Warby Parker Celebrates Over 10 Million Pairs of Glasses Distributed Through its Buy a Pair, Give a Pair Program
February 28 2022 - 11:39AM
Business Wire
Global Initiative Distributes a Pair of Glasses
to Someone in Need for Every Pair of Warby Parker Glasses
Purchased
Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE: WRBY) (the “Company”), a
direct-to-consumer lifestyle brand focused on vision for all, today
announced that more than 10 million pairs of glasses have been
distributed through its Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program. Launched
at the Company’s founding as part of its commitment to increasing
access to vision care for people around the world, the Buy a Pair,
Give a Pair program is simple: for every pair of Warby Parker
glasses purchased, a pair of glasses is distributed to someone in
need. This exciting milestone means that now more than 10 million
people have the glasses they need to learn, work, and achieve
better economic outcomes.
“We founded Warby Parker with a mission to inspire and impact
the world with vision, purpose, and style. It’s hard to put into
words how we feel knowing that now more than 10 million people
globally have received a life-changing pair of glasses through our
Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program,” said Co-Founder and Co-CEO Dave
Gilboa. “Alleviating the problem of impaired vision has long been
at the heart of what we do, and as our company continues to grow,
we are inspired by the opportunities ahead to accelerate our
impact.”
“Warby Parker’s mission is to provide vision for all—and we’re
working to achieve this by reimagining everything that a company
and industry can be,” added Co-Founder and Co-CEO Neil Blumenthal.
“This milestone is a testament to our passionate employees, loyal
customers, and committed partners and stakeholders. It’s amazing to
see what we’ve been able to accomplish together, and we know this
is still just the start.”
How The Buy A Pair, Give A Pair Program Works
To date, Warby Parker’s Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program has
supported people in more than 50 countries around the world.
Through its partnerships, the Company prioritizes communities with
the most significant need around the world, many of which are
extremely limited in their access to vision care. The two
distribution models Warby Parker employs are:
Social Entrepreneurship: Empowering people to administer
basic eye exams and sell glasses at affordable prices. The
nonprofit social enterprise VisionSpring has been Warby Parker’s
primary partner in this work, accelerating the uptake of eyeglasses
by raising awareness about vision impairment, conducting vision
screenings, and selling highly subsidized eyeglasses in low-income
communities. We believe this model also has a multiplying effect of
job creation that allows the beneficiaries to sustainably earn an
income and care for their families. Over 50% of VisionSpring
customers are getting glasses for the first time.
Direct Donation: Via cross-sector partnerships, directly
giving vision care and glasses to those in need. For example, in
2015, Warby Parker created Pupils Project, a program that works
with local organizations and government agencies to give free
vision screenings, eye exams, and glasses to schoolchildren. After
starting the program in New York City, then launching in Baltimore
and Philadelphia, the Company expanded Pupils Project in 2021 to
bring vision services to more than 70 new U.S. school districts in
cities across California, central and western Pennsylvania, and
Washington D.C. Warby Parker plans to distribute tens of thousands
of pairs of glasses during the 2021-2022 school year alone.
Learn more about the Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program at
warbyparker.com/buy-a-pair-give-a-pair.1
The Power of Vision
The technology used to make a pair of glasses was invented
hundreds of years ago, yet over 2.5 billion people still don’t have
access to the glasses they need. According to VisionSpring, a pair
of glasses can increase an individual's productivity by up to 32%
and their monthly income by up to 20% in emerging and pre-emerging
markets2. In September 2021, Johns Hopkins University completed a
three-year clinical study3 as part of Vision for Baltimore (the
Pupils Project program in Baltimore elementary and middle schools)
that found the impact of a pair of glasses on a student’s education
was equivalent to two to four months of additional schooling4, and
four-to-six months for special education students.
Warby Parker Impact Foundation
To accelerate the work started by the Buy a Pair, Give a Pair
program, Warby Parker created the Warby Parker Impact Foundation in
2019. The Foundation’s mission is to advocate for wider access to
vision services, educate communities on the importance of eye
health, and provide people with the eye care they need to lead
safe, happy, and productive lives. Learn more about the Warby
Parker Impact Foundation at warbyparkerfoundation.org.
About Warby Parker
Warby Parker (NYSE: WRBY) was founded in 2010 with a mission to
inspire and impact the world with vision, purpose, and
style–without charging a premium for it. Headquartered in New York
City, the co-founder-led lifestyle brand pioneers ideas, designs
products, and develops technologies that help people see, from
designer-quality prescription glasses (starting at $95) and
contacts, to eye exams and vision tests available online and in
more than 160 retail stores across the U.S. and Canada.
Warby Parker aims to demonstrate that businesses can scale while
doing good in the world. Ultimately, the brand believes in vision
for all, which is why for every pair of glasses or sunglasses sold,
they distribute a pair to someone in need through their Buy a Pair,
Give a Pair program.
_______________________________________ 1 Due to the
administrative processes associated with operating the Buy a Pair,
Give a Pair program, including the timing and coordination of the
distribution of glasses, recognition of the number of pairs of
glasses distributed should not be correlated with net revenue for
any fiscal period. 2
https://visionspring.org/Files/Images/VisionSpring/Press%20Kit%20Downloads/2020-Feb-VS-One-Pager.pdf
3
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaophthalmology/article-abstract/2783867
4
https://hub.jhu.edu/2021/09/09/glasses-boost-student-performance-vision-for-baltimore/
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Ava Rojo ava@derris.com
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