New Eyes For The Needy

What New Eyes For The Needy does

New Eyes for the Needy, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation founded in 1932 and headquartered in Short Hills, New Jersey, that provides new prescription eyeglasses to financially struggling children and adults in the United States. Its core program operates through an online voucher system: social service agencies, school nurses, welfare workers, and approved individual applicants submit requests, and approved recipients order glasses via the organization's online optical dispenser partner. Through long-standing partnerships within the optical industry, the organization procures new prescription eyeglasses at approximately $23 per pair versus a U.S. retail average of $196, and it also accepts demo/unused frames from optical shops. The paid staff is small (1–10 employees) and is supplemented by more than 200 adult volunteers and 55 student volunteers.

The organization's revenue model is plural and donation-centric. Primary inflows are individual financial donations and recurring monthly gifts, foundation grants (Delta Gamma Foundation, Fund for New Jersey Blind, Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund, Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey, United Way of Northern New Jersey, Investors Foundation), in-kind jewelry donations, and two commercial channels that route proceeds back to the eyeglass program: the Fabulous Finds Resale Shop (donated jewelry and luxury goods sold via eBay and a vintage website) and Azimuth by New Eyes, a premium prescription eyewear sub-brand launched in October 2022 whose sustainability positioning supports a donation of two pairs of glasses per purchase. The 2020 closure of the Overseas Used Glasses Program and the addition of direct individual applications during COVID-19 reframed operations entirely around the U.S. domestic program. Cumulative impact since 1932 is reported at more than nine million people served, with 100,000+ people served from 2020 to 2025.

Name

New Eyes For The Needy

Legal name

New Eyes for the Needy, Inc.

Website

https://new-eyes.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1932

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

New Eyes for the Needy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides new prescription eyeglasses, procured at approximately $23 per pair, to financially struggling children and adults in the United States through a voucher-based program administered via partner social service agencies and an online optical dispenser.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Vision Assistance Services

NAICS

Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Ophthalmic Goods (3851)

akta.pro primary industry

Reading Glasses (OTC) (CRAAAKAG)

Keywords

• Prescription eyeglasses
• Vision assistance
• Nonprofit charity
• Voucher distribution
• Eyewear services

Headquarters

HQ city

Short Hills

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Financial Donations: Primary revenue source from individual donors. A pair of new prescription eyeglasses costs New Eyes only $23 compared to the U.S. average of $196. Monthly recurring donor program available.
2. Fabulous Finds Resale Shop: Sells donated fine and costume jewelry, brooches, watches, crystal, china, silver, decorative items, and designer sunglasses through eBay and vintage website. Sales proceeds fund eyeglass purchases for the needy.
3. Jewelry Donations: Accepts donated jewelry; shipping costs are tax-deductible. Proceeds support the eyeglass program.
4. Foundation Grants: Support from foundations including Delta Gamma Foundation, Fund for New Jersey Blind, Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund, Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey, and others.
5. Azimuth Eyewear Sales: Premium prescription eyewear brand. Each purchase provides new eyeglasses to two individuals in financial need in the U.S.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

New Eyes for the Needy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that purchases new prescription eyeglasses and distributes them at no cost to financially struggling children and adults across the United States. Distribution is administered through an online voucher system in which social service agencies, school nurses, and welfare workers apply on behalf of approved clients, who then order eyeglasses via New Eyes' online optical dispenser partner.

Product overview

New Eyes For The Needy operates as a single-focus nonprofit offering one core product—the New Eyeglasses Program—which provides new prescription eyeglasses to financially struggling individuals in the U.S. through an online voucher system. The organization supplements this core program with Azimuth by New Eyes, a premium prescription eyewear sub-brand that generates proceeds to fund the main program. Additionally, the Fabulous Finds Resale Shop sells donated jewelry and luxury items through eBay and a vintage website, with all sales proceeds supporting the eyeglasses program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Azimuth by New Eyes: Premium prescription eyewear brand launched in 2022. Eyewear is sustainably made with fabulous styles, colors and fit. For every purchase, two individuals in financial need in the U.S. receive new eyeglasses. Proceeds go to the New Eyes program providing children and adults with new prescription eyeglasses.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 9 million people helped since 1932
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CostcocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCostco partnered with New Eyes to donate all members' used glasses from Costco's Optical Centers in warehouses throughout the United States. To date, New Eyes has received 100,000 used eyeglasses from this partnership. Costco has also donated lensometers (optometric equipment) and recruited affiliated eye doctors to perform free eye exams for children.
• South Jersey Eye CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Jersey Eye Center is a nonprofit dedicated to providing free and low-cost comprehensive eye care services for the poor throughout Camden County. As a New Eyes batch agency, SJEC receives a predetermined amount of vouchers for their clients, bypassing the need to file applications for each voucher applicant, providing the neediest individuals with new eyeglasses as quickly as possible.
• Optical Industry PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnerships within the optical industry allow New Eyes to purchase new prescription eyeglasses at reduced cost - paying only $23 per pair compared to the U.S. average of $196.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Essilor Vision Foundation: Nonprofit arm of EssilorLuxottica focused on providing vision screenings and eyeglasses to underserved children in the U.S. Highly comparable in mission (U.S. vision access for those in need), beneficiary profile, and corporate-partnership-driven model.
• OneSight: A nonprofit focused on providing vision care and free eyeglasses to underserved populations globally, operating vision centers and charitable clinics. Most directly comparable to New Eyes in mission, beneficiary profile, and voucher-based distribution model.
• RestoringVision: Nonprofit that distributes new reading glasses and sunglasses to people in need worldwide through partnerships with NGOs, government agencies, and corporations. Comparable in operating model, beneficiary focus, and reliance on optical industry donations.
• VSP Eyes of Hope: Charitable program of VSP Vision Care that provides free eyeglasses and eye care to low-income, uninsured individuals through a voucher and clinic network. Directly comparable voucher-based distribution model and U.S. focus on low-income beneficiaries.
• Optometry Giving Sight: Nonprofit dedicated to preventing blindness and uncorrected refractive error through funds raised by the optometric community. Comparable in mission of making vision correction accessible to underserved populations globally.

Broad incumbents

• Sightsavers: International NGO focused on preventing avoidable blindness and supporting people with visual impairments, primarily in developing countries. Comparable mission of vision access for vulnerable populations, though operating at a much larger global scale.
• Warby Parker: For-profit eyewear retailer with a strong 'Buy a Pair, Give a Pair' social mission. Comparable in the buy-one-give-one model and distribution of affordable eyewear, though it operates a commercial D2C model rather than a charity-based voucher program.
• Lions Clubs International: Long-running service organization with a flagship eyeglass recycling and vision-care program that collects used glasses and distributes them globally. Comparable mission and beneficiary base, but operates as a much larger membership-based organization with broader community programs.
• Prevent Blindness: U.S. nonprofit focused on preventing blindness and preserving sight through public education, advocacy, and vision screening programs. Comparable in mission around vision health equity, though it focuses more on screening and advocacy than direct eyeglass distribution.

Emerging players

• VisionSpring: Social enterprise that provides affordable eyeglasses to people living on low incomes in the developing world through a 'Base of the Pyramid' distribution model. Comparable mission of making vision correction accessible to those who cannot afford retail eyewear, though primarily international.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/new-eyes-for-the-needy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about New Eyes For The Needy