Sticker shock: Why are glasses so expensive?

[laundry_queen]

54. Online is now the way to go

here in Canada there is clearlycontacts.ca and they sell glasses too. Every once in awhile they have a 'free glasses' promo for new customers. I got my free pair (well, paid $30 for shipping and for extra coatings - no scratch, no glare, etc) and was hooked. Got 2 more pairs for $100 total. My previous pair of glasses had cost me $450 and I got them scratched and couldn't replace them for awhile, so this time I wanted extras. I had budgeted for $450 until my mom told me about the website. Next time I get an eye exam (I don't go very often as my eyes haven't changed much in years) I'll get another 2-3 pairs. No more tape on MY glasses when the kids smash them by accident.

BTW - there needs to be stronger regulations with regards to monopoly. Pure capitalism will always end in monopoly, despite all we've been taught that capitalism is about competition. It isn't. It's about the company who is in the lead that buys up all the other ones behind them (or finds ways to put the other companies out of business). That's how capitalism works. Microsoft is a huge example, as is, it appears, Luxottica. There's a reason it shuns publicity - it's easier to become a monopoly if no one is watching.