The Lenskart IPO becomes subscribable today, October 31, 2025, and is closed on November 4. As the biggest Indian eyewear retailer finally goes public, investors are posing one basic question: Is the 70,000 crore valuation worth it, or is this another overvalued IPO?

 Let’s explore everything about lenskart ipo 2025!

Lenskart Overview 

Lenskart was founded by Peyush Bansal (that is, the judge of Shark Tank India) in 2008 and it transformed the way Indians purchase eyewear. Do you recall the ancient times when one used to go to the local opticians, spend days to get glasses, and not be certain of either quality or reasonable prices? Lenskart was the solution to that issue.

The company constructed a complete business structure, starting with making the lenses in their automated plants to have them at your doorstep, most of the time in 24 hours in a major city. They have merged online tranquility and offline accessibility and introduced what they term an omnichannel experience.

Lenskart currently has a global network of stores (more than 2,800), and in India, the company has more than 2,100 stores. They make more than 6 million frames a year in their factories in Bhiwadi and Gurugram and are under construction of one of the largest eyewear manufacturing centers in the world in Hyderabad.

Lenskart  IPO Details

Under this IPO, Lenskart is raising 7278 crores with an equity offering of 11 percent to the public shareholders. This is worth estimating the company at about 70,000 crores—a huge increment to its July 2025 private valuation of 8,700 crores.

It is now interesting in that only 2,150 crores of that money will be used in expanding the business. The rest, 5,128 crores is an Offer for Sale (OFS); that is, the existing investors and promoters are selling their shares and taking money.

The after-IPO holdings of the promoter will decrease by 20 percent to 17.5 percent. Although this is not a significantly low valuation, it is an indicator that founders are ringing the register at the perceived high valuation.

Business Performance

Lenskart has a revenue of about 7,000 crores in FY25 projected to increase by 33 percent yearly in the last two years. Their operating profit margin went up greatly, at 6.8 FY23, to 14.6 FY25, and 17.7 in Q1 FY26. This was efficiency being brought about by sound cost management. 

Their marketing costs decreased by 7.7 percent to 6.7 percent of revenue since their online promotions resulted not only in online purchases but also visits to brick-and-mortar sales locations—one budget, two times the impact.

Key facts 

Here’s where investors need to pay close attention. After years of losses, Lenskart finally turned profitable in FY25 with ₹297 crores in profit. Sounds great, right?

But dig deeper, and you’ll find that ₹167 crores—more than half the total profit—came from an accounting adjustment, not actual business operations.

In 2022, Lenskart acquired 93% of Owndays, a Japanese eyewear chain, with plans to buy the remaining stake later. This remaining stake sat on their books as a liability. When they revalued this liability in FY25, its value dropped significantly, creating a paper profit of ₹167 crores—without any actual cash coming in.

Additionally, they earned ₹8 crores from favorable foreign exchange rates (which could reverse next year) and ₹14 crores from deferred tax credits.

Strip away these one-time gains, and the core operational profit looks considerably thinner—around ₹108 crores from actual business operations.

The Store Strategy—From Franchise to Company-Owned

Lenskart is shifting from franchise-owned stores (FoFo) to company-owned and operated stores (CoCo). This gives them better control over pricing, product mix, and customer experience.

These CoCo stores reportedly pay back their investment in about 10 months—an attractive proposition. To accelerate this transition, they acquired Dealskart, one of their largest franchise operators, which helped add more CoCo stores and improve margins.

As of now, they operate 1,823 CoCo stores, up from 1,749 in March 2025, and this number continues growing.

The Market Opportunity

The eyewear market in India presents enormous potential.

Here are the numbers that matter:

  • 770 million Indians need vision correction (53% of the population).
  • By 2030, this will jump to 940 million people (6 in 10 Indians)
  • Only 35% of Indians currently wear prescription glasses.
  • In developed markets like the US and Japan, 69-88% of people wear glasses

This gap represents Lenskart’s growth runway. Rising screen time, pollution, and an aging population are driving demand. Yet, Lenskart currently holds just 4% market share—plenty of room to grow.

Interestingly, their revenue is split equally between budget glasses (under ₹2,000) and premium offerings (above ₹10,000), showing appeal across income segments.

Is Lenskart Worth It?

This is where opinions sharply divide.

At ₹70,000 crores, Lenskart is valued at:

  • 10 times its annual revenue
  • 230 times its earnings

For context, this is higher than many established tech companies and far exceeds traditional retail valuations.

Supporters argue that Lenskart isn’t just a retailer—it’s a vertically integrated, tech-enabled business with:

  • Proprietary manufacturing
  • AI-powered virtual try-ons
  • Data-driven customer insights
  • Future products like smart glasses (they have a partnership with Qualcomm)

Critics counter that this is Lenskart’s first profitable year since 2008, growth is slowing to 20-30% (from earlier hypergrowth), and most profits came from accounting adjustments rather than core operations.

Traditional competitors like Titan Eye+, GKB, Lawrence & Mayo, and Vision Express generate at least 65% lower revenue, making direct comparisons difficult. There’s simply no perfect listed peer.

The Red Flags Investors Should Consider

1. High Valuations

The jump from ₹8,700 crores (July 2025 private valuation) to ₹70,000 crores in just a few months is dramatic—an 8x increase.

2. OFS-Heavy Structure

With 70% of IPO proceeds going to existing shareholders rather than the business, this looks more like an exit opportunity for early investors than a capital-raising exercise for growth.

3. Accounting-Driven Profits

When most of your maiden profit comes from balance sheet adjustments rather than operations, sustainability becomes questionable.

4. Founder’s Own Words

Peyush Bansal once told The Arc, “There is a lot of opaqueness in the eyewear space. No pun intended. There is only 5-10% reality, and 90% is just showcasing and marketing.”

While he was referring to the industry, investors might wonder if the same applies to this IPO pitch.

Should You Invest in the Lenskart IPO?

The decision depends on your investment philosophy and risk appetite.

Consider investing if you:

  • Believe in India’s consumption growth story
  • Can hold for 5-10 years (not for quick flips)
  • Want exposure to organized retail’s growth
  • Trust management’s execution ability
  • Accept premium valuations for market leaders

Stay cautious if you:

  • Prefer value investing with margin of safety
  • Are uncomfortable with 230x earnings multiple
  • Worry about promoters reducing stake
  • Want immediate profitability clarity
  • Prefer IPOs where proceeds fund growth

Final thoughts 

Lenskart has actually revolutionized the eyewear market of India. Their business concept is successful, expansion is factual, and the business potential is colossal. The brand equity is high with more than 7 million paying loyalty members and increasing international presence. The valuation is nonetheless based on the assumption that everything will work out fine—continued growth in revenue, growth in margins, successful international expansion and the mainstream adoption of smart glasses. Mistakes in execution do not have much space at this cost.

This IPO would be tantamount to paying tomorrow for what you are going to get today. To long-term enthusiasts of the tale, that could be good enough. Waiting to discover the listing-day price, or the following correction, would be more prudent for value-conscious investors.