be working with customers at all. read more

my whole family has been going to this store for over 40years never have been treated like i was today .they have all new help and they do not have a clue how to treat people.All i needed was a screw put in my glasses the girl behind the counter told me 45 minute wait .just spent 700 dollars two years ago. she was very rude i offered to leave them and pick them up later she said not your policy.now my policy is to find a new place for glasses Manager should look into this. they just lost a customer read more

There are too many employees there that do nothing to help customers!! I went there and waited for the eye dr which is understandable. When i was done with the exam, I again waited about 20 min. for someone to assist me. I was told the glasses would be ready about 330 pm. It was 1pm. I came back and once again had to wait about 15-20 for someone to assist me in getting my glasses. There were about 5 women working there and maybe 2 were actually working. The others were walking around and chatting. The woman who waited on me was walking around talking to other employees and totally ignored the fact that i was waiting to be assisted. Finally about 15 to 20 min. Later the same woman finally came up to me and asked my name and didn't act friendly and stood next to a podium when talking to me about the fit. Which wasn't directly in front of me. I dont think this was professional at all not to mention the wait time when there are plenty of people working there whom could have helped us get out of there sooner. May not be going back in the future. read more