‘What we have done is not enough’: Lenskart CEO a year after IPO

One year after debuting on the public market, optical retail firm Lenskart has taken stock of its corporate achievement by examining the ongoing societal hurdles it faces. In an open announcement commemorating the anniversary of its initial public offering, co-founder and CEO Peyush Bansal declared that, despite increasing affordable eyewear accessibility in India, the ultimate goal of making clear vision a universal reality remains unattained.

The company unveiled strategic operational adjustments intended to alleviate financial burdens for basic eye care. "We built a ten thousand crore company. The one thing we started it for is still unsolved," Bansal declared. Founded with the ambition to enable one billion people to see clearly, the company initially targeted efforts in India.

Today, Lenskart supplies around 32 million eyewear units annually in the country, with plans to boost production to 100 million units in its next growth phase. Over the years, the company invested substantially in localized manufacturing to cut production costs for advanced optical products. This involved establishing domestic facilities for progressive lenses—multifocal lenses that provide seamless visual transitions across different distances without distinct lines.

The firm also developed local capacity for break-resistant rimless frames and complete prescription pairs at an affordable Rs 500 price point. Management believes that expanding manufacturing scale serves as a strategic tool to address systemic health issues. In response to India's rapid digitalization, where nearly one billion citizens frequently use screens, Lenskart announced the immediate elimination of extra fees for blue-light filtering coatings.

Blue-light filtering lenses include specialized protective coatings that reduce digital glare and eye strain caused by prolonged screen usage. Under the new policy, these protective coatings will be included as standard on all prescription eyewear sold by the company in India without additional charges. Additionally, the retailer is allocating resources to childhood vision health to combat undetected myopia, a medical term for nearsightedness that impairs clear distance vision and can affect learning outcomes.

To commemorate National Children's Day, Lenskart will provide free prescription glasses with blue-light filtering lenses to the first 100,000 child visitors across its Indian stores, with families only required to pay a Rs 199 fitting fee. In the retail optics industry, specialized lens treatments often serve as high-margin add-ons.

By making screen-ready lenses standard and funding extensive pediatric eye health programs, Lenskart is likely absorbing short-term margin sacrifices for the potential of enhanced consumer trust and long-term brand reputation. CEO Bansal emphasized, "Purpose and profit are not a trade-off. In the short term, the right thing for the customer rarely looks like the obvious decision. In the long term, it has worked out every single time."