What’s more extraordinary than a fairy tale with a pair of princess sisters, magical powers, and ice castles? The real-life story of sisters Anita and Olivia Carleo, who have entrepreneurial spirits and the hard-earned knowledge to help Dallas see clearly one set of eyes at a time.
The tale begins with both sisters earning diplomas from a slew of impressive Texas institutions: The Hockaday School, Austin College, and the University of Houston College of Optometry. Then, after gaining more than a decade of combined experience working as optometrists in separate practices, the Carleos made their own dreams come true by, literally, building a family business from the ground up.
Vision Veritas Eyecare, the 4,000-square-foot Tuscan-inspired optometry office conveniently located on the northwest corner of Prestonwood Boulevard and Belt Line Road in North Dallas, is the result of their hard work. Doctors Anita and Olivia Carleo even drew out the initial plans themselves. From the custom wrought-iron door to the spiral staircase that ascends inside the optical space to the chandeliers that drop from the 12-foot-high, antique-tiled ceiling, the Carleos designed every element with the patient’s experience in mind.
“A lot of times people walk into dark doctors offices that feel disconnected from the rest of the world,” Olivia says. “Here, you feel like you’re walking into the lobby of a grand hotel with all the natural light and wide open space.”
The attention to detail the Carleos used in the design reflects the care they put into their full-scope optometry practice. The doctors not only perform routine eye exams for glasses and contact lenses, but they also handle LASIK co-management and manage conditions such as glaucoma, cataracts, diabetic retinopathy, dry eye, and eye allergies.
Looking at the complete health of each and every patient is central to the philosophy at Vision Veritas. “The patient is not just a pair of eyes. We really believe in being an integral member of the patient’s whole healthcare team,” Anita says. “Everything is connected, so we can often get a glimpse of a patient’s overall systemic health just by examining their eyes.”
Of course, the sisters know style is important, as well. “We think of eyeglasses as jewelry for your face,” Olivia says. “The first thing people look at is your eyes, and most people wear the same glasses every day, so you want to invest in a high-quality pair that looks good and fits well.”
To that end, the Carleos offer a wide selection of frames, including designer brands Tom Ford, Persol, Tory Burch, and Kate Spade, plus staples such as Ray-Ban, Oakley, and lightweight Silhouette glasses. In addition, Vision Veritas is one of only a few retailers in North Texas to carry a large selection of German-engineered Minox sports optics in their office.
All that the practice has to offer has not gone unnoticed. Only eight months after the December 2014 opening, Vision Veritas scored two Addison Magazine Readers’ Choice Awards for “favorite eye care facility” and “favorite new business.” This success could be considered the happy ending, but for optometrists Anita and Olivia Carleo, this is just the beginning.
Anita and Olivia Carleo, sisters and owners of Vision Veritas.
The new facade at Ellen Noël Art MuseumPhoto courtesy of Ellen Noël Art Museum
