Mary Perkins sold for £2 million in 1980, and continue to receive income from. After the sale the couple moved to Guernsey, where Mary's father had retired. Mary and Doug Perkins established Specsavers in Guernsey in 1984. In 2007 it was the largest privately owned opticians in the world, with nearly 900 stores across the UK and Europe. By 2011 the company had an annual turnover of £1.5bn and over 30,000 staff in markets in the UK, Europe and Australasia. Her current title at Specsavers is "founder". Dame Mary sits on the company board, oversees business development and has particular responsibility for
Baker Perkins organisations. These include AACC International, PMCA, BEMA and B&CMA in the US: and the Leatherhead Food International and Campden BRI in the UK. Baker Perkins Baker Perkins Ltd is a British engineering company based in Peterborough offering manufacturing and process services to the food industry throughout the world. The company has its origins with Jacob Perkins (1766-1849), an American inventor who moved to England in 1819 from Massachusetts. His son, Angier March Perkins (1799-1881), founded the firm of A. M. Perkins & Co Ltd to manufacture his inventions. In 1893, the company merged with Werner & Pfleiderer (London) to form