Warby Parker was born, like many companies, from noticing a real consumer “pain” of needing new glasses but not agreeing with the charged prices and the slow shopping journey. From this analysis of problem X opportunity, its founders decided to resolve this friction and create a brand with a clear purpose: good frames, fair price, and a fun journey. The business started online with a big question: Will people buy glasses online? So, they created a home try-on program, where they would ship five frames for free, with a free returns label. Done! The uncertainty went away.
Fourteen years later, Warby Parker has more than 220 stores and a net revenue of $669.8 million. Some factors that drive the brand’s growth, in my view:
- Clear value proposition – Offers a good product that costs a quarter of the price of its more traditional competitors.
- Social purpose – By 2022, Warby Parker had already distributed more than 10 million pairs of glasses to those in need through its Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program.
- Local approach – Each store has its personality that seems to reflect the neighborhood and community, appealing to our desires to be recognized and identified with a particular lifestyle.
- Constant operational innovation – Conducts 10 two-week pilots in tests that can range from the location of a button on a tablet-based checkout screen to another to experiment where certain varieties of frames are displayed. Testing, for example, is how the company found out that people prefer to try on their glasses in full-body mirrors rather than the small ones offered by traditional eyeglass stores.
What’s the twist
What catches my attention, in addition to all of this, is continuing to believe in its story/purpose, and to communicate with simplicity, clarity, and passion. To everyone. From its employees to the millions of users.
Instead of a funny message or random image, they take advantage of the micro-moments of the journey to reinforce their whys.
Have a true story, solve real problems, have a clear purpose, build an inspiring narrative, and be consistent. Repeat that exhaustively. There lies the recipe for a successful brand.
What a twist.