Warby Parker has been working hard to extend its rich across the retail network by placing its range of eyewear into independent stores across the nation.
However, outside of a few indie boutiques that have made a name for themselves such as Philly’s Art in the Age and Nashville’s Imogene + Willie, the company has not utilized a national retailer for expansion.
The online based company stated in a surprise announcement that they have partnered with Nordstorm on a pop-shop that will be taken care of by Olivia Kim. Kim is the director of creative products at the department store that is spread across the country. The pop-up shop will have a new collaborator and theme every month and will be in sel ect locations. In addition, all frames available in the pop-up shop will also be available for purchase online
To help add to the charm of the new pop-up exhibit, Warby Parker created four new exclusive styles for Nordstrom. The Pop-In will also feature many of the existing frames by the designer and some other items that are not eyewear related such as Clare V foldover clutches McSweeney’s Books, and Pike St. Press notecards.
Dave Gilboa, the co-founder of Warby Parker, stated that they have always respected the sales practices of Nordstorm because the major retailer is very focused on offering suburb customer service. He explained that their customer service is better than almost any other large retailer in America. In addition, Gilboa mentioned that they appreciate that Nordstorm has been utilizing innovation and technology so that customers can have the best experience shopping at the store. He said that although they talked to other big box retailers, they were unable to offer a partnership that made as much sense from a customer service point of view.
According to Gilboa, the new Pop-In will be a great way to expand the Warby Parker to a new group of customers. He stated that the brand is now five years old and it is growing at a much faster rate than they anticipated. A large part of their sales have already been fr om word of mouth so the company is working hard to spread the word even further. This will be a test to see if the company should begin to look at more partnerships or opening its own stores.
Related shopping malls and stores:
12 AUGUST 2015, USA