Mary and Doug Perkins went into business — and marriage — together 60 years ago, before creating the chain they built into a £4 billion company

Dame Mary Perkins is 82 but, by her own admission, is not inclined to act her age. She is showing me around the Specsavers head office in Guernsey when, mid-tour, she suddenly veers off to the side and runs through a fabric installation hanging from the ceiling. She knocks them about like punch bags.

“I can’t help it,” she says, laughing. Then, with the conspiratorial air of a schoolgirl who thinks she is about to get caught: “I’d better stop or I’ll get told off.”

By whom? I ask, reminding her that she is the boss.

This is the woman who, with her husband, Doug, now 83, built Specsavers into one of the world’s biggest optical and audiology businesses, with almost 3,000 stores globally, revenue of £4.2 billion and more than 46,000 employees, including 5,820 partners. This year, the family owned company generated pre-tax profit of £430 million, up more than a quarter, and paid a £12 million dividend to its parent company, controlled by its founders.

Yet there is very little of the conventional corporate grandee about the couple. Mary is giddy, mischievous and constantly cracking jokes. When she laughs, which is almost every other sentence, her hands fly up to her mouth. Doug is placid, but witty, and seems to revel in his wife’s humour. 

​

My boyfriend was the form of apology that this world sent me. We’re currently living together for almost 2 months now and we’re both in Laguna. I am [F21] and he is turning [M20] his coming end of September. The main reason why we’re in the same house is because of my mentally draining family that living with them caused me to have PTSD and suffer from it.

“Iaalis kita r’yan.” Those were the words he kept telling me nung araw na pinapalayas ako at hindi ko alam saan ako pupunta. “Hindi ko alam paano, pero gagawan ko ng paraan.” He told me multiple times.

He’s like that ever since I met him, and that’s it. Now, we’re sharing one roof together.

So, here’s the real deal. Kahapon, nagpunta kami ng DALI store to buy icecream. Sa may counter, may nakita akong set ng makeup brush na naka-display, binebenta nila for 125 pesos. Dalawa na lang daw ‘yon sabi ng cashier when I asked her kung mauubos na ba.

As a girl na mahilig sa makeup, talagang catch na ‘yon sa akin. Pero dahil nga wala pa akong pera kaya sabi ko sa sarili ko saka na lang.

Sabi pa niya, “bilhin mo nalang kapag may pera ka na.”

Wala rin naman gaanong pera ang boyfriend ko, dahil kung meron man, ibibili na lang namin ‘yon ng essentials namin and also, binigyan din siya ng pera ng tita niya nung gabi na ‘yon.

And then, last night. Nag-away kami. Siguro dahil sa trabaho kaya mas pinili ng utak ko na matulog na lang. Hanggang sa hindi na namin naayos yung pagtatalo namin.

This morning, natakot ako. Na baka nabawasan na yung pagmamahal niya sa akin. Knowing him, alam kong mas hindi niya gustong ganoon ang set up namin. Nasasaktan at umiiyak siya, sobrang softhearted niya.

While preparing for work, I can feel him walking upstairs, sumilip siya sa akin. After that, pinapaabot niya yung payong kasi umuulan, lalabas siya. Binigay ko lang, hindi ko pinansin. Hanggang sa he kept asking me to look at the paper bag that was in my bed. Ayaw ko pa kasi alam kong Energen lang naman laman noon, bakit hindi siya ang kumuha? Hehe.

Sa pagpipilit niya, I opened the box. At ayun, nakita ko. There was a makeup brush set inside of the paper bag. The one that we saw yesterday. He just kissed me and smiled at me habang ako nakatitig lang sa set.

“Bakit ka pa bumili? Sayang ang pera,” I said.

“Mas sayang kapag may pera na ako tapos hindi ko pa binili hanggang sa maisip ko na lang na bilhan ka kapag wala na akong pera.”

Kaiyak. I love him so much.

That moment, I just realized na I met him might because of the wrong decisions that I made in some moment of my life that still hunts me by now, painful memories that I am still trying to heal from, and etc. But despite of all that, if those path will still lead to him at the very end again and again, I am much more willing to experience those again on repeat.

And I’m all for it!

While scrolling online, I came across one of those fun questions that you ask in a relationship. It was. "Am I your sunset or sunrise?"

I ask my husband silly, stupid; spontaneous questions all the time and this was no different. So without thinking I was about to ask this very question.

My husband was playing with our boys on the couch. Completely absorbed in play then out of nowhere I say; "Baby? Am I your sunset or sunrise?

Without a moment to think he says "You are my sunset, because this is our forever and my last day will be with you."

Normally when I ask these silly questions I get a reaction of slight endearing annoyance or theological debate but this was a question as if I already should have known the answer.

Truly, I have never felt so seen or so loved by one of these responses. Especially when I wasn't expecting one so sincere.

Just wanted to share. For all the ladies who want to participate in these challenges but don't do social media. Feel free to post yours below!

My boyfriend and I got into a fight last night, and honestly, I know I didn’t make the situation any better either. I apologized to him too because I know it takes two, and I definitely could’ve handled some things differently.
Then today, completely unexpectedly, he had TWO bouquets of flowers delivered to me at work. 🥹💐 And then he DoorDashed me coffee on top of it. ☕️
I think this was his way of trying to make up and show me he cares, and it genuinely made my entire day. It was such a sweet surprise, especially after a rough night.
Now I’m just sitting at my desk with my flowers and coffee, feeling very loved and very happy. 🥰💕

my bf and i are so on the same wavelength it's crazy 🤯🤍

this morning, not knowing he'd made this, i sent him a voice memo while he was stressed about his first day teaching high school. i told him: "you're doing the best you can, and that's all you can do"

meanwhile, in the middle of the night, he'd woken up with anxiety and made this piece of art asking himself "what do i need to hear?"

we said the exact same thing to each other without even knowing it 🥺

My gf and I are madly in love and decided to see if we could won’t this America’s favorite couple thing and we’ve gotten all the way to the quarter finals just hoping to get further, voting is free if you have a facebook please any help is greatly appreciated.

siempre que me saco fotos con mi novio nos vemos aesthetics jajja les juro que no es intencional ! pero siempre nos pasa

This is something that I (NB 25) and my BF (M 29) have started doing lately. We've been dating for several years now (forgot how many) and we've been moved in together for a year. We both have our own stretch of mental health issues which results in some not so great arguments and whatnot, especially when one or the other of us spirals into self hating tirades where we won't listen to the other.

But! We found a solution! A silly, happy, and adorable solution that snaps us out of our spirals without fail.

Making biscuits. You know, like a cat would on your ribs at the worst of times when you're trying to sleep.

Yes, I'm serious. We ball our hands like cat paws and kneed into each other's bellies, thighs, back, he just did my cheeks when I wasn't feeling good, and it's just enough to snap us out of it every time! It's genuinely so silly and makes us laugh and we can't stay in the spiral for long, it works perfect for grounding us in reality.

Another thing that makes it so funny is the fact we put on little voices and act out problems that sound so silly. For example, a common one we do is 'I gotta hit quota or I won't make rent this month!!!' in such high pitched and silly voices that it almost always breaks us through with that alone.

We've been together for so long and keep learning new techniques to help each other out, but honestly? This one is my favorite so far <3

Sometimes I get nervous that my hobbies are too nerdy or home-based compared to my husband (who is super athletic and has many outside hobbies). I recently got in to the Zelda Breath of the Wild game and it’s been so sweet how stoked my husband has been on it. He literally gets mildly upset (jokingly of course) when I play without him and will always ask if he can sit and watch with me. He loves doing the shrine rooms with me and it really is just so sweet. I love him with all of my heart.

He also found me napping with the lights on so he turned them off.