Bev Cut Subscriber Churn 10% and Support Tickets 30% with Skio

Women-Led Wine Brand Built on Community

Bev launched in 2017 to disrupt the male-dominated alcohol industry through women-led company focused on inclusivity and community building. Based in Los Angeles, the brand grew vibrant community around canned wines and spritzers, with COVID-19 accelerating their shift to online sales.

Olivia Peabody joined as Head of Customer Experience with clear mandate: ensure subscribers have smooth experience that supports both customer happiness and recurring revenue stream. By 2021, subscriptions became cornerstone of DTC strategy, with over 55% of revenue from Bev Club memberships.

"We're a community-first brand. If subscribers have a bad time, it undercuts everything we're building." Product line had expanded to ten different SKUs, with subscriptions fueling repeat engagement and loyalty.

Recharge Became Sinkhole for Labor and Capital

Bev's Recharge setup was draining resources through faulty UI and overwhelming support burden. Recharge's dashboard was unintuitive and required extra clicks for simple tasks, with subscribers often unable to figure out basic account management due to clunky design.

"Users often couldn't decipher the UI themselves." Bev's internal team found navigation cumbersome, requiring double work—updating subscriber information in both Recharge and Shopify separately.

Clunky login flows forced bifurcated account system where subscribers needed two accounts and logins—one for Bev's site (Shopify) and one for Recharge. Customers would register one but not the other, ending up in half-activated state preventing full subscription access.

Constant login problems generated support request barrages to fix account access. "The team simply had to handle users on a case-by-case basis" because the process made no sense.

Subscription-related support requests made up at least 60% of all customer support tickets. "Over half of inbound requests were subscription-related," covering login troubles to cancellations from account management frustration.

Bev required 5-person support team working around the clock—even Olivia spent substantial time on basic subscription troubleshooting. "Simply put, the platform that should've simplified our work was instead placing a burden on the team, just to keep up."

24-Hour Migration Eliminated Weekend Stress

Bev needed fast migration with more than half their DTC business tied up in subscriptions. Skio delivered what Olivia calls "The 24-Hour Migration" that moved all existing subscribers in one day with no action needed from Bev's team.

"It took no more than a day to change over. The actual technical migration was maybe a few hours. We started on a Friday and by that Friday night, I could have a drink. It was no big deal at all, in the best way possible."

Skio provided thorough guidance throughout personalized onboarding process, working hand-in-hand with Bev's tech team to test platform features in advance. They helped craft educational drip email campaign informing existing subscribers about upcoming changes.

Zero downtime or disruption occurred for customers. Subscribers didn't have to re-enter payment information or create new accounts—Skio migrated tokens securely so billing continued without interruption.

All subscription renewal dates and order histories were preserved so customers received wine shipments as scheduled with no delays or duplicates. Skio's team was on standby the entire weekend, ready to troubleshoot edge cases.

Self-Service Portal Cut Support Load 80%

Skio's straightforward interface eliminated common support questions as subscribers needed much less help managing accounts. Questions like "How do I skip a month?" or "Where do I log in?" disappeared because answers became intuitive.

Passwordless login via SMS/email was game changer since 80-90% of Bev subscribers manage accounts on mobile. Customers could access subscription portal via 4-digit code with no passwords to remember, driving up engagement and cutting login-related support tickets.

SMS modifications addressed low email open rates for subscription notifications. Text message alerts for upcoming charges and shipments allowed subscribers to reply "skip" to modify orders, moving burden off consumers who no longer needed to log in and navigate.

Support team reduction from 5 to 1 dedicated subscription rep freed four people for other business aspects. They cut subscription FAQ macros from 10 canned responses to just 2, focusing on portal education rather than problem troubleshooting.

Community Focus Enabled by Operational Efficiency

10% churn reduction quarter-over-quarter after switching

30% decrease in subscription support tickets in 6 months

5 to 1 person support team reduction (80% staffing cut)

Problem-driven cancellations eliminated through user-friendly platform

Many "problem-driven" cancellations from login and account management issues simply evaporated once platform became user-friendly. Even 10% churn reduction translates to hundreds of thousands in retained revenue over time.

Support inquiries became less complex on average. Instead of panicked "I was charged twice!" emails, requests became clarifying questions the team could handle quickly.

Improved conversion and retention came through passwordless login eliminating friction entirely, SMS modifications reducing churn through easy control, and referral tools enabling cost-effective growth.

Strategic Focus on Community and Growth

Bev regained confidence in subscription program as robust channel for continued growth and retention rather than necessary headache. Technical worries moved to rearview as team focused on north star growth metrics and community building.

"Most excited to continue growing the Bev Club community, particularly through Skio's referral functionality." With stable foundation, they can confidently scale subscriber count through marketing that highlights seamless experience.

Freed from support duties, Olivia channels energy into community events, content, and brand initiatives that strengthen subscriber loyalty and drive organic growth through word-of-mouth.