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James Ledbetter (l), editor of Inc. Magazine and Inc.com, Neil Blumenthal, co-founder of Warby Parker.
NEW YORK—In an interview format during the VM Summit on Wednesday with James Ledbetter, editor of Inc. Magazine and Inc.com, Neil Blumenthal, co-founder of Warby Parker, shared information about the e-tailing start-up that has grown incredibly fast and has already begun venturing into brick-and-mortar stores.

Blumenthal credited getting the price point right and creating a brand that speaks to Millennials as two primary reasons for the company’s remarkable growth. Still, he said, “We deliberately kept the throttle down because we believe in sustainable growth, not growth for the sake of growth.”

He cited the company’s high Net Promoter Score (NPS) as its gauge for whether it is growing at the right pace, stating that in a competitive landscape, Warby Parker’s NPS in the 80s compares to the larger optical chains that he said have scores below 25.

When Ledbetter asked whether Warby Parker would become a lifestyle brand and begin offering “sweaters and sandals,” Blumenthal said, “We’re still trying to figure it out. We want permission from our customers to go into other categories.” He did cite collaborations that resulted in books as well as LPs and CDs with music by Beck.

About whether the company would ever go public, Blumenthal said, “People who run public companies don’t seem to have as much fun. I’d like to stay private as long as humanly possible. A lot of activity that used to take place only in the public market is now taking place in the private market.” He pointed to changes in the venture capital market. "There are opportunities in the private market for early investors to get out without going public or being acquired," he said.

Questions from the audience concluded the session and the day’s events. When asked about new products that are above the company’s initial price point of $95 for a pair of eyeglasses, such as progressives selling for $295, he said, "Progressives elsewhere would be well over $800. The hope is that we master one area before moving into a different area."