AN INFLECTION POINT IN EYE CARE AND E-COMMERCE: They’re Keeping the Customers Coming Back Again and Again!

The time is right for the traditional eyewear market to change dramatically. In 2021, there’s a massive sea change in progress – consumers are tired of the old business models and they’re making their voices heard.

This shift had already begun before the pandemic started. There are some very good reasons to account for why Amazon has thrived and retail malls and shopping centers have struggled during the past decade.

It’s about price, convenience, and selection. More and more people have discovered that by shopping online, not only can you avoid the hassle of traveling to a store, but you can also browse through vast product selections that you simply won’t find in physical store locations, all while getting the best available deals.

There’s a significant niche sector if the right company were to come along and take advantage of it.

Importantly, the share of independent optical retailers is shrinking fast, now down to just 51% of the eyewear market in the United States.

Today’s customers are savvier than ever. Because of Amazon’s influence, they know how to comparison shop on their phones. They’ll often go into a physical store and browse around, find what they want, and then just order it online.

One up-and-coming company known as Kits.com (TSX: KITS) is leveraging the best features of modern e-commerce today – and with its market timing, Kits.com’s online platform is enabling transformation across the $35 billion American eyewear category.

Kits.com operates in one of the last multibillion-dollar categories dominated by a shrinking number of small independent shops – a market segment that’s ripe for technological disruption.

Kits.com should be positioned to lead the transition into online sales with the company’s branded and KITS-label offerings, which focus on delivering what customers want at affordable values.

Let’s face it – e-commerce is taking over all markets, including eyewear. It’s estimated that in 2020, the North American share of online optical sales was still just 12.6%!

For comparison, the North American share of online apparel and footwear sales in 2020 was estimated to be 36%.

The two charts above don’t show 2020’s fourth quarter, which was a blockbuster for Kits.com:

• Operating cash flow was $4,182,000 in fiscal year 2020, demonstrating the strength of Kits.com’s asset-light and cash-generating approach

• Free cash flow increased by 25% to $3,957,000 in fiscal year 2020 compared to fiscal year 2019

• Gross profit increased by 57% to $21,388,000 in fiscal year 2020 from $13,665,000 in fiscal year 2019

• The tight share structure was maintained: common shares outstanding were 31 million following the closing of the Kits.com IPO on January 19, 2021, with 23.5 million shares (or 75% of total shares outstanding) currently held by management or related parties, aligning investors with management

Here, the statistics make the case that the eye care market was already primed for disruption, and Kits.com’s business model was both perfectly timed, and ahead of its time.

The evidence is overwhelming: consumers will never want to go back to the traditional eye care shopping experience. And, Kits.com is on the forefront of a new way to buy glasses and contact lenses – it’s a revolution in eyewear, starting right now.