When Koh’s founder, Adam Lindsay had his first child, he became more concerned about the chemicals in household cleaning products. He questioned why there wasn’t an all-in-one, eco-friendly cleaning solution for every surface that performed well. After working with the UNSW to develop a universal cleaner and enlisting his friend Justin Alexander to come aboard as a co-founder, Koh was born. Today the brand offers a broad line of research-backed cleaning products free of unnecessary chemical nasties, fragrances and fumes. Their solutions are independently audited to carry the GECA eco-seal of approval and National Asthma Council Australia's Sensitive Choice program for being asthma and allergy friendly
Challenge
Koh started in farmers’ markets, instantly finding an audience of like-minded safety and eco-conscious consumers. Going online was the next logical step to grow the brand, so Alexander used Shopify to set up a site without any coding experience. Shopify’s easy-to-use tools offered Koh a fast route to market with minimal overheads so every dollar could be invested back into the business.
Fast-forward two years and Koh had reached $50 million in revenue. The site was converting well but was starting to look dated. The product line was also growing, creating upsell, cross-sell and promotional opportunities that weren’t being capitalized on. Global expansion was on the cards as well, and Alexander wanted a solution that would allow Koh to grow without constraints.
Solution
Alexander already loved the Shopify platform, so upgrading to Shopify Plus was a natural choice. The first order of business was a website redesign, which was made easier thanks to the platform’s support for up to 100 themes at no additional cost. This meant the team could easily try out new themes, keep seasonal versions, and A/B test different styles. It also helped the team to add new product lines quicker as Koh expanded from one to three product categories. Organizational settings allowed the team to manage user permissions throughout the entire process, reducing deployment errors through clearer roles for each team member.
The expansion stores feature of Shopify Plus let Koh seamlessly scale into new regions with checkout customization tools to improve conversions. For example, Koh could customize the checkout with third-party apps like Rebuy, to add end-to-end personalization, upsells, cross-sells with A/B testing, and Klaviyo, to provide better product recommendations. Lastly, scheduling tool Launchpad allowed the team at Koh to set up and schedule sales and promotional events quickly.
Results
The optimizations and granular customisations afforded by Shopify Plus have been felt across the business. Customers love the new website, which is more intuitive to navigate from cart to checkout, and Koh has observed a 20% increase in average order value (AOV) since upgrading. Not only are repeat purchasers continuing to return to the store, they are adopting new products across categories, driven by more tailored recommendations. Backend administration has never been easier, with the team now able to set up and schedule a new sale in as little as 60 minutes - something that would have required a team member to log on at midnight previously.
All in all, Koh has experienced a three-fold increase in sales volume since upgrading to Shopify Plus. Looking ahead, Lindsay and Alexander are now eyeing expansion into international markets and taking advantage of the B2B functions of Shopify Plus to open a new sales channel with commercial cleaners.
Shopify has given us agility and efficiency since day one. The upgrade to Shopify Plus is now fueling our global growth without the need for additional team members, developers, or agency support.