Myoptique

Overview
MyOptique is an example of a product business model. Under several brand labels, the company sells glasses and contact lenses to retail customers by purchasing glasses wholesale, warehousing them, and reselling them via their website to retail customers.

History
MyOptique Group is a portfolio of brands including LensOn, MyOptique Sunglasses-shop and Glasses Direct. Founded in 2004 by James Murray Wells, Glasses Direct purpose was to bring better value to eyewear customers. This purpose was born when Wells went to get a pair of glasses whilst studying for exams and was amazed at the £150 price tag as well as the hefty mark up on products enjoyed by the manufacturers. James found out that the actual cost of manufacturing a pair of glasses was just £7 and the process took around 20 minutes. James felt that consumers, including himself were being unfairly treated but also sensed an opportunity to undercut the market. Glasses Direct was born as the first online prescription glasses retailer and has since added retail brands that sell contact lenses (LensOn), premium glasses (MyOptique) and SunglassesShop (prescription and non-prescription branded sunglasses).

Customers
Under the same umbrella MyOptique group sells to an overarching type of customer: online savvy consumers of eyewear products. Each retail brand in the group has a more specific segment to target:

LensOn – users of contact lenses. Users of all ages and affluence.

MyOptique – consumers of premium, branded eyewear products. Likely to be of affluent, middle class families. Fashion conscious and online savvy, these consumers know where to find the best prices.

SunglassesShop – consumers of popular, sports or luxury branded sunglasses. Likely to be affluent, these customers like branded products and are willing to spend more to get the right brand. However, they are online savvy, these consumers know where to find the best prices.

Glasses Direct – an offering for more price conscious wearers of prescription glasses. These consumers shop for the best price rather than brand.

Engagement  — Value Creation Proposition
The value proposition of MyOptique group is to disrupt the traditional eyewear industry in order to offer products at all price points at better value to the customer. This model works on the discovery that once a customer knows their prescription, there is no need for them to revisit a physical store to order their eyewear products. Therefore a customer can go online, insert details of their prescription, choose a frame and receive their glasses safely in the post. This gives additional value to the customer who can instantly choose and order their glasses without having to leave the house.

Delivery — Value Chain
MyOptique purchases frames and contact lenses at wholesale, and owns equipment to shape lenses for each pair of glasses that customers order. A third party logistics company then handles the shipping.

Monetisation — Value Capture
MyOptique charges customers at the time of purchase, and dispatches orders only when payment has been confirmed.