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Updated: 10 hours ago
FOOTWEAR & LIFESTYLE · CASE STUDY
How VIBAe grew tracked owned-channel revenue 55% year on year
Thrivelia built a deeper retention programme for a rapidly growing footwear brand, connecting product education, post-purchase support, loyalty and the next order.
April–August 2026 vs April–August 2025
01 · THE CONTEXT
The starting point
VIBAe had a distinctive product, a strong brand and ambitious growth plans. Retention had become a strategic priority because acquisition alone could not fund the next stage efficiently.
The account already had a productive welcome journey, but the wider lifecycle programme needed more depth. Post-purchase education, fit guidance, returns, reviews, cross-sell, win-back and loyalty were not yet operating as one connected customer experience.
VIBAe set a clear commercial ambition: increase attributed repeat revenue from roughly 16% towards 30% to 35%.
THE COMMERCIAL QUESTION
How do you build a more systematic retention programme without sanding away the personality that made the brand work?
02 · THE WORK
Make the lifecycle feel recognisably VIBAe
Protect the first experience
The welcome journey remained a priority because it already carried substantial revenue. Thrivelia improved the path while testing lead capture, SMS and exit intent.
Help customers adopt the product
Post-purchase messages taught customers how the shoes break in, how fit should feel and why the replaceable footbed matters. The purpose was commercial and practical: reduce avoidable returns and support longer product use.
Convert returns into retained value
Returns and exchanges were treated as a lifecycle moment. New journeys were designed to preserve the relationship through exchange or store credit where appropriate.
Build the next purchase
Cross-sell, predicted-next-order, win-back, VIP and accessory journeys expanded the programme beyond the first order. A footbed replenishment concept used six, ten and twelve-month reminders around the product's expected life.
Keep the creative human
The copy and design system stayed minimal, earthy and playful. Loyalty messages were deliberately “minimal, but delightful”, avoiding point-heavy communication that did not feel like the brand.
03 · THE CREATIVE
See the work.
Selected post-purchase creative from the VIBAe client board. The headline comparison covers the main account, excluding the separate Australian programme.
Explore the full messages. Hover to pause, or open an email to inspect it.
04 · THE RESULTS
The result
Tracked owned-channel revenue
April–August 2026 vs April–August 2025
Tracked owned-channel revenue reached €3.95M from April to August 2026, up 55.4% from the same months in 2025.
Flows generated €3.24M, an increase of 49.6%. Campaign revenue grew 88.6%, from €377.4k to €711.6k.
The wider business also grew during this period. Owned-channel revenue grew faster, but the comparison does not isolate the incremental effect of email and SMS.
New journeys also produced early proof quickly. The new post-purchase flow generated €3.5k in its first four days. A new site-abandonment SMS path produced more than €1k compared with €191 from the old path. In June, a plain-text bestseller campaign generated €31.6k with a 2.20% click-through rate.
Result | 2025 | 2026 | Change
Tracked owned-channel revenue | €2.54M | €3.95M | +55.4%
Tracked flow revenue | €2.17M | €3.24M | +49.6%
Tracked campaign revenue | €377.4k | €711.6k | +88.6%
Source: Hiro Analytics. April–August 2026 vs April–August 2025. Revenue is platform-attributed, not a measure of incremental revenue. SMS is a channel view and must not be added to campaign and flow totals. Percentages use unrounded source values; displayed values are rounded.
05 · WHAT CHANGED
A more useful customer journey.
A strong welcome journey became part of a broader lifecycle system.
Post-purchase education addressed fit, care and avoidable returns.
Cross-sell, win-back, loyalty and predicted-next-order journeys expanded repeat-purchase coverage.
Campaign revenue grew 88.6%.
Campaigns made a larger tracked revenue contribution.
THE TAKEAWAY
Retention did not need to make VIBAe sound more corporate. It needed to make the brand more useful after the first purchase. The programme grew by joining commercial logic to the tone and product truths customers already recognised.
Thrivelia helps you build legacy.
WHAT TO APPLY
Connect the campaign calendar to the customer journey.
Review campaign and flow performance together, but keep their roles distinct. Use campaigns to introduce a reason to shop now and lifecycle messages to follow the customer’s next action.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE WORK
What this case study shows.
How can a footwear brand connect product education with the next order?
VIBAe’s case connects product education, post-purchase support, loyalty and the next purchase. Its tracked owned-channel revenue grew 55.4% in April–August 2026 versus the same months of 2025. For another footwear brand, the opportunity is to use what a customer bought and needs next to shape follow-up, while measuring repeat behaviour separately from channel attribution.
What should a retention programme measure beyond email revenue?
Track second-purchase rate at a consistent customer age, time to the next order, product progression and customer lifetime value. Separate new and mature cohorts so a change in acquisition volume does not distort the diagnosis. These are evaluation principles for the next stage of work, not additional results claimed for this project.
What could your retention programme do next?
Find the opportunities in your customer journey.
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