NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warby Parker Inc. (NYSE: WRBY) ("Warby Parker" or the “Company”) announced today the appointment of Ron Williams as Lead Director.
“Ron’s deep expertise in transformational leadership is helping Warby Parker lead the way in making the optical industry more customer and patient friendly. Our shareholders and our team are lucky to have such an exceptional and experienced leader as our first Lead Director,” said Neil Blumenthal, co-Founder and co-CEO.
The Company has also appointed a new independent director, Brad Singer, to its board of directors. Mr. Singer’s appointment is effective today, August 1, 2024.
“Brad brings a wealth of experience as a dynamic operator and investor,” said Dave Gilboa, co-Founder and co-CEO. “His strategic vision and leadership will undoubtedly support our mission to scale and create impact, both within our category and beyond. We’re incredibly fortunate to welcome him to the Warby Parker team.”
Mr. Singer previously served as Chief Operating Officer and an Investment Partner at ValueAct Capital, Chief Financial Officer of Discovery Communications, and Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of American Tower Corporation. He currently serves on the boards of directors of Crown Castle, Inc., Sweetgreen, Inc., and Redfin Corp.
ABOUT RONALD WILLIAMS
Ron Williams has served as a member of our board of directors since August 2021. Before joining Warby Parker, Mr. Williams served as the chairman and CEO of Aetna Inc. from 2006 to 2010. He joined Aetna in 2001 and was named president and joined the board in 2002. Mr. Williams is the chairman and CEO of RW2 Enterprises, through which he counsels C-Suite corporate executives. Mr. Williams also currently serves on the board of directors of agilon health, is an operating advisory to Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, and is a member of the McKinsey External Advisory Group. He has previously served on the boards of The Boeing Company, American Express, Johnson & Johnson, Envision Healthcare and naviHealth. He serves on the boards of private companies apree health (previously Castlight/Vera Whole Health Inc.) and Millennium Physician Group. Mr. Williams is chairman of The Conference Board, a member of the President’s Circle of the National Academies and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Mr. Williams served on President Obama’s Management Advisory Board from 2011 to 2017.
Mr. Williams holds a Bachelor of Arts from Roosevelt University and a Master of Business Administration from the Sloan School of Business at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
ABOUT BRADLEY SINGER
Brad Singer is a prominent business leader who most recently served as Partner and Chief Operating Officer of ValueAct Capital, where he retired in December 2021. Prior to joining ValueAct Capital in 2012, Mr. Singer was the Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Discovery Communications, Inc. and the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of American Tower Corporation. Prior to American Tower, Mr. Singer worked as an investment banker at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mr. Singer currently serves on the boards of directors of Castle Crown, Inc. Sweetgreen, Inc., and Redfin Corp. Mr. Singer also serves on the National Board for the Posse Foundation and is a member of the board at the McIntire School of Commerce at the University of Virginia. Mr. Singer is a former director of Citizens Communications Corp., Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., Motorola Solutions, Inc. and Rolls-Royce Holdings plc.
Mr. Singer has a B.S. from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard Business School.
ABOUT WARBY PARKER
Warby Parker (NYSE: WRBY) was founded in 2010 with a mission to inspire and impact the world with vision, purpose, and style–without charging a premium for it. Headquartered in New York City, the co-founder-led lifestyle brand pioneers ideas, designs products, and develops technologies that help people see, from designer-quality prescription glasses (starting at $95) and contacts, to eye exams and vision tests available online and in our 245 retail stores across the U.S. and Canada.
Warby Parker aims to demonstrate that businesses can scale, do well, and do good in the world. Ultimately, the Company believes in vision for all, which is why for every pair of glasses or sunglasses sold, it distributes a pair to someone in need through its Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program. To date, Warby Parker has worked alongside its nonprofit partners to distribute more than 15 million glasses to people in need.