What is the Successful Marketing Story of the Lenskart?

Introduction

In a recent survey, it was found that more than 50% of the population all over the world needs some eye-care help. In India alone, almost 33% of the population requires glasses, but only 25% of them take the initiative and buy them. The eyewear industry is growing exponentially.

With the advent of the digital world and social media channels, the time spent on devices has also increased dramatically, hence creating more customers for the eyewear industry. Lenskart, as a brand, took this as an opportunity to create its brand. Lenskart is one of the most renowned optical prescription eyewear retail chain in the unregulated eyewear industry.

In this article, we will dive deep into the Birth and Growth Trajectory of Lenskart to understand how start-ups that understand customer needs can revolutionize the entire industry and market demand.

The Birth of Lenskart

Lenskart was founded by Peeyush Bansal, Amit Chaudhury, and Sumit Kapahi in 2010 on Indian soil. The beta version of Lenskart, named Flyrr.com, was launched in the United States, and when the brand was a success, the same was launched in India.

Lenskart.com realized that the eyewear market was scattered, and big giants during the 2000s like Amazon and eBay were not focusing on the eyewear market. Lenskart first started by providing contact lenses to customers online, then added doctor-prescribed glasses and sunglasses to the customers, and today the brand offers a lot of eye-related services to customers and also has more than 550 physical outlets of Lenskart in almost every state of India.

Some of the major competitors of Lenskart are GKB Optical, Cool Winks, Specs Makers, Deals4Opticals, Lens bazaar, Vision Express, and Titan Eye Plus, as well as the unorganized players who have registered themselves on eBay and Amazon. The vision of Lenskart is to provide "Vision to India" with its products and services.

The Growth Trajectory of Lenskart

Cutting-edge Technology

Image − Lenskart app for buying eyeglasses online

Lenskart believed that the only way it could seize the market in the Indian customer segment and win customer trust with its online service was by providing them with cutting-edge technology. In this sense, Lenskart has a 3D trial system in which the user can add in their picture and actually see the visual representation of how the glass is going to look on their face. This initiative gives the customer an in-store trial feeling.

Along with this, all the lenses of Lenskart are made with German technology and robots, which makes it possible for Lenskart to prepare glasses with accuracy up to 3 decimal places. Lenskart also provides its customers with online eye consulting. Lenskart is determined to satisfy its customers with technology and win over their hearts. All the product quality at Lenskart is above expectations.

Variety of Products and Services

Lenskart was inspired by the "aur dikhao" ask of the Indian customer, which simply means no matter how many options the sales representative shows a customer, the customer would still want to see more products before making their purchase decision. Lenskart today has more than 5000 different styles and more than 45 different types of lenses to serve its customers. Lenskart, along with the glasses and sunglasses, also provides the customer with contact lenses, an online check-up, reading glasses, and other services.

Opening up of Physical Outlets

We are gradually moving towards technology and the digital world. Lenskart understood that despite their efforts, customers were hesitant to buy eyewear products online or conduct check-ups. As an answer to this, Lenskart opened up more than 550 shops all over India, and they were widely spread over 30 cities in India. The Lenskart stores not only helped the company by bringing in more sales and converting more customers, but they also built brand awareness among consumers.

Pricing Points and Discounts

Lenskart has different pricing points to cater to the needs of its customers. The products vary in price from Rs 345 to Rs 30,000. Along with this, Lenskart also provides extra discounts and offers to its premium customers, and there is almost a year-round sale with almost 50% off on the next purchase after the initial purchase. These initiatives and different price points bring customers to Lenskart from various economic classes.

Lenskart and its Marketing Initiatives

Lenskart heavily invest in ads. Lenskart runs both online and offline ads. While doing the online ads, Lenskart focuses on Google ads, Instagram ads, Facebook ads, and others. In Google ads, Lenskart targets keywords like sunglasses, glasses, contact lenses, and others. Lenskart also runs display ads and video ads on various other applications. When it comes to offline advertising, Lenskart uses email marketing, newspaper ads, and others.

Lenskart, with its celebrity endorsements and positioning strategies, has changed the entire game. Instead of seeing glasses as a measure to cure poor eyesight, Lenskart positions itself as a fashion statement. A product that helps the user in diving their fashion, to further prove its point, Lenskart uses celebrity endorsements for its products. Katrina Kaif, Karan Johar, and Bhuvan Bum have been associated with the brand.

Lenskart and the Direct-to-consumer Business Model

Instead of adding in intermediaries and increasing the cost of the product, which may hamper the quality of the product or the service, Lenskart as a brand is working with the customers directly. Lenskart is opening up its branches in various cities and also selling manufactured products directly to customers through an e-commerce platform.

Conclusion

Lenskart, as a brand, is doing wonders in organizing the eyewearsegment or industry as well as serving customers. Lenskart is not only coming up with 3D trial systems for its customers but has also positioned its products entirely in a different manner. For customers, glasses are now not just a measure to protect their eyes but also an accessory. Lenskart is here to serve the customer with fashionable and good-quality eyewear. Lenskart as a brand is doing wonders, and the reason for its success is its customer-centric nature and amalgamation of technology. Lenskart is a brand of the future in India.