Meet Kathy Moscot and Val Serna of Optometric Options in West Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathy Moscot and Val Serna.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Elliott and I left NYC in the Spring of 1989 headed for LA. My husband sold his Gramercy Park practice to his partner and he ended up opening our first location in Northridge Ca in December of 1989. The opportunity presented itself for that location in the Northridge Fashion Center and he took it.

Wanting to provide patients with an array of options in eyewear, we brainstormed the name Optometric Options. A full service Optometric Practice.

You could say that Optical runs in the family. My husband’s Grandfather Hyman Moscot came to America from Eastern Europe at the turn of the century and began selling eyeglasses off a pushcart in lower Manhattan, NYC.

Elliott’s father, Joseph Moscot was an Optometrist and his brother Sol Moscot was an Optician and to this day his family is still located in downtown NYC and many other locations and have their very own frame line called MOSCOT.

Shortly after opening the Northridge location, we opened a location in The Beverly Center, in Beverly Hills and then another in The Westside Pavilion in West LA and a location in The Santa Monica Place.

In a few short years, we grew rapidly. We also managed to have 3 sons in a 5-year period as well!!! Busy doesn’t even begin to describe those early years. I continued buying the Optical for our Stores/Practices and still do today.

I was not in the optical field then but he asked me to help him buy the frames for our 1st store, due to my fashion background and sense of style—I guess!!!

I really enjoyed the new arena I found myself in. I continued helping my husband build his practice here in beautiful California.

About 10 years ago, Elliott decided it was time to open a “optical Superstore” so to speak. We combined all our locations to a central area into one large practice at 11033 West Pico Blvd in West LA.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Hahaha a smooth ride!!!! There were many ups and downs somewhat dictated by the economy and the trend toward online buying. The Malls were soon becoming outmoded. We wanted to expand and be freestanding –out of the malls. The industry was changing with the onset of Vision insurances that were being offered. This allowed us the freedom to expand and carry upwards of 70 lines of frames.

We are a full service Optometric Practice with state of the art diagnostic equipment.

All in all, we have over 17,000 active patients since we opened in 1989.

Optometric Options – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are very proud of our Customer Service our professional staff of Opticians and Optometrists, their dedication to their patients and the depth of the selection of eyewear lines that we carry.

We also are very proud of helping the Santa Monica School Assistance League program for over 10 years and providing quality eye care for everyone. Dr. Moscot was honored by the Santa Monica Assistance League in February of 2011 and Santa Monica / Malibu Unified School District Board of Education honored Dr. Moscot in October 2015 for his work assisting children in the school district.

Our staff speaks many languages including Farsi, Spanish, Hebrew, Tagalog, German and of course English.

We are very proud of our professional team, most of them have been with us for 20 plus years.

We offer fashion and quality for a fair price. For our patience convenience, we take most major insurances.

You can take a virtual tour of our practice at our website OptometricOptions.net

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
I would have to say it was opening our own freestanding practice here in West LA.

It is very rewarding when Elliott talks to patients who have been coming to him for almost 30 years and bring their children and grandchildren

Contact Info:

• Address: Optometric Options
  11033 West Pico Blvd.,
  West LA, CA 90064
• Website: OptometricOptions.info
• Phone: 310 231-3400
• Email: [email protected]
• Facebook: @Optometric Options
• Twitter: @OptometricOpts

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.