After breaking my last pair of current prescription eyeglasses at the track last weekend, I needed to shop for a new pair which meant another round of aggravation over the ridiculously high prices at the usual stores. I had never considered Costco before my partner mentioned that it saves her hundreds of dollars each time so I did some comparison shopping.
I never paid attention to the corporate information of Lenscrafters, my usual supplier, and was surprised to learn that they have the same owner as Pearle Vision as well as Sunglass Hut and several other chain stores in your local malls. The parent company, Luxoticca (also a brand of frames sold by Lenscrafters), also bought Oakley for $2 billion. Needless to say, the fact that one company owns most, if not all, of the eyeglass stores in your malls makes it difficult to get a good price on anything.
After a little more research, I found that Costco was rated very highly among consumers and not only was less expensive but also provided a higher customer satisfaction rating. Although I now have to wait 10 days for my new glasses to come in rather than an hour at Lenscrafters, the glasses that Lenscrafters wanted to sell me for $450 (after discounts) cost me only $159 at Costco.
I just thought that I would pass along the info in case anyone was like me and had simply settled for the convenience of the Lenscrafters chain type stores without realizing that those sames lenses costing several hundred dollars start at $49 at Costco and the frames generally are less than $100. And, yes, you do have to be a member but if you are not the annual fee is only $50 which you recoup on the first pair of glasses and you can also stock up on Mobil 1 while you are there.
I never paid attention to the corporate information of Lenscrafters, my usual supplier, and was surprised to learn that they have the same owner as Pearle Vision as well as Sunglass Hut and several other chain stores in your local malls. The parent company, Luxoticca (also a brand of frames sold by Lenscrafters), also bought Oakley for $2 billion. Needless to say, the fact that one company owns most, if not all, of the eyeglass stores in your malls makes it difficult to get a good price on anything.
After a little more research, I found that Costco was rated very highly among consumers and not only was less expensive but also provided a higher customer satisfaction rating. Although I now have to wait 10 days for my new glasses to come in rather than an hour at Lenscrafters, the glasses that Lenscrafters wanted to sell me for $450 (after discounts) cost me only $159 at Costco.
I just thought that I would pass along the info in case anyone was like me and had simply settled for the convenience of the Lenscrafters chain type stores without realizing that those sames lenses costing several hundred dollars start at $49 at Costco and the frames generally are less than $100. And, yes, you do have to be a member but if you are not the annual fee is only $50 which you recoup on the first pair of glasses and you can also stock up on Mobil 1 while you are there.