Shopping for Glasses

Yesterday I was at the optics getting a new pair of glasses for the semester because I broke my previous pair. I needed them badly to see but also I wanted to buy a fashionable pair. However all the frames that I found attractive were name brand and was about $400 dollars in total with lenses, frames, and prescription. $400 dollars for a pair of glasses was ridiculous so I bought a non brand company for less and when I got home I did some investigative research to see why eye glasses are so expensive. It happens that the eyeglasses industry is controlled by a monopoly, an Italian company Luxottica. This company owns Ray- Bans, Oakley, Vogue, and makes frames for Brooks Brothers, Chanel, Coach, DKNY, Versace, Prada, Tiffany & Co, Prada, Ralph Lauren and many more brands. In addition to producing these glasses outside America for about 30 dollars a frame (and marketing them up to $500), they own Sunglasses Hut, Lenscrafters, Sears' Optics, Target Optics, and Pearle Vision. Because they produce most of the name brand eyeglasses and control the outlet stores that sell these glasses Luxoticca basically is a price maker in the market and can charge ridiculous amounts of money for glasses. Cconsumers have no choice but to pay if they want to wear name brand glasses. This is a perfect example of how a monopoly forces customers to pay so much more money than they have to.

A few entrepreneurs were fed up of Luxottica and their tyranny so they created a new, online shop for glasses in 2011 called Warby Parker. Warby Parker is a glasses outlet that sells amazing, high quality frames ranging from $95-$135 dollars. These glasses are hand produced in NYC and the consumer has an array of frames to choose from. In addition for every pair of glasses someone buys they donate a pair to someone in need. They ship you 5 free pairs to try on at home, as well as a virtual try on option to see how the frames will fit your face before you buy. When you are ready to buy you can scan and upload your script online to their site and they will send you a pair of glasses for $95 dollars. That is it. 95 dollars for frames, lenses, taxes, shipping, and script. In addition they have brick and morter stores in NYC and are opening more and more around the country for the true in store glasses experience. I am extremely impressed by this company and I am so happy someone is fighting back Luxoticca in the this industry. My next pair of glasses will defiantly be from Warby Parker.

I decided to blog about this because honestly most people don't know that Luxoticca is a monopoly that controls the eye glasses market. Most people just figure that they are paying ridiculous amounts of money because its a designer pair not knowing all designer pairs were made by one company. This issue needs to be bought to more people's attention so they can realize there is a solution to a problem like this, such as Warby Parker. You shouldn't spend $400 dollars to see clearly.

Check out their official site at Warby Parker Online Shop!


-Asaf