Clearly
Clearly is a Canadian direct-to-consumer online retailer of prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses, serving individual consumers across Canada with budget to designer brands, virtual try-on, insurance direct billing, and a subscription contact lens program.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersVancouver, Canada
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Clearly does
Clearly is a Vancouver-based direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer of prescription eyewear, sunglasses, and contact lenses, operating primarily through the clearly.ca storefront in Canada. Founded in 2000, the company sells more than 1,829 products spanning budget Clearly-branded frames (starting at $9 with lenses) and designer brands including Ray-Ban, Oakley, Versace, Coach, Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren, Diesel, Vogue Eyewear, Persol, Arnette, and Tory Burch. The platform supports virtual try-on, direct billing with vision insurance providers, contact lens subscriptions via Subscribe & Save, a free Clearly Club loyalty program with up to 35% member discounts, and Klarna buy-now-pay-later financing. The company also retails Meta AI smart glasses (Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta) and operates physical retail locations for eye exams. Clearly is owned by Luxottica (now EssilorLuxottica), a global eyewear conglomerate, which provides access to a deep brand portfolio and manufacturing scale. The leadership team includes co-founders Philip Cortes (CEO), Karen Fukumura (CBO), Shannon Mosier (COO), and George Bennum (Senior Software Engineer), with Vik Kambli as Chief Marketing Officer.
Clearly firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Clearly
- Legal name
- Clearly
- Website
- https://clearly.ca
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Clearly is a Canadian direct-to-consumer online retailer of prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses, serving individual consumers across Canada with budget to designer brands, virtual try-on, insurance direct billing, and a subscription contact lens program.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Clearly industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Eyewear Retail
- NAICS
- Optical Goods Retailers (45613), Optical Goods Retailers (456130)
- SIC
- Ophthalmic Goods (3851)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Prescription Eyewear Frames (Optical) (CRAAAKAA)
Keywords
Where Clearly is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Vancouver
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Clearly business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Eyewear Product Sales: One-time purchase revenue from prescription glasses, sunglasses, and lenses sold directly to consumers through the e-commerce platform. Products include both Clearly branded frames and designer brand eyewear.
- Contact Lens Subscriptions: Recurring revenue from contact lens subscriptions through the Subscribe & Save program offering 20% off and free shipping on recurring orders.
- Clearly Club Membership: Free loyalty program that drives repeat purchases through points accumulation, exclusive gifts, and up to 35% discounts. While membership is free, the program drives increased customer lifetime value.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Budget eyewear from $9 |
| Subscription | Monthly | Contact lens subscription - 20% off |
| Freemium | Monthly | Clearly Club loyalty program - free membership |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Lens upgrades and add-ons |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Clearly product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Clearly is an online eyewear retailer selling prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses directly to Canadian consumers through its owned e-commerce platform at clearly.ca. The product range spans its own Clearly-branded frames from $9, designer brands (Ray-Ban, Oakley, Versace, Coach, Michael Kors, etc.), and AI-enabled Meta smart glasses, supported by a Virtual Mirror try-on tool, direct vision insurance billing, and a Subscribe & Save contact lens subscription service.
Product overview
Clearly is an online eyewear retailer offering a comprehensive product portfolio centered on prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses. The platform operates on a single unified e-commerce model with various product categories including their own Clearly brand frames, AI-enabled Meta smart glasses (Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta), and an extensive designer brand portfolio. Key products include prescription eyeglasses starting at $9, contact lenses from brands like ACUVUE and their house brand everclear, polarized and Transitions lenses, plus the Clearly Club loyalty program. The company also offers insurance direct billing, virtual try-on capabilities, and a subscription service for contact lens refills.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Clearly Club: Loyalty program offering rewards, exclusive gifts, and up to 35% discounts
Products and services
- Prescription Glasses Prescription eyeglasses sold online to Canadian consumers in various styles, materials, and price points starting from $9, including single vision and progressive lenses.
- Sunglasses
Quantifiable outcome
- Glasses starting from $9 including prescription lenses
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Clearly
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Clearly technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability2 records
Feature3 records
Clearly partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Luxottica (EssilorLuxottica)coreClearly is owned by Luxottica (now EssilorLuxottica), one of the world's largest eyewear companies. This parent company relationship provides access to an extensive portfolio of designer brands including Ray-Ban, Oakley, Versace, Coach, Michael Kors, Polo Ralph Lauren, Vogue Eyewear, Persol, Arnette, and others. The relationship enables competitive pricing through global supply chain integration and manufacturing scale.
- Meta (Ray-Ban Meta, Oakley Meta)coreClearly retails Meta AI glasses including Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta smart eyewear. These products feature built-in cameras, audio, and Meta AI integration. The company offers special promotions including 40% off lenses and extra 10% off AI glasses lenses.
- KlarnaminorKlarna buy-now-pay-later payment option is offered at checkout, enabling customers to spread payments over time on eyewear purchases.
- CooperVisionClearly partners with CooperVision for contact lens offerings, featuring their clariti brand and promoting CooperVision contacts with 20% savings on Biofinity products.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Clearly competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Warby Parker: Direct-to-consumer online eyewear retailer offering prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses with home try-on and vertically integrated brand. Highly comparable to Clearly's D2C model, although Warby Parker is publicly traded and operates in both the US and Canada.
- Zenni Optical: Online-first ultra-low-cost eyewear retailer offering prescription glasses starting under $10. Closest direct competitor to Clearly's value-tier positioning and D2C e-commerce model, though Zenni operates primarily in the US.
- EyeBuyDirect: Online D2C prescription eyewear retailer offering low-priced frames and lenses. Comparable to Clearly on e-commerce model and price-point positioning, with similar product breadth across budget and designer ranges.
- GlassesUSA.com: Online optical retailer offering prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contacts with virtual try-on and insurance integration. Direct comparable to Clearly across product mix, digital experience, and insurance billing features.
- 1-800 Contacts: Online retailer specializing in contact lenses with subscription-based reordering. Direct overlap with Clearly's contact lens subscription and insurance billing offering; now owned by The Cooper Companies.
Emerging players
- Liingo Eyewear: D2C eyewear brand offering prescription glasses with home try-on. Comparable online-first model but smaller scale and narrower brand portfolio than Clearly.
Broad incumbents
- ContactsDirect: Online contact lens retailer owned by Clearly's parent Luxottica/EssilorLuxottica. Sister brand offering comparable subscription and direct billing on contacts; serves as a related-product comparable within the same corporate umbrella.
- LensCrafters: Brick-and-mortar optical retail chain owned by EssilorLuxottica. Sister brand under Clearly's parent; represents the traditional optical retail channel that Clearly's D2C model is disrupting.
- Sunglass Hut: Specialty sunglass retailer owned by Luxottica/EssilorLuxottica. Sister brand with strong overlap on sunglass category, particularly the designer brands (Ray-Ban, Oakley, Versace) that Clearly also distributes.
Regional players
- Hakim Optical: Canadian optical retail chain offering prescription eyewear and eye exams. Direct Canadian-market competitor to Clearly, though operating through a brick-and-mortar retail model rather than D2C e-commerce.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Clearly social profiles
Digital presenceClearly financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Clearly leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Clearly funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Clearly M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Clearly
What does Clearly do?
Clearly is an online eyewear retailer selling prescription glasses, sunglasses, and contact lenses directly to Canadian consumers through its owned e-commerce platform at clearly.ca. The product range spans its own Clearly-branded frames from $9, designer brands (Ray-Ban, Oakley, Versace, Coach, Michael Kors, etc.), and AI-enabled Meta smart glasses, supported by a Virtual Mirror try-on tool, direct vision insurance billing, and a Subscribe & Save contact lens subscription service.
Is Clearly a public or private company?
Clearly is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Clearly founded?
Clearly was founded in 2000. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Clearly based?
Clearly is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Clearly make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Eyewear Product Sales are the primary driver. The others are contact Lens Subscriptions and clearly Club Membership.
Who are Clearly's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Warby Parker, Zenni Optical, EyeBuyDirect, GlassesUSA.com and 1-800 Contacts. Liingo Eyewear is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are ContactsDirect, LensCrafters and Sunglass Hut. Hakim Optical is listed as a regional player.
Does Clearly have an API?
No public API is recorded for Clearly.
What industry is Clearly in?
Clearly's product category is Online Eyewear Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAAAKAA, Prescription Eyewear Frames (Optical). Its NAICS code is 45613 and its SIC code is 3851.