In the midst of a revitalisation project, the Centre de la Tourelle is entering a new era. We spoke with Stéphane Lachas, founder of the Geneva-based hearing correction centres, Espace Audition.

His Tourelle office, being a fixture, has been present in the centre for over 15 years. Driven by a philosophy of local service, he shares his experience and observations on the ongoing changes, their impact on his profession, his loyal clientele, and the future.


Your presence in the Centre de la Tourelle dates to 2007. You're almost part of the "furniture" here. What made you stay when so many others have left?
Stéphane Lachas: Several reasons kept me here, but the most important is that I had developed a clientele here, and I couldn't bear to tell them they'd have to cross the entire city to continue receiving our services at our Trois Chênes office.

So, you had to adapt your activity to the realities of the Centre de la Tourelle?
Yes, for nearly a decade, the store was only open 50% of the time. That was the necessary period for it to be realistic, given the centre's situation, which, one could say, was waiting for its second wind. But as the clientele grew, we were able to increase our presence to four days a week, with an audiologist dedicated exclusively to our Tourelle clients.

But your first acoustic centre was in Chêne-Bourg, what prompted you to expand to the Tourelle?
Espace Audition's goal has always been to provide local services. The idea came to me when, as a recent graduate, I was working near Geneva Station; a client from Chêne-Bourg told me she had to travel to the city centre for her hearing aids. I had to cross the municipality to get to work. So why not develop an acoustic centre there to serve a population on the outskirts? It worked very well. In seeking to expand, always in this vein of peripheral development, we identified a need around the Tourelle shopping centre, which we filled in 2007.


"We are moving to a larger shopping centre with obligations in terms of opening and closing hours."


Now that the centre is undergoing transformation, what future do you envision for your business?
The renovation has presented us with new challenges, notably the new opening hours of the shopping centre. We are moving to a larger shopping centre with obligations in terms of opening and closing hours. We considered several options and decided to diversify our activity by integrating an optical component, a service that was missing and clearly needed.

You remain in the same location, but with more space?
Exactly, we've taken over the vacant arcade next to the Tourelle pharmacy. Our space will be larger and still strategically located, opposite the current Migros checkouts. It's an opportunity for us to serve our clients better and more efficiently.

How are you managing the disruptions caused by the construction work?
The construction greatly impacts our ability to work in optimal acoustic conditions. We need controlled and rigorous silence. Therefore, we can't generate new client files. But we've managed to acquire a mobile acoustic booth with high insulation performance. Thanks to it, we can maintain quality follow-up for our existing clientele without having to redirect them elsewhere. It was installed in early October in what will be, to a few metres, its final location.


"In this business, it's important to know the people who come to us well"


Have you considered additional strategies to retain your clientele during these works? Absolutely. During the construction phase, and as far as possible, we are making home visits. We're fortunate to have the necessary equipment to provide this type of service, allowing us to continue offering personalised follow-up, especially in the neighbouring residences, particularly Colladon and Trembley. In this business, it's important to know the people who come to us well. Additionally, we've trained a pharmacy employee who agreed to help us with hearing aid maintenance in our absence. We, the merchants of the Tourelle, are a large family, and I feel this even more in these delicate times.

Returning to the return of optics in the Centre de la Tourelle. With the integration of a national brand with great notoriety, what changes can be expected?
In terms of teams, two full-time opticians will join us. Veronica, the centre's acoustician, will be back at the beginning of 2024 and will gradually take over the entire acoustic component. This exchange also gives us the opportunity to develop our acoustic offer with this large brand. I've already started working in an optical store in Gland to concretely measure the contributions of a dual optical-audiology activity - with the support of a brand and, notably, support in commercial offers to propose the product that meets our clients' needs at the best price. The fact that we share the same values, quality of service and follow-up, has greatly facilitated this exchange. As for me, I will remain in management.

How do you see the future?
I'm looking forward to navigating this new optical-acoustic world while gradually making way for the new generation. At the end of the works, we will be even stronger. And we will have this incredible opportunity to evolve in what will be one of the most modern shopping centres in the Geneva region.