Warby Parker and Arby’s Team Up to Create WArby’s This April Fools’ Day

This Sunday is April Fools’ Day, and the hijinks are getting off to an amusing start with WArby’s—a purported joint venture between eyewear maker Warby Parker and fast-food purveyor Arby’s.

“Arby’s has an eye for meat. Warby Parker has meat for eyes. The result? A new partnership sandwiched somewhere between vision and at least eight different kinds of meat,” the companies say in a joint statement.

Beginning Friday, WArby’s will be piloting several locations in New York City—at Warby Parker’s 121 Greene Street store, and at the Arby’s at 32 E. 23rd Street. Those locations will offer the WArby’s Onion Ring Monocle, which is described as “a crispy yet corrective product that’s positioned at the intersection of food and fashion, encompassing the ideals of WArby’s in a single offering.”

There is also a set of limited-edition WArby’s-branded apparel (of course there is), featuring shirts, hats, sandwich-inspired lens cloths, tote bags and even a pair of “beef-hued glasses.”

“One question we always ask ourselves before deciding on a new initiative is, ‘Why?’ In this particular case, our names marinated together so well that the question became, ‘Why not?'” says Warby Parker cofounder and co-CEO Dave Gilboa.

“This is an exciting next chapter in the Arby’s story. We really changed the game simply by adding a ‘W,'” adds Arby’s CMO Jim Taylor.

As part of the project, Warby Parker will make a donation to VisionSpring, whose mission is to ensure affordable eyeglasses are available to every individual to live a productive life. Arby’s will donate to No Kid Hungry, a national campaign aimed at ending child hunger.

Tim Nudd

@nudd

Tim Nudd is a former creative editor of Adweek.