Warby Parker Files Regulatory Documents for IPO
Warby Parker has filed regulatory documents for IPO, revealing financials for the first time.
Rumors began swirling in March, as WWD previously reported, that the eyewear brand, which was founded in 2008, was headed for the public market. Tuesday’s SEC filing is the first time the company has publicly disclosed financials, showing that the company has not always been profitable. Warby Parker’s net revenues totaled $273 million, $370 million and nearly $394 million annually from 2018 to 2020, respectively.
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During the same time period, the company lost nearly $23 million, came in flat and lost approximately $56 million, respectively. In the last six months, or the period ending June 30, 2021, the company lost $7.3 million.
“Because we have a short operating history at scale, it is difficult for us to predict our future operating results,” the company said in the regulatory document. “We will need to generate and sustain increased revenue and manage our costs to achieve profitability. Even if we do, we may not be able to sustain or increase our profitability.”
The business is anticipating additional operating costs and warned potential investors of near-term net losses.
Still, Warby Parker is betting on Wall Street to help it scale even further. The retailer’s public offering includes more than 1.9 million shares of Class A common stock, priced at $6.11 per share, and more than 2.8 Class B common stock, priced at $2.28 per share.
“We started Warby Parker 11 years ago to solve our own problems as frustrated consumers,” cofounders and co-chief executive officers Neil Blumenthal and Dave Gilboa wrote in the SEC filing Tuesday. “We couldn’t understand why glasses were so expensive or the process of buying them was so cumbersome and inconvenient. As we looked for explanations, we discovered a massive industry that maintained high prices, high margins, low customer satisfaction and little innovation — and we thought we could do better.
“We are proud to have built one of the fastest-growing brands at scale in the United States,” the letter continued. “Every day, we aim to design high-quality products, deliver amazing customer experiences and develop innovative technologies that help the world see.
“As our business scales, our impact does, too,” the CEOs wrote. “We are excited to be the first public benefit corporation to go public through a direct listing and we hope to serve as an example to other businesses and entrepreneurs that can do well while doing good.”
The company has raised more than $500 million since it was founded in 2010, including through a Series G round last year that was said to value the business at $3 billion.
Warby Parker had 145 stores as of June 30 and approximately 3,000 employees.
The company told regulators that it has more than $411 million in assets, including roughly $260 million in cash and cash equivalents.
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