Pearl's Optical has been operating in Singapore since 1975, when founder Mr Koh Wan Nee bought a shop unit in People's Park Centre after first selling sunglasses in the back lane of Jalan Berseh as a teenager. He later obtained full registration as an Optician (Dispensing and Refraction) with the Ministry of Health when the profession was regulated in 2008.
The business has since grown from one shop to four shop units within People's Park Centre. With the involvement of his son, Dr Koh Liang Hwee (BSc Hons Optometry UK, PhD UK), Pearl's Optical has developed from an optical retail shop into a fully equipped optometric practice, where clients are screened for common ocular diseases when their eyes are examined for spectacles and contact lenses.
The practice uses diagnostic equipment including OCT, OPTOS and slit lamp technology, and its team includes multiple optometrists holding diplomas in optometry and opticians qualified in refraction and dispensing. Pearl's Optical also operates a second outlet, Pearl's Optics, at Jurong Point Shopping Centre.
Pearl's Optical traces back to 1975, when founder Mr Koh Wan Nee bought a shop unit in People's Park Centre. Before that, as a teenager, he had started out selling sunglasses in the back lane of Jalan Berseh — a humble beginning for what would become a long-running optical business in Singapore. Mr Koh went on to obtain full registration as an Optician (Dispensing and Refraction) with the Ministry of Health when the profession was formally regulated in 2008, after already working in the trade for decades.
Over the years, Pearl's Optical has expanded from a single shop to four shop units within People's Park Centre. A key part of that growth has been the involvement of Mr Koh's son, Dr Koh Liang Hwee, who holds a BSc (Hons) in Optometry and a PhD, both from the UK. With Dr Koh's involvement, the business moved beyond optical retail into a fully equipped optometric practice, where every client is screened for common ocular diseases as part of their eye examination for spectacles or contact lenses.
The practice uses several pieces of diagnostic equipment as part of its eye examinations, including OCT (optical coherence tomography), OPTOS retinal imaging, and slit lamp equipment. These tools support the practice's screening approach, going beyond a standard vision check to look for signs of underlying eye conditions.
Pearl's Optical's team includes a number of optometrists holding diplomas in optometry — Zoe Tay, Chua Mei Jun, Sharon Ng, Lyzann Ang, Sarah Ng Wan Ning, Yee Jing Wen and Stephanie Ang Li Fang — alongside Dr Koh Liang Hwee. On the dispensing and refraction side, the team includes Estela Quinto Etrata (Doctor of Optometry, Philippines), Filipina Anglo Diquit, Koh Liang Choo, Koh Liang Wee, and founder Koh Wan Nee himself.
Alongside its retail and clinical work, Pearl's Optical runs a community outreach programme, reflecting a broader involvement in the community beyond its shopfronts.
The original outlet remains at People's Park Centre, at 101 Upper Cross Street. A second outlet, Pearl's Optics, operates at Jurong Point Shopping Centre in Jurong West. Both outlets keep the same opening hours, from 11.30am to 9.00pm daily.
Customers are encouraged to reach the People's Park Centre outlet via WhatsApp for inquiries and appointment bookings, as messages there are checked regularly, while enquiries submitted through the website's contact form may take longer to be addressed.