Every idea starts with a problem. Ours was simple: Glasses are too expensive.
Our founders were students when one of them lost his glasses on a backpacking trip. The cost of replacing them was so high that he spent the first semester of grad school without them, squinting and complaining. (We don't recommend this.)
The others had similar experiences and were amazed at how hard it was to find a pair of great frames that didn't leave their wallets bare. Where were the options?
It turns out there's a simple explanation. The eyewear industry is dominated by a single company that has been able to keep prices artificially high while reaping huge profits from consumers who have no other options.
Warby Parker was started to create an alternative. By circumventing traditional channels, designing glasses in-house, and engaging with customers directly, we're able to provide higher-quality, better-looking prescription eyewear at a fraction of the going price.
We believe that buying glasses should be easy and fun. It should leave you happy and good-looking, with money in your pocket.
We also believe that everyone has the right to see. Approximately one billion people around the world need glasses but don't have access to them—so to help address this problem, we work with a handful of partners worldwide to ensure that for every pair of glasses sold, a pair is distributed to someone in need. To date, over 20 million pairs of glasses have been distributed through our Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program.
There's nothing complicated about it. Good eyewear, good outcome.
Plot twist! In the fall of 2019, we started selling contacts, too. We believe that buying contact lenses should be easy and fun, just like shopping for glasses—and leave you happy, with money in your pocket.
Every idea starts with a problem. Ours was simple: Glasses are too expensive.
Our founders were students when one of them lost his glasses on a backpacking trip. The cost of replacing them was so high that he spent the first semester of grad school without them, squinting and complaining. (We don't recommend this.)
The others had similar experiences and were amazed at how hard it was to find a pair of great frames that didn't leave their wallets bare. Where were the options?
It turns out there's a simple explanation. The eyewear industry is dominated by a single company that has been able to keep prices artificially high while reaping huge profits from consumers who have no other options.
Warby Parker was started to create an alternative. By circumventing traditional channels, designing glasses in-house, and engaging with customers directly, we're able to provide higher-quality, better-looking prescription eyewear at a fraction of the going price.
We believe that buying glasses should be easy and fun. It should leave you happy and good-looking, with money in your pocket.
We also believe that everyone has the right to see. Approximately one billion people around the world need glasses but don't have access to them—so to help address this problem, we work with a handful of partners worldwide to ensure that for every pair of glasses sold, a pair is distributed to someone in need. To date, over 15 million pairs of glasses have been distributed through our Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program.
There's nothing complicated about it. Good eyewear, good outcome.
Plot twist! In the fall of 2019, we started selling contacts, too. We believe that buying contact lenses should be easy and fun, just like shopping for glasses—and leave you happy, with money in your pocket.
