41–50 of 76 posts
Huh that's funny. I just ordered 5 pairs from them to try on, they came yesterday. ( http://imgur.com/a/ZRTKi if you're interested in offering an opinion) I'm really impressed with the build of them. They feel a lot better than my zenni optical pair (which were only 30 dollars, not 95). Hopefully the lens quality is better too (mostly anti-glare I'm concerned about), but I'll have to wait and see. Also, if you missed…
Does anyone know how big they are in terms of sales? I considered interviewing them for Mixergy because I hear they're doing well, but the only metric I see for their success is valuation.
Gigaom estimates sales at $10m for 2011, based on their annual report claim of distributing 100,000 frames. http://gigaom.com/2012/03/26/at-warby-parker-the-power-of-br... http://www.warbyparker.com/annual-report-2011
Reads a bit too much like ad copy for my tastes. Or rather I read it with the intent to understand more about the content in the parentheses, not Warby Parker. :) That being said they are situated in a vertical that has efficiency players (Zenni Optical, Coastal Contacts) but haven't mastered the design/marketing/CS game yet. Going Zappos-style is their entrenchment mechanism, as well as the in-house designers.
Subscribe and save is interesting, but paying 40% more for toilet paper doesn't sound very disruptive to me. It's cool for offices and people with more money than time, but not disruptive.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
You can go directly to an optometrist's own office, and they'll usually have a selection of frames they can sell you, or you can just get the prescription and take it to another store. Chain stores like Lenscrafters have office space for an optometrist in the back of each building which they lease to one or more doctors; they don't work directly for the store, but they work at the store and the store books appointmen…
Note that some optometrist shops really hate giving away the prescription, since they want you to buy the lenses and frames from them. I'm not sure about the legality of this, but I've had some tell me over the phone that they wouldn't release my prescription to me. (I didn't bother fighting them, I just moved on to the next one.)
[1] http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt143.shtm
Huh that's funny. I just ordered 5 pairs from them to try on, they came yesterday. ( http://imgur.com/a/ZRTKi if you're interested in offering an opinion) I'm really impressed with the build of them. They feel a lot better than my zenni optical pair (which were only 30 dollars, not 95). Hopefully the lens quality is better too (mostly anti-glare I'm concerned about), but I'll have to wait and see. Also, if you missed…
There are plenty of brick & mortar stores at the $95 price point in my area. Warby Parker won my business because they had many more styles, better-looking glasses (IMO), and a really strong guarantee (most other stores had a no refunds policy). I had never heard of Zenni Optical until reading this HN thread, which goes to show you how successful WP's marketing is.
They did mention that glasses in physical shops come in two varieties: cheap and boring, or stylish and expensive. And I, too, am surprised at the lack of marketing done by Zenni; I swear by them now, since I always order the most minimalistic glasses possible - just a nickel's worth of metal to attach lenses to my face.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> A lot of this article rings completely false. Such as?
At an optical store, designer frames with nice lenses will run you over $500 a pair. This is false. Designer frames (Gucci, Nike, Kate Spade, Prodesign) retail around $120-$240. (I think? I'm going from memory here...) Lens pricing varies based on your prescription and options (transitions, AR, scratch coat, etc). Single vision wearers can easily get designer glasses w/ integrated anti-reflective for under $300 retai…
Huh that's funny. I just ordered 5 pairs from them to try on, they came yesterday. ( http://imgur.com/a/ZRTKi if you're interested in offering an opinion) I'm really impressed with the build of them. They feel a lot better than my zenni optical pair (which were only 30 dollars, not 95). Hopefully the lens quality is better too (mostly anti-glare I'm concerned about), but I'll have to wait and see. Also, if you missed…