Editor’s note: This article was first published in July 2011. Its data, including Warby Parker being 17 months old, 50,000 pairs sold, more than $1 million raised and frames under $100, are from then. The company has grown a great deal since.
We head to the United States to tell the story of two young entrepreneurs who, like so many others, came up with a business idea from a simple question, and it has turned out to be very profitable.
Dave Gilboa was walking around Manhattan looking for a pair of prescription glasses. After visiting several opticians, he noticed that big chains and small shops all had something in common: prices were above 300 dollars, and the frames were nothing special. Dave asked himself: “If I weren’t doing well financially, how could I spend that much on glasses? How many people need glasses but go without them because they can’t afford that? And on top of that, most of them don’t suit me or fit my personality.”
Without a second thought, he started investigating where glasses came from, who made them, how much they cost and what margin the shops were making. Dave concluded that glasses were expensive in small shops because they paid too many intermediaries, and in big companies because their profit margins were very high.
That’s how Warby Parker began 17 months ago: an online store selling glasses whose designs blend vintage styles with a fashion touch. They launched a line of frames aimed at customers who want to express their personality. In the United States people tend to think that cheap isn’t good, but if glasses are made with the same components as “the good stuff”, at a lower price, success is assured.
Warby Parker has hired a Chinese manufacturer, the same one that makes glasses for the major companies in the sector. The difference is that its profit margin is lower and, since it has no physical store, it can afford to sell its frames for under 100 dollars, on average 200 dollars cheaper than any other retailer, with the same product quality and even an innovative touch.
In these 17 months, Warby Parker has sold 50,000 pairs and has already caught the attention of private investors, receiving a large capital injection of more than 1 million dollars. And that’s not all: this online store can be considered a social enterprise, since its purpose and its slogan come down to the idea that no one should be left unable to see or read.
Warby Parker has partnered with a non-profit organisation so that for every pair of glasses bought, another pair is given to low-income people who can’t afford them, which is the best possible advertising for them.
Here, quality and price come together with social work, creating one of the most profitable businesses in the optical sector. It is already giving American multinationals a headache, and this store is only just getting started.
Further reading
- Business ideas: an online store aimed at women
- Spain is short on e-commerce
- The 10 Chinese commandments for entrepreneurs
- 15 commandments for entrepreneurs that lead to business success
Featured image: Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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