National Vision CEO Alex Wilkes on the company's transformation, growing margins, and expansion strategy

National Vision's CEO, Alex Wilkes, attributes the company's impressive growth to its pivot towards managed-care customers. The economics of managed care are compelling, with average transactions worth 2.4-4.0 times the entry-level bundle. National Vision is reallocating marketing dollars to target higher-value customers while maintaining its value proposition and branding. Despite concerns about lower gross margins, Wilkes focuses on gross margin dollars and operating leverage.