Why Warby Parker is banking on brick and mortar

CNBC Disruptor Warby Parker revolutionized the eyewear industry with an online trial model when it launched five years ago.

Now, it's disrupting its own script.

The glasses maker, which recently raised $100 million from investors for a valuation of $1.2 billion, is starting to expand its brick-and-mortar locations. In an interview with CNBC's "Squawk Box," Warby Parker co-founder Dave Gilboa said the move is already paying off.

"We found that anytime we had a pop-up shop or a showroom customers loved it," he said. "We are seeing best-in-class retail economics and sales per square foot higher than almost any other retailer except for Apple."

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Source: Warby Parker

Ben Lerer, managing partner at Lerer Hippeau Ventures, which invested in Warby Parker, says the company's grasp for what the consumer wants is what attracted him to Warby Parker in the first place.

"The thing that was immediately clear the second I met them was how thoughtful they were about the consumer," he said. "The way they thought about going into retail [was] they listened to the customer like no other brand I had ever seen."

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The online glasses maker has already rolled out 10 retail locations across the U.S. and hopes to double that by year-end.

—CNBC's Katie Kramer contributed reporting to this story