Lenskart acquires majority stake in Japanese eyewear brand Owndays

This acquisition will take Lenskart's reach to 13 markets, including India, Singapore, Thailand, and Japan and make it one of the largest players in Asia's online eyewear segment

Softbank-backed prescription glasses company Lenskart has acquired a majority stake in Japan’s D2C eyewear brand Owndays. The deal will create one of Asia’s largest online eyewear retailer.

The acquisition will take Lenskart’s presence to 13 markets in Asia, including India, Singapore, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan.

The deal, according to sources, is estimated to be $400 million and will give exit to Owndays major shareholders L Catterton Asia and Mitsui & Co, and Principal Investments. Owndays co-founders CEO Shuji Tanaka, and COO Take Umiyama, will continue to be shareholders and lead the management team of the company. 

Peyush Bansal, co-founder and group CEO at Lenskart, said, “In today’s age, the customer wants great products, great prices, and delightful experiences all the time. With Owndays, we move a step closer to democratising eyewear. I have known Shuji-san and Take-san for over five years and have been an admirer of the disruptive brand and customer experience they have built. There is much we can achieve together which will be greater than the sum of its parts.”

Shuji Tanaka, Owndays founder and CEO, said, “I believe digital transformation is the key to our next phase of growth in the post-pandemic operating environment, and I am excited to partner with Lenskart, which has deep expertise and intellectual capital in the information technology field.”

The acquisition will allow Lenskart to increase its presence in the premium segment. Owndays will continue to operate as a separate brand. While Lenskart will continue its expansion in India and Southeast Asia to serve the mass to mid-premium segments, Owndays scales to cater to premium segments. 

Lenskart ships over 10 million pairs of eyewear every year and has over 20 million app downloads, 300 home eye test representatives as well as over 1,100 stores across India, Singapore, and Dubai.

The company grew by 65 per cent year-on-year in 2021 and is on track to grow by another 50 per cent in 2022. It is also building up its tech team from the current 300 to 500 people in FY23. This will help it build a stronger online and Omni experience for Owndays, said the company in a media release.