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Comment by streptomycin | Hacker News Reader

FWIW, Warby Parker was not the first web-based retailer to undercut traditional eyewear sales, nor are they the cheapest. They do seem to have the best PR, though.

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They also have by far the best customer experience. Their website is fantastic and fulfillment is lightning-fast, neither of which can be said about the competitors that I've tried (framesdirect.com, zennioptical.com, glasses.com, 39dollarglasses). It's not just PR.

Unfortunately, their range of styles is still very narrow, which is presumably dependent on their manufacturing capabilities.

I used zennioptical.com in 2008 and was very happy. Lacking any fashion sense, I ordered some computer glasses that I hoped would completely disappear on my face - #804811 titanium shape memory rimless, single vision, high index of refraction, with various coatings delivered for under $40. After two years, the nose bridge broke and I took it around locally to see about a repair. The local repair guru quoted me $45 to solder them back together and he started filling out the order, when I stopped him and said I paid less than that for the whole pair of glasses. Turns out Zenni also sells the frames separately, $14.95 for that item, and anyone can install the old lenses into the new frames.

I think getting a new pair of glasses would still be better after two years, just because of the wear and tear on the lenses alone degrades your vision.

I just ordered a pair from Zenni. Their site is pretty slow, but for $30 for a pair of glasses I'll happily put up with it.

I didn't mean to imply that it's just PR, but they do undoubtedly have the best PR out of all those companies.

Excuse my ignorance, I haven't even heard about Warby Parker until this article. How long have they been around (my quick Google searches have failed me)?

I have heard of ClearlyContacts.ca (I am Canadian), is Warby Parker comparable?

They're comparable in that they send glasses online, but Warby's differentiator is that they manufacture frames (so they handle the whole process end to end) and offer a home try on kit. You can order X amount of glasses to try on at home.

They basically started a very customer friendly model that other online glasses retailers didn't offer at the time of founding.

EDIT: Basically, customer experience.

http://www.hnsearch.com/search#request/all&q=warby

Ditto is coming on strong, and has some way-cool tech: http://ditto.com. Warby is nice and all, but their selection is limited to just acrylic frames of their own design.

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