Monday, May 07, 2007

DIY Eye Glasses Online Shopping

Imagine the spectacle frame is being designed by famous Italian designer, the lens incorporated the latest technology from US and it is being assembled in Singapore. You can also view the work-in-progress report through the online systems, just like when you purchase the laptop from the manufacturer.

What is the different between buying clothes, watches and spectacles online? Same processes, same problems, same technical requirements! A new e-commerce business model.

Some argues that buying spectacles is like buying medicine, especially for prescription glasses. It need precision and of course consumers will prefer to try it out rather than custom-made their glasses. Another concern will be whether the glasses will fit the consumer in term of the lens power as well as after sale services. That's why eyeglasses industry is still at it infancy in the online environment.

However, there are quite a number of online stores that provide this services namely:
Eyeglasses.com
FramesDirect.com
Zenni Optical

Here is a list of Malaysian optical shop. Majority of them are still brick and mortar (tradisional physical stores).

How about a blog on this: Glassyeyes - A blog on the experience of buying glasses online.

More reading is available here: Do-It-Yourself Eyeglass Shopping on the Internet (www.nytimes.com)

How about you? Would you mind buying glasses online? Do you think this e-commerce business model works in Malaysia?

1 comment:

Prescription Designer Glasses said...

Comfort, fit and durability are issues that concern most people when purchasing eyeglasses. For shoppers who want to save money on eyeglasses but still prefer them be quite high in quality, you might also want to check out BestBuyEyeglasses.com and see which frames fit your image with their Virtual Try-on Mirror. Great site for those who eye high end labels but on a tight budget.