About Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct is a Retail company based in Swindon (United Kingdom) founded in 2004. Prescription glasses and sunglasses are retailed online by Glasses Direct. Glasses Direct has raised $12.98 million across 1 funding round from investors including Highland Capital Partners, Index Ventures and Acton Capital. The company has 176 employees. Glasses Direct has completed 1 acquisition, including LensOn. Its website glassesdirect.co.uk draws about 1.3 million monthly visits. Glasses Direct offers products and services including Prescription Glasses, Sunglasses, and Varifocal Lenses. Its focus areas include Consumer, Fashion Tech, B2C Commerce and Accessories. Its legal entity is MYOPTIQUE GROUP LTD. Its competitors include SunGod, Bloobloom and Eyejusters; 3 of its 3 listed competitors have raised funding.
Company details
Glasses Direct was founded in 2004 and is based in Swindon, United Kingdom. Operations are conducted as an online retailer of prescription eyewear across Europe. Glasses for men and women are supplied, including options for prescription sunglasses, with all frames adaptable to prescription lenses. The company is owned by the Prescription Eyewear group, which also includes myOptique.com, SunglassesShop.com, and LensOn.com.
- Headquarters Swindon, United Kingdom
- Employees 176
- SectorsRetail
- Website category Health
- Website glassesdirect.co.uk
- Social LinkedIn X Facebook Instagram
- Legal Name Myoptique Group Ltd
- Date of Incorporation 27 May, 2004
- Jurisdiction BRISTOL, ENGLAND
- Net Profit-$11.33 M (USD)76as on Dec 31, 2018
- Total Equity Funding$12.98M (USD)
in 1 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$12.98M (USD), Series B
Apr 2009
- InvestorsHighland Capital Partners
& 2 more
- Employee Count176
- Investments & Acquisitions
Products & Services of Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct offers a comprehensive portfolio of products and services, including Prescription Glasses, Sunglasses, and Varifocal Lenses.
Online platform for purchasing customizable prescription lenses and frames.
Selection of prescription and non-prescription sunglasses with UV protection.
Specialized lenses for vision correction available in various coatings.
Funding Insights of Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct has successfully raised a total of $12.98M through 1 strategic funding round. The most recent funding activity was a Series B round of $12.98 million completed in April 2009. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $12.98M
- Total Rounds 1
- Last Round Series B — $12.98M
- First Round $12.98M
(Apr 2009)
- Investors Count 3
All 1 funding rounds of Glasses Direct with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
| Date | Amount | Transaction Name | Valuation | Lead Investors | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2009 | $12.98M | Series B | – | Acton Capital |
3 investors in total: 3 institutional.
Investors in Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct has secured backing from 3 investors, including venture fund investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Highland Capital Partners, Index Ventures and Acton Capital.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Venture capital investment and entrepreneur support services. | hcp.com | |||
Venture capital investments in technology startups and entrepreneurs. | indexventures.com | |||
Tech-enabled companies are invested in by Acton Capital venture firm. | actoncapital.com | Munich, Germany |
Investor details for Glasses Direct
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Investments & Acquisitions by Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct has strategically engaged in corporate development activities, having acquired 1 company. Notable acquisitions include LensOn.
| Company Name | Description | Domain | Location | Founded | Acquired | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Contact lenses and eyewear are sold online by LensOn. | lenson.com | Stockholm, Sweden | 2004 | Dec 2012 | •••• |
Complete acquisition details for Glasses Direct
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Timeline of Glasses Direct
3 dated milestones of Glasses Direct across 8 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded Glasses Direct is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $13.0M.
- Acquisition Acquires LensOn.
Competitors of Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct has 3 listed competitors in our database, 3 of them funded. They include SunGod, Bloobloom and Eyejusters.
| Company Name | Domain | Founded | HQ Location | Total funding | Employees | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| sungod.co | 2013 | London, United Kingdom | $8.93M | 5 | Internet first brand offering eyewear for men & women | |
| bloobloom.com | 2017 | London, United Kingdom | $3.95M | 12 | Handcrafted eyewear including glasses and sunglasses is offered online. | |
| eyejusters.com | 2010 | Oxford, United Kingdom | $3.59M | 3 | Private label brand of adjustable focus reading glasses |
Detailed competitors of Glasses Direct
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Web traffic of Glasses Direct
The website of Glasses Direct (glassesdirect.co.uk) receives about 1.3M visits a month and ranks #30,588 among all websites worldwide, #735 in Health.
- Monthly visits1.3M
▲ 13.3% vs previous month
- Unique visitors420.6K
per month
- Global rank#30,588
among all websites
- Category rank#735
Health · Health
- Bounce rate42%
- Pages per visit8.3
- Average visit3 min 18 sec
- DevicesDesktop 19% · Mobile 81%
Websites whose visitors overlap most with Glasses Direct. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| glasses2you.co.uk | 100% | #249,698 | View details | ||
| selectspecs.com | 99% | #89,327 | View details | ||
| visionexpress.com | 89% | 1.8M | #31,488 | View details | |
| directsight.co.uk | 60% | #249,150 | View details | ||
specsonthenet.com | specsonthenet.com | 57% | – | ||
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 40 similar websites and full traffic analytics for Glasses Direct
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Frequently Asked Questions about Glasses Direct
Glasses Direct was founded in 2004 and raised its 1st funding round 5 years after it was founded.
Glasses Direct is headquartered in Swindon, United Kingdom. It is registered at Swindon, Wiltshire, United Kingdom.
Glasses Direct is a funded company, having raised a total of $12.98M across 1 funding round to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Series B of $12.98M, raised on Apr 2009.
Glasses Direct has 176 employees.
Glasses Direct was founded in 2004 and is based in Swindon, United Kingdom. Operations are conducted as an online retailer of prescription eyewear across Europe. Glasses for men and women are supplied, including options for prescription sunglasses, with all frames adaptable to prescription lenses. The company is owned by the Prescription Eyewear group, which also includes myOptique.com, SunglassesShop.com, and LensOn.com.
Glasses Direct's top competitors include SunGod, Bloobloom and Eyejusters.
Glasses Direct offers Prescription Glasses, Sunglasses, and Varifocal Lenses.
Glasses Direct has made 1 acquisition, including LensOn.
Glasses Direct has 3 investors. Key investors include Highland Capital Partners, Index Ventures, and Acton Capital.
Glasses Direct operates through Myoptique Group Ltd.
The website of Glasses Direct receives about 1.3 million visits a month and ranks #30,588 among all websites worldwide.