Warby Parker has reimagined the eyewear industry as the first company to introduce affordable eyewear that can be purchased online. The company offers prescription eyeglasses for a flat $95 and has a number of stylish options. Customers can order a number of different eyeglasses, try them on at home, and return the pairs that they do not want. The idea started with a simple question. Why are glasses not sold online? Founder, Neil Blumenthal asked that question so he recruited three friends and Warby Parker was born. However, the company ran into problems early on. Forty-eight hours after the website had launched, it had to be taken down because they received so many orders. The website did not indicate when a product sold out which led to a 20,000 person wait list. Eventually, they sorted out their website issues and are currently making waves in the industry.
This company peaked my interest because of Warby Parker’s ability to recognized gaps in the marketplace. Currently, Luxottica has a near monopoly in the eyeglasses industry. While Luxottica controls the brick-and-mortar sales, they do not address the online market. Neil Blumenthal saw that gap in the market and was able to capitalize on it. However, the problem he solved wasn’t complicated, it was simple. Sometimes the best ideas are the simplest.
This is a great idea for a company. I have to wear glasses and recently had to go buy new frames. I absolutely hate having to go to the store just for glasses. This meets people needs because it saves time. I will definitely use this website next time I have to buy glasses.
This is a fantastic idea for this company. Warby Parker did an amazing job at finding a gap in the glasses market. The fact that nobody was selling online was a simple fix for Warby’s company to capitalize on. I would definitely use this service if I needed new glasses.
Just like almost every other blog post, the innovative process is extremely clear in this company. Find a pain first, then a solution second. I can’t think of a single person who wears glasses that would not at least show some interest in this product. I wonder why Luxottica was not involved with the online market. Thanks for the great post!
This is an awesome way for people to get the glasses that they want! This man is changing the way glasses are sold, and it’s awesome!
This company is something that I have been looking for for a long time. I have always had to wear glasses, and I have always wondered when someone was going to find a more effective, cheap way of getting glasses. This website is very innovative, and I am going to be looking into using it in the future.
This is a great idea. I would definitely be interested in purchasing my glasses online. Warby is revolutionizing this industry.
Really great! I wear glasses. They’re a pain especially because of the cost and the inconvenience of the process to get new ones.
I have used Warby Parker before and it is such a great experience! They really focus on satisfaction and minimizing the amount of work you have to do in order to get a new pair of glasses. It is super innovative how they give you five pairs of glasses that you get to pick out so that you have a couple days to decide which ones you like best, and then just send back the ones you decide you don’t want.
They had to shut the website down within the first 48 hours because of too many orders… Wow! What a problem to have as a startup! This is a neat way of looking at eye-glass shopping. For me, shopping for glasses is so stressful, so getting to try a few pairs out for a couple days sounds nice.