How E-Commerce Is Boosting the Growth of the Global Eyewear Industry

As online shopping has become increasingly common in the technological age, this has led to distinct segments of the digital marketplace, with e-commerce being the most notable example. While many mistake e-commerce to be the same as m-commerce, a previous post notes that the key characteristics of e-commerce include platform diversity. Whereas m-commerce depends on mobile apps and mobile-optimized websites, e-commerce is wide-ranging, from brands and retailers’ official websites to online marketplaces and social media. Diversity can also be gleaned from the available payment methods, as e-commerce accepts debit and credit cards, online banking, and digital wallets.

These characteristics are leveraged by various products and services, such as the eyewear industry. In fact, a report by Grand View Research, Inc. notes that in the rapidly expanding global eyewear market poised to reach $323.77 billion by 2030, e-commerce has shown a considerable growth rate of 9.7% over the same forecast period. Below, we look at how exactly the digital distribution channel contributes to and boosts market growth through benefits in product selection, customer convenience, and omnichannel presence.

Diverse product selection

While product selections in brick-and-mortar locations can be limited by storage space and inventory management costs, eyewear brands and retailers can benefit from e-commerce by providing a range of frame styles and lens options. For instance, online retailer GlassesUSA.com hosts an assortment of eyeglasses, sunglasses, and contacts, available with add-ons like blue-light filters and scratch-resistant, anti-reflective, and UV-protective coatings.

Beyond the frames and lenses themselves, product diversity is also captured by different price points to cater to broader audiences with varying budgets and needs. Using GlassesUSA.com as an example, once again, its website has a Designer Frames Outlet section to feature high-end brands like Michael Kors, Pentax, and Guess for prices as low as $19.

Enhanced access and convenience

Besides appealing to customers diverse needs through vast catalogs, eyewear e-commerce also enhances access and convenience to ultimately boost customer satisfaction. Case in point, leading optical retailer LensCrafters not only boasts a range of eyewear styles and brands like Ray-Ban, Prada, and Armani Exchange but also streamlines the process of ordering to glasses online .

Whereas in-person eyewear shopping can be complicated by long queues and waiting times, ordering via LensCrafters lets customers schedule a comprehensive eye exam online based on their chosen store location and appointment date and time. Upon getting their updated prescription, customers can then enter the eye grade for their chosen frames, with extensive customization for lens configurations, such as single-vision, bifocals, trifocals, and progressive lenses, as well as protective features like UV coatings.

Improved omnichannel presence

While the e-commerce boom in recent years has allowed brands and retailers to go fully online, optical stores with physical locations can also take advantage of digital transformation to improve their omnichannel presence. For example, online eyewear retailer Zenni Optical has launched Zenni Business as its B2B platform , which mainly helps other players in the eye care industry develop an e-commerce strategy.

Zenni Optical has already partnered with U.S. Vision to elevate the latter’s marketing and distribution across 260 retail locations nationwide. Ultimately, an omnichannel retail experience via e-commerce allows physical retailers to retain more customers, generate new leads, and increase their revenues.

To take full advantage of such benefits, eyewear industry players must also tap into emerging technologies like artificial intelligence to understand market dynamics and trends and better predict customer needs and preferences. Fortunately, e-commerce platforms can be integrated with data analytics to make more accurate forecasts and informed business decisions.