Warby Parker in store expansion

Warby Parker is making a big commitment to brick-and-mortar.



The hip eyewear retailer plans to open at least 25 stores this year, The Wall Street Journal reported.



The new locations, planned for Miami, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and other cities, are expected to bring Warby Parker’s total store count to about 70 by year end.



The stores will range in size and include freestanding as well as mall locations, the report said.



"I don't think retail is dead. Mediocre retail experiences are dead," Warby Parker CEO and co-founder Neil Blumenthal told the Journal.



Warby Parker will open its first full-size location in Philadelphia on Jan. 28. The 2,360-sq.-ft. store is in the former space of the famed Le Bec-Fin restaurant.



Warby Parker, which was founded online, opened its first physical store in spring 2013, in the SoHo section of New York City.