10 Things You Didn’t Know about David Gilboa
What do you know about David Gilboa, the co-founder and co-CEO of eyewear company Warby Parker? Lots of people use the company to purchase eyewear, but sometimes it’s important to know more about the person behind the project. Like so many other people that choose to go into business, Gilboa is a dynamic and multi-talented individual. Here are 10 things about him that prove this statement.
1. He’s environmentally conscious
He’s always been very environmentally conscious, but recently the need for that has really come to the forefront in his mind. He’s quick to point out that the planet is changing rapidly, largely because of the fact that human beings have not taken care of it. As far as he’s concerned, the resulting global warming is having a dramatic impact on the weather and that affects the lives of individuals all over the globe. While he realizes that it’s impossible to come up with a quick fix, he also realizes that it’s up to society to do something about the problem before things get even worse than they already are.
2. He doesn’t believe people should have to pay a premium price for quality
The company that he heads up offers designer eyewear. The prices are designed to be rock bottom, but the one thing he won’t compromise on is quality. He has always said that he doesn’t feel like people should have to pay an exorbitant amount of money in order to get high quality when it comes to anything, but especially not something as important as eyewear. Instead, he believes that everyone deserves to have high-quality items for a fair price as opposed to paying hundreds or even thousands of extra dollars because of a name that’s attached to a certain product.
3. He thinks that it’s good to turn something on its ear sometimes
As you can imagine, he has sort of turned the business world on its ear with his views. According to him, it’s good to do that from time to time because it helps keep people honest. He doesn’t particularly like the idea of people becoming too comfortable with anything, especially when it’s done at the expense of other individuals who have no say in the matter.
4. He’s a non-profit lifer
He’s been involved in non-profits in one capacity or another for the majority of his adult life. Even though Warby Parker isn’t a non-profit company, he still operates it in much the same way. At the same time, he has served on numerous boards for non-profit institutions and continues to do so because he believes that these types of organizations can make their communities a better place to live. As such, he feels like it’s his duty to do his part and serve whenever and wherever he can.
5. He believes that entrepreneurs can offer something to the world
Another thing that he’s been involved in is training entrepreneurs and then sending them out into cities that have a rather high rate of poverty. It’s all done with the intention of allowing the entrepreneurs to find a way to help those individuals while simultaneously making money. It may not make people as rich as creating the next best thing in Beverly Hills, but it’s far more fulfilling.
6. He’s well educated
He holds a bachelor’s degree in Bioengineering from UC Berkeley. After that, he went on to achieve an MBA at the University of Pennsylvania’s The Wharton School. Clearly, he believes in getting a good education. In fact, he would even go as far as saying that a good education is often the key to finding success, even when all of the odds are stacked against you. That said, he also believes that the most important thing of all is having the will to succeed and the drive to keep going, even when things aren’t going your way.
7. He holds dual citizenship
He’s lived in the United States his entire life, but he wasn’t born here. In fact, he was born in Sweden. Shortly thereafter, his parents moved to the States and he has lived here ever since. As a result, he is both a Swedish Citizen and a United States citizen.
8. He’s committed to providing quality eye care to those who can’t afford it
He started something called Prescription Check 2017, a project designed to help people who couldn’t otherwise afford eye care an opportunity to get an eye test and then receive glasses as needed. Better yet, he worked on this initiative until the affected individuals could receive those eyeglasses within about a day. He’s always been committed to helping those who are less fortunate. For him, this is just one more way that he can contribute. Of course, it’s also good PR for the company.
9. He speaks out against racism
He has always been against racism. Recently, he’s taken to social media to speak out against it, largely because he feels like it’s just time to do so. He says that he has never understood why some people are treated differently than others, just because of the color of their skin. For that matter, he also doesn’t understand why people treat others differently based on things like nationality, cultural or religious differences. He believes that we all have much more in common than things that make us different. Furthermore, he believes that there’s something to be learned from being around individuals that are different to us because it provides us an opportunity to grow and learn.
10. He loves to travel
He’s always loved traveling. One of his favorite things to do during his down time is to travel to various cities around the world and take in the sights. It’s partly because he enjoys experiencing other cultures and learning something about them while he’s there. In addition, it gives him an opportunity to see places that most people only dream of.