How Monos Unlocked $8M with their Loyalty Retention Strategy

When it comes to the world of travel, the luggage brand you use has become a status signal of the type of traveler you are. Monos is self-described as the “Apple of Suitcases,” with its modern, minimalistic designs and emphasis on quality and the environment. 

Mike Wu, Director of Ecommerce at Monos, focuses on delivering an elevated customer experience, whether online or in-store. With a hospitality background, Mike learned how to build Shopify websites and eventually joined the Monos team in December 2021. 

“I came to Monos right after Black Friday, and at that time, we were pretty much struggling to keep up with tickets,” Mike says. “We had to slowly scale because we grew about 500% between 2021 and today, so quite fast.” 

The Challenge: Creating a travel community during the pandemic

In 2020, Monos pivoted to products other than luggage for a short period due to the pandemic, which paused travel. During that time, Monos quietly built a community while no traveling was happening. So when travel resumed, Monos was at the top of consumers’ minds thanks to its brand awareness, noteworthy customer experience, and excellent customer service. The challenge now was converting the community into paying, repeat customers.

The Solution: Implementing rewards to offer a top customer experience

As travel resumed and more customers were spending with Monos, it was time to offer a retention strategy. Monos introduced Wayfarer Rewards in November 2020, a comprehensive loyalty program that offers customers points for every purchase, referral, and two VIP tiers that all customers can earn. 

“Wayfarer Rewards was introduced to retain customers, to give them a reason to come back. We wanted to create a program that is very simple and helps you earn points so that you have a reason to come back and spend those points,” Mike says.

Monos opened its first retail store in Vancouver and plans to open a location in Toronto this year before eventually expanding to 15 locations throughout the U.S. Through these locations, Monos aims to build a unique experience by offering exclusive events and perks to members on different tiers of their loyalty program. 

Monos has implemented its loyalty program Wayfarer Rewards in-store, with the Smile.io and Shopify POS integration. “We definitely have Smile.io on our POS system. For example, when customers have points, we can see their points right away by entering their email address, and their points will pop up,” Mike adds. “It’s going to be a full omnichannel experience as well. So, if a customer is having a conversation with us online via customer support, then they can continue the same conversation with us in-store as well, and vice versa.”

The Outcome: $8 Million in Smile Generated Value 

Monos has been able to succeed in engaging its community of customers to continuously shop due to its products and customer experience through Wayfarer Rewards. With the right integration between Klaviyo and Smile, Monos has crafted a personalized experience for every customer.