Talking about the magical unicorns of India, there are some wh | Brain Vibe ®

Talking about the magical unicorns of India, there are some who have revolutionized the industry they work in. One such revolutionary unicorn is Lenskart, which has brought about some significant changes in the eyewear industry.

Lenskart revolutionized the unorganized eyewear industry in India. Started as an online portal for contact lenses, the company moved on to introduce prescription glasses and sunglasses in its product range as well.

With cutting edge technology which provides 3D Try-on services and online eye check-up services, Lenskart has now made its presence in the offline market as well and operates in more than 550 stores across the country now.

With the mission to become the Maruti Suzuki of the Indian eyewear industry over the next ten years, Lenskart India keeps bringing in new and innovative products and services in its range.

Lenskart India: How It All Began?
The company was founded by Peyush Bansal who started Lenskart in 2010 along with Amit Chaudhary and Sumeet Kapahi in 2010. Peyush, who used to work at Microsoft, also founded the company Valyoo Technologies, which is the parent company of Lenskart.

While pursuing his post-graduation in Management at IIM B, he launched Valyoo Technologies with SearchMyCampus as the first business portal in 2007. The site aimed to offer solutions to different kinds of problems faced by the students. It offered accommodation, books, internships, carpool facilities, part-time jobs, etc.

While exploring this avenue, he discovered that the eyewear industry is one of the neglected industries which had not been tapped by e-commerce giants such as Amazon and EBay yet.

With this in mind, he launched Flyrr.com in the US, and after receiving a positive response there, he decided to launch the platform in India. Thus, Lenskart was launched in India in 2010.

Business Model of Lenskart
Lenskart India offers more than 5,000 styles of frames and 45 different types of superior quality lenses to its customers. The designs are in line with the latest trends in eyewear, courtesy of the in-house team of designers, and stylists who keep a tab of the latest trends.

It follows an inventory-led business model where it passes on these designs to its manufacturers. This, and the supply chain followed by Lenskart, helps them to keep the cost of their products under control.

While developing their product, some of the things that the company keeps in mind are the – superior quality of the product, a variety for the consumers, product innovativeness, excellent marketing strategies, and services such as a 3-D trial facility.

The brand’s focus is not just on the trendiness of the product but also on its durability and quality. It uses robotic technology imported specially from Germany, which allows Lenskart to be the only brand in India which is able to make eyewear with up to 3 decimals of accuracy.

Catering to the Indian sentiment of – ‘aur dikhao’, Lenskart India has over 5,000 styles of frames and over 45 types of lenses. They don’t just offer reading glasses but also offer a range of the latest designer sunglasses.

Lenskart has also revolutionized the eyewear industry by using cutting edge technology. It offers services such as 3-D trial facilities in order to make the process smoother for its customers. It also follows an aggressive marketing strategy where it offers its first-time customers their first frame free of cost.

Lenskart has changed its model over the years and follows an Omni-channel retail model. In an Omni-channel retail model, the business offers services both online as well as offline mode. Initially, it just had an online presence, but soon it made its mark in the offline world as well. It now has over 550 stores in 30+ cities across India.

The main agenda of Lenskart India behind opening up brick and mortar stores was that Indian consumers were a little apprehensive of purchasing eyewear online. The customers wished to try the product out in a physical presence, and touch and feel it in order to be absolutely sure about its quality.