Gap’s Drexler Invests in Warby Parker

Millard (Mickey) Drexler, ceo of J. Crew Group Inc. (New York), is among a group of investors providing $41.5 million in financing to Warby Parker (New York), the online seller of eyeglass frames.

Drexler joins American Express, General Catalyst Partners, Spark Capital, Tiger Global Management, Thrive Capital and Menlo Ventures as financial supporters of the the three-year-old start-up.

“We’ve tried to be very deliberate in getting people with specific expertise,” said Neil Blumenthal, one of Warby Parker’s founders. “Nobody knows retail like Mickey. And within financial services, nobody knows a brand more prominent than American Express.”

Warby Parker sells sunglass and even prescription glasses almost exclusively online at relatively low costs. In addition to its fashionable, often retro, frame designes, it allows prospective buyers to try on several frames before buying, and uses Facebook and Twitter as ways to keep in touch with customers.

Its growth over the last three years has been largely through word of mouth, with the company having run its first television ads this year.
It’s reported that Silicon Valley venture capitalists regularly flew to New York to beg the founders for breakfast — and then a chance to invest.

“They treat clients like relationships,” Joel Cutler, a founder of General Catalyst, said of Warby Parker’s management. “They’re very much oriented toward telling people about a lifestyle they want to associate with.”

Drexler began having regular lunches with Warby Parker’s founders to chat about their retail ideas. Soon, the Warby Parker executives saw Drexler as their informal coach.

“He was excited about some of the exciting retail stuff we were doing,” Mr. Blumenthal said. “When it was time to raise money, we wanted to get him formally involved.”