SEE

My friend and I were wandering around, somewhat intent on «just window shopping,» when she exclaimed that she just wanted to casually peruse SEE’s offerings. Half an hour later, we walk out with a new pair of sweet sunglasses and two pairs of trendy glasses. How did that even happen?!
SEE carries a rather vast proprietary assortment of eyeglasses and sunglasses frames. Granted, most are acetate based materials, but the styles and colors are quite varied, with some being made in Italy, some in China. Most of the frames were around $ 100 each, which I think is quite reasonable given the impressive quality of the materials and construction.
My friend ended up picking out two trendy acetate frames, which she had to have mailed to her as she couldn’t produce her prescription off hand. I snagged a pair of huge sunglasses — what they have on display may be all they have in stock as the salesperson simply cleaned up the frames I picked before tucking them into a sturdy sunglasses case. This irked me a tiny bit as the frames already have a few superficial scratches on them, but I would have easily paid $ 250+ for comparable designer sunnies. Based on previous reviews, it seems that SEE has limited production runs of the different styles so I can be rest assured that my sunglasses are at least quite unique.
The salespeople/​staff were friendly and helpful. They even subtly attempted to steer me into purchasing a second pair of sunglasses but I held on to my resolve.
However, now that I’m about to update my eyeglasses prescription, I’m super bummed there’s not a SEE in Houston! I think anyone can order off the SEE website, but I like to try on my frames first. Any future travel plans may require checking whether the particular city has a SEE. ..

Sheri and Robbie were both so helpful! They’re clearly experts in both eyewear and fashion. Thanks for an awesome experience!

Five stars not just because they’re not the unbearably rude and cheaply made Warby Parker down the street. But truly excellent in their own right.
Friendly and knowledgable staff, mind blowing selection, sensible presentation, unhurried, and they worked with me on the bottom line. Ask for a bribe. Seriously.
The frames are crafted and engineered, not stamped out of plastic. Compare the quality with WB’s mass-​produced frames. No match. I never knew I could be this enthusiastic about glasses. Get some here and you will be too.

My review is only on the «quality» of the frames at See. The staff are really excellent as are the frame style and colors selection. I bought (in total) 3 pairs of glasses and 2 pairs of sunglasses at See in the last 2 years. I was initially very happy with my glasses but have since changed my mind. 2 of the 3 pairs have snapped in half after regular wear. I am using them strictly for computer use at work and home. If you are going to spend about $ 350+ on a pair at See, do yourself a favor and spend a little more somewhere else for a pair that will last. I got about 1 full year of wear from each of the 2 pairs that broke.

Great selection, reasonable prices, and most importantly honest, helpful and fun staff.
I just picked up my new pair of glasses from SEE and couldn’t be happier with the whole experience. I just stumbled upon the store after leaving crazy-​popular-​hipster-​eyewear-​shop-​which-​shall-​not-​be-​named down the street and was very glad I did! I have never had so much fun shopping for glasses.
I really appreciated the honest feedback Erika and Alex gave me about styles. They were both very helpful in helping find frames that fit my style. I felt zero pressure to buy and was able to relax and enjoy the experience.
Highly recommended, will be back for me next pair, asking for Erika and Alex’s help!

Unique frames. SEE carries its own styles and designs, which helps make the glasses affordable.
I liked the fact that each frame had a limited amount created.
Service was great and my glasses were ready in just under a week. My prescription had to be adjusted and SEE redid my glasses free of charge.

The frames at See are really, really great. I love going to this store, or any of the See locations, because I can always find the coolest, most unique frames and I get compliments on them all the time. But that’s where the coolness ends. I purchased progressive lenses with Transitions, and I was taken for a ride. I had never owned progressives, so was nervous and not sure what type of lens to select. The young lady who helped me was impatient and just wanted to sell me the most expensive lens available. When I asked her what the difference was between lenses, she gave me a response that let me know she really had no idea what she was talking about. I imagine she works on commission, because she kept trying to upsell. She wanted to sell me anti reflective coating, insisting that I wouldn’t be able to see my computer screen without it (I can). She was vague about pricing and impatient when I asked her to itemize the receipt (why wouldn’t it come itemized to begin with? Shouldn’t customers know what they are purchasing?) I went to pick up my completed order, for which I shelled out nearly $ 500 (just for the lenses — I had previously purchased the frames) and I asked for lens cleaner. THEY WANTED TO CHARGE ME $ 6 FOR LENS CLEANER. I commented that for what I had spent, it wasn’t too much to ask for a free container of lens cleaner, but apparently this is not permitted at See.
Buy your frames at See, but take them elsewhere for lenses or you will be ripped off and not treated like a valuable customer.

You can’t even leave a message on their voice mail, that made me feel uncomfortable and went elsewhere.

This one-​star rating is only based on my most recent experience with the new manager. I’ve been a customer of See Eyewear on Newbury Street for about 15 years, during most of which the same manager, Tim Parks, was an incredibly professional and helpful partner in making sure I could see where I was going while doing it stylishly, as well as being extremely friendly and personable. His successor, Rohan, was also equally pleasant to work with and was genuinely interested in my satisfaction as a customer and my well being as a person.
Lately, there is a new manager at the store. His name is Jim and he also is the in-​store optometrist. I have found dealing with him to be frustrating, unhelpful and unacceptable. His sole goal seems to be to get you to come in and pay for his services as an optometrist, under the guise of making sure that your lenses are seated well in your frames, which has never been a problem for me with one exception. I am not sure whether he charges for this service, but I suspect that he does and that that is his true motivator. This is based partially on the fact that he answers the phone «See Eyewear, can I schedule you for an optometry exam?» No one has ever answered the phone in that manner in all my years of calling the store. He has my frames, but refused to fill my prescription without my coming in to the store again for an exam, even though he knew I had a tight deadline.
Jim’s management does not focus on customer service. His communication with me on the above-​mentioned situation was unclear and unhelpful. I left more than one phone message for him which he did not return. When I tried to clarify the situation, he was smug, stubborn and unrepentant for the miscommunication that came from his side of the equation.
I plan to pick up my frames without having the prescriptions filled. Although I have been a loyal customer and bought many frames at See, I will go somewhere else, possibly another See outlet. I have evangelized for and acted as a walking billboard for See (people ask me all the time where I got my glasses and I always rave about See on Newbury), but it isn’t worth it to me to feel my patronage is worth so little to this particular manager.

Wow, so after I posted my review, SEE figured out who I was, called me, and gave me a refund. Said they wish I had called earlier… really nice customer service and I will give them a try again next time I’m in the market for a new pair of glasses.

I’m here to give a review because of their hand writing card. I received this mail two days ago. It is nice and touching that they send it to a regular customer. It’s a sure thing that i will go back again. I bought my glass there about a month ago. I was glad because the price is very reasonable. 5 business days wait is pretty making sense.

Love this place, it’s got it all: service, selection, quality, price (I sound like a Bernie & Phyls ad). Over the past 12 years I’ve had 4 pairs of glasses from these guys and have not found a better selection of reasonably priced, funky frames. My last 2 pairs were selected with the able and honest help of Ashley and I couldn’t be happier.

Dr. Jimmerson gets 5 stars from me! I’ve never been to the eye doctor, and he was thorough, kind, funny and explained everything he was doing and made me feel comfortable. They even fit me in for a same day appointment! The girl who took my appointment was also very helpful and nice, don’t remember her name but she was a brunette with sparkly glasses.
Rob also gets 5 stars! He was very helpful and nice, even though it was really busy on Saturday he took the time to help me and I found a pair I really liked and helped me get all set up and explained everything to me.
I like my frames and they’ll be ready soon :) only a few days!
It’s a nice setup, lots of selection, nice office and all the staff members are all great and great customer service.
Frames as it turns out are very affordable for prescription glasses!
What more could you ask for really?
They’ve also got some pretty great coloring pages if you are a child (or a child at heart) with a creative itch.
Overall, I had a great experience! Great doctor, nice staff, and my glasses are pretty spiffy too.

Sometimes because of the layout of the store, it’s hard to see all the frames and know which ones will look right on your face. Alexandra was really helpful and gave me a pair that I LOVED and ended up purchasing. I would have overlooked them had it not been for her help!
This is part 1 of a 2-​part review. Part 2:

The kind of experience when you aren’t expecting to make a purchase (at all, seriously!), but then meet a bunch of fabulous employees with honesty & such sexy pairs of specks that make you so jealous that you have no choice but to keep up.
Alex really helped me out when casually browsing. She was never pushy or price-​tag focused, we went for the styles that really suited my look and attitude. I walked out with an up-​to-​date eye exam (LOVE the new optometrist there, great man), sparkly black cat eye glasses and an absurdly awesome pair of green and black cheetah catty frames. The rest of the crew was equally great and entertained my boyfriend while I tried on every pair in the store.
I guess having a SEE credit card means I’ll be back real soon. Adore you guys, keep up the great work!

The Newbury See store service was awesome! Joe welcomed me as I walked in the store and quickly showed me some frames that fit the description I gave him. He wasn’t pushy at all, and allowed me to look and try on frames at my pleasure without any over-​bearing assistance. I didn’t feel rushed at all during this process and ended up buying a pair of glasses with a Groupon discount. Joe said that the lenses would be free had I not opted for the anti-​scratch and anti-​reflective lenses, which is an awesome perk!
I picked up my glasses about 9 days later and the prescription was spot on (they read the prescription from my old pair of glasses). Andre (I think his name was Andre, either that or Rohan based off of some other reviews) fit my frame to my face to a very comfortable fit, but I later returned to have them tightened as they were too loose on me. Not a huge problem, and most likely my fault for not getting them as tight to begin with. Andre (or Rohan) was very respectful and genuinely nice guy.
They had a great selection of glasses ranging from modern and trendy to average looking frames, so its easy to find any style you’re looking for.
Great business, I definitely recommend them.

Their service was great! From the moment i entered the store, they deliberately helped me with eyewear selections. Alexandria was able to give me advice on which pair of glasses looked best on me. I found this really helpful as I was not too familiar with glasses and she was able to choose the one I really liked as well.
The price is reasonable as the prescription fees are already included in the glasses. Although mine was a bit expensive at around $ 400, I was satisfied.
I would definitely recommend this place!

I had a great experience at SEE. I needed new glasses, and hadn’t had my eyes checked in years. Like, six years. Dr. Baron was great. I arrived a little early, and she took me right away. She was friendly and helpful. She was efficient, and explained everything that was happening. She wrote my script and sent me to work with an associate to help me find a new pair of glasses.
Rohan was awesome. He worked with me for over half an hour to try on almost every frame in the store to find the right one. He was honest about what looked good and what didn’t, so I felt like I could trust his recommendations. He was patient while I tried to decide between two options. I chose a great pair, and should have them in a few days. It was a fun and painless experience! The glasses weren’t cheap, but they weren’t any more expensive than other places I’ve researched.
If you want a unique and fun pair of glasses and a great overall experience, head to SEE.

This fall I went back to SEE and was very disappointed with the quality of glasses and service. They now have a new management team and there are also changes in the quality of glasses. BEWARE!!!
I ordered a pair of specs and ended up taking my glasses back three times.
1) First time: Glasses came ordered with the wrong glass type/​not the super high index that I paid $$$ for.
2) Second time: One lens was polished/​rolled the other was not.
3) Third time: One lens was put back crooked.
Each time the manager — Rohan was apologetic and attempted to make it better… however, shouldn’t you check the glasses before giving the glasses to your customers?
Also, why is SEE manufacturing poor glasses with DEFECTS!!! Isn’t there quality control? I complained to corporate… and they took forever to remanufacture my glasses — so I just said — please let’s end this and give me my refund.
WARNING — if you go to SEE — be sure to closely inspect the quality of your glasses before leaving the store. The people in the actual store maybe friendly, but the quality of glasses delivered are poor.

I walked in to get a routine contact exam with Dr. Baron, and so I was a bit surprised to leave with two pairs of glasses that I love.
The reason: the people there have an uncanny knack for picking a very good frame for your face on the first grab. There was no pondering and no deep thinking necessary. If there is such a thing as eyeglass bootcamp over at corporate, these people have been through it. It takes them a few seconds to pick an «appropriate» frame, and if you want to take more time and get something unique or edgy, they have those as well.
I’m a west coast transplant, and noticed that sunglass styles out here run a bit larger. I’ve wondered why, until getting a pair at SEE. I got a slightly larger pair of aviators with real wood earpieces and polarized lenses. Walking out of the store into the cold air, I noticed that oversized lens protects from the icy gusts, so eyes don’t water.
I noticed that many frames were extremely lightweight, using titanium or other materials to prevent nose pads from forming semi-​permanent indentations.
The routine contact lens exam with Dr. Baron was great, and put me in a good mood. When done, I was surprised that the manager (Rohan) will price match with the major online contact lenses stores (e.g.1– 800 contacts), which is a smart move since a convenient location doesn’t matter once you have a contact lens prescription.