3PL Fulfilment Blog: Trends, Tips & Industry Insights

Subscription eCommerce retention tips | How to keep customers hooked

Written by Alice Davies | 07-May-2025 07:12:49

Ah, the subscription model. Once the darling of lockdown life, delivering everything from sustainable loo roll to surprisingly decent DIY meal kits, it became a lifeline for consumers and a goldmine for eCommerce brands. But now we’re back outside, facing the Great Unsubscribe.

So, how do you keep customers loyal in a world full of distractions, cancellations, and email inboxes full of “Sorry to see you go!” messages?

Let’s get into it: retention tips, fulfilment hacks, and a few hard truths (with jokes to soften the blow, don’t worry).

 

The subscription surge: A COVID love story

Cast your mind back to early 2020. Banana bread was having a moment. Tiger King was somehow a cultural milestone. And subscriptions? They were booming. We all thought, “I’ll just try this for a month...” and suddenly we had four meal kits, three coffee deliveries, and enough razors to shave a grizzly bear.

Stats time: In April 2020, subscriptions in consumer goods eCommerce were up by as much as 148%. People were trapped inside and craving convenience.

But now? Now we’re cancelling faster than you can say “cost of living crisis.” That doesn’t mean the model’s broken; it just means brands need to evolve. And guess what? That’s where we come in.

 

First, let’s talk about why people unsubscribe (and no, it’s not always because they hate you)

There’s a bit of a pattern when it comes to subscription dropouts - and it's not always down to product quality. Sometimes, it’s the experience around the product that makes people ghost you. Here’s the top culprits:

  • Subscription fatigue: “Another direct debit? Nope. Unsubscribe.”
  • Lack of flexibility: “I only needed one shampoo, not twelve.”
  • Unexpected charges: “Wait... I’m paying how much for pet food?!”
  • Poor delivery experience: “My monthly dog toy box is late and the dog knows. He’s judging me.”
  • No reminder or control: “I forgot to pause, and now I have 40 protein shakes and an urge to go to the toilet all the time.”

Don’t worry, these are fixable. Let’s get to the good stuff.

 

How to keep subscribers sweet (and subscribed)

1. Give them more than just a product - give them a reason

Your product might be brilliant, but the experience around it has to match. Remind customers why they signed up. Surprise them. Delight them. A little note, a loyalty perk, a bonus sample - these small gestures do big things.

Example: “Surprise! We’ve popped in a new flavour to try.” Boom. That’s how you get five stars and a loyal fan.

2. Flex appeal: Let them pause, skip, and switch

Modern subscribers aren’t just demanding, they’re indecisive. One week they want vegan protein bars, the next it’s collagen-packed peanut butter (yes, it’s a thing). Give them control.

Let them:

  • Skip a month
  • Swap products
  • Pause a plan
  • Change delivery dates

The more they feel in charge, the less likely they are to bail.

3. Use your words (and your tone of voice)

You know what doesn’t make people feel loved? Transactional emails that read like a bank statement. Talk to your customers like humans - and better yet, like friends. Altogether now: awwwwwww.

Remind them when a payment is coming up. Check in after a delivery. Ask for feedback and actually act on it.

If your brand voice is “funny, helpful mate,” stick with it across every channel. And if it’s “premium and polished,” stay on brand, but don’t forget the human touch.

 

4. Make it frictionless from box to backend (wheyhey)

Here’s where fulfilment comes in (hi, yes, that’s us). There’s nothing more off-putting than:

  • Inconsistent delivery dates
  • Damaged packaging
  • Wrong items in the box
  • Late or missing orders

Your product can be award-winning, organic, artisanal, hand-foraged by monks in the Alps... but if it turns up late and squashed, you’ve lost that customer.

That’s why you need a fulfilment partner who gets it. Who understands the fast-paced, ever-changing, often chaotic world of subscriptions. Who can handle monthly, bi-monthly, “pause for three weeks and then send me five boxes at once” requests.

We don’t like to brag (well, maybe a little), but we’re one of the only fulfilment providers out there who can really do this well. How? Our tech, our systems and our people.

Our platform is built to handle the moving pieces that subscriptions demand: tailored kitting, smart batch management, real-time stock tracking, and dynamic delivery windows that flex with your customers’ needs.

It’s not just about putting things in boxes; it’s about precision, personalisation, and performance at scale. And frankly, we’ve nailed it.

 

5. Get personal (but not creepy)

Use the data you’ve got. If someone always orders the oat milk variant, why not recommend a new coffee to go with it? If someone’s skipped their last three boxes, offer them a little incentive to stay.

Use behaviours, preferences, and purchase history to build smarter, stronger customer relationships.

Think: “We noticed you’ve skipped a few months. Fancy trying our new XYZ box - on us?” That’s retention gold. And also just really nice of you.

 

Let’s talk fulfilment (the not-so-boring bit)

Here’s where we shine. Subscription fulfilment isn’t just about putting things in boxes. It’s about being:

  • Predictable (in a good way) - customers want their subscription to arrive like clockwork.
  • Flexible - customers also want to mess with that schedule whenever they feel like it.
  • Fast - missed your window? We’ll catch up quicker than you can say “next-day delivery.”
  • Reliable - from custom packaging to kitting and inserts, we get it right. Repeatedly.

We’re built for scale. We know what’s coming (seasonal spikes, viral TikToks, influencer shoutouts), and we’re ready. Our platform syncs with your eCommerce store  and gives you real-time insight, so you can keep an eye on stock, trends, and order flow like a boss.

Want to personalise your subscription boxes? Easy. Got different SKUs for different regions? Done. Need to manage 3,000 orders on launch day? Piece of cake.

 

Common mistakes to avoid (aka how to ruin your own retention)

Let’s spare you the pain. Here are the things to avoid like a suspicious pop-up on a dodgy streaming site (no judgement):

  • Making it hard to cancel or change: The harder it is to leave, the less likely they are to come back.
  • Sending without warning: “What do you mean I’ve been charged again?! I didn’t even want this box.” Give people notice.
  • Poor packaging: A sad, soggy box? That’s a fast-track to a 1-star review.
  • Radio silence: Keep talking. Even just a “Hey, your next box is nearly here!” makes a difference.


Subscription models that stick: Ideas we love

Need a little inspo? These brands are doing it right:

  • HelloFresh - Flexible plans, pause anytime, great app experience.
  • Freddie’s Flowers - Seasonal, beautiful, always feels like a treat.
  • Who Gives A Crap - Funny, sustainable, and clear on impact.
  • Wild - Refillable deodorant with punchy branding and flexible options.

They’ve nailed consistency, control, and character. So can you.

 

What’s next for subscription eCommerce?

Trends to watch:

  • Sustainability: Packaging matters. Ethics matter. Circular economy matters.
  • Community: Give customers a reason to stay by making them feel part of something.
  • Hyper-personalisation: More than just a name on the label. Curated picks, exclusive offers, tailored content.
  • AI-powered predictions: Forecast what customers want before they know it (we’re not quite there yet, but we’re working on it).

And we’ll be right there alongside you, developing what’s needed to support the brands that really want to grow their recurring revenue models.

If you want to win at subscription eCommerce in 2025, it’s not about launching; it’s about lasting. Customers will come for the novelty, but they’ll stay for the experience. And that experience? It starts the moment they hit ‘Subscribe’ and doesn’t end until the product’s in their hand.