Three years after its launch, eyewear e-commerce pioneer, Warby Parker, opened its first Manhattan showroom. According to Dave Gilboa, the company's cofounder and co-CEO, the physical stores are driving the company's e-commerce sales growth. As a data-driven company, Warby Parker found that 30% to 50% of those who shop in its stores are less likely to purchase eyewear online, while 90% of those who enter the retail outlets have at least visited the website. (The company sends its sometimes-reluctant online customers “dummy” frames to try on.)

In the retail environment, store associates can pull up customer data, which includes a history of online purchases and frames “tried on.” The shopping experience can start online and finish in a retail store—and conversely, it can start in a retail store and finish online. Many retail customers will make a second or third purchase online after spending time in the retail stores. For Warby Parker, it appears that the synergy between both channels is working well.

While e-commerce sales still make up the majority of Warby Parker's business, the company, with close to 63 retail stores to date, plans to “accelerate” store openings over the next several years. If the new offline trend of a web-native company like Warby Parker seems counterintuitive and puzzling, consider what might just be new rules about an online-first success prior to opening bricks-and-mortar retail stores.

Questions for Critical Thinking

1. For now, it appears that Warby Parker's retail locations are helping the company grow. Discuss and come up with additional ways Warby Parker can use its retail locations to grow its business. Are there downsides to this strategy?

2. Would you be curious to go to a retail location to see and touch the offerings of an e-commerce site where you've shopped? Would you be more likely to go online to shop after seeing items at a retail store? Why or why not?