The store
A US Shopify store selling hand-knotted and machine-made rugs, runners and a growing home decor range. Average order values are in the hundreds of dollars, and a rug is bought after days of comparison: size, pile, colour against the sofa, shipping and the return policy. The client is not named and the store’s revenue is not disclosed; the figures are shares and rates from the client’s own reports.
What email does here
In the 12 months to October 2026, Klaviyo attributed 31.9% of store revenue to email. Month by month:
| Month | Email share of store revenue | From flows |
|---|---|---|
| June 2026 | 31.1% | 74% |
| July 2026 | 29.4% | 79% |
| August 2026 | 28.3% | 89% |
| September 2026 | 21.2% | 77% |
| October 2026 | 32.2% | 67% |
The flows carry the program. Across the year a flow email earned $7.49 per recipient, against a benchmark median of $1.07 in our portfolio, with a 3.60% click rate and 0.98% conversion. The reason is the category: a visitor who looked at a 9x12 wool rug in a specific colourway and left is a visitor who is still deciding. The browse-abandonment flow shows that rug, the two closest alternatives in the same size, the free-swatch offer and the shipping terms. The checkout flow adds the return policy and a photo of the rug in a furnished room. Neither flow needs a discount.
Campaigns do the remaining third at a 0.97% click rate (median 0.64%) and $0.62 per recipient, three times the median. The sends that work are new-collection drops, room-by-room edits (dining room rugs, runners for hallways) and seasonal restocks. The ones that do not are generic “sale” sends: the list does not respond to a percentage off a product it has not chosen yet.
What we changed
- Flows rebuilt around size and room, not around “you left something”. Every flow email leads with the exact product viewed and its size, then alternatives in the same size. Size is the first filter a rug buyer applies; most templates ignore it.
- Swatch request as a flow trigger. Ordering a free swatch starts its own sequence (how to judge the sample, the rug in rooms, a reminder when the swatch should have arrived). Swatch requesters buy at several times the rate of other browsers.
- Post-purchase done properly. Care instructions, a rug-pad cross-sell timed to delivery, a review request after 3 weeks, and a 10-month winback for runners and smaller pieces. The post-purchase flow is a steady contributor, not a courtesy.
What did not work
- Sitewide discount campaigns. Tried in early 2026 on a slow month. Click rate on those sends was below the account’s average and attributed revenue did not rise. The buyer here is comparing rugs, not waiting for a code.
- The popup. It converts 0.8% of unique viewers, far below the 4.7% median, because it offers nothing more than “get design tips”. It is the one piece of the program we have not fixed yet; a swatch-for-email offer is the next test.
What to take from it
- In considered-purchase categories (rugs, furniture, mattresses, appliances), flows can earn 5 to 10 times the benchmark per recipient. Build them around the attributes the buyer is comparing.
- Make the sample or swatch a trigger. Intent that strong deserves its own sequence.
- Keep campaigns to collections and rooms. A discount does not move a buyer who has not chosen a product.
The store is on our Pro retainer. The free 30-minute audit shows what your flows earn per recipient and which ones are missing.
The next benchmark, before it is public
Every quarter we re-pull the numbers from the accounts we run and send the summary first to the list, with the teardowns in between. No weekly newsletter, no discounts, unsubscribe in one click.