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Beyond Discounts: The Clienteling Strategies That Boost Customer Retention & Lifetime Value

Episode Introduction

Ever wondered how to truly bridge the gap between your Shopify store and your retail locations? Or maybe you’ve heard the term “clienteling” tossed around by big brands and wondered if it’s just for luxury retailers, or if it can actually move the needle for your business, too? If you’re looking to drive more foot traffic, boost repeat purchases, and finally unify your online and offline experiences, today’s episode is for you.

I’m thrilled to welcome back Leigh, co-founder of Endear, for a deep dive into the modern world of clienteling. Leigh has been in the trenches since before the pandemic, helping brands like Glossier, Allbirds, and Untuckit unlock the real potential of their retail stores by connecting them with their ecommerce data. Today, we’re unpacking how Endear is reimagining clienteling for the omnichannel era-making it scalable, data-driven, and accessible for every Shopify merchant ready to elevate their customer experience.

What You’ll Learn

  • Clienteling Demystified: What it really means (spoiler: it’s not just for luxury) and how modern brands are using it to drive sales through genuine relationships.
  • The Omnichannel Advantage: Why unifying your online and offline data is the secret sauce for higher conversion rates, lower returns, and raving fans.
  • CRM as Your Retail Superpower: How Endear’s Shopify-native CRM gives your store associates actionable insights-turning every interaction into a revenue opportunity.
  • Automated, Yet Personal: Practical tactics for scaling thank you notes, VIP outreach, and post-purchase campaigns-without losing the human touch.
  • Driving Foot Traffic (and Revenue): Proven strategies to get your online shoppers into your stores and maximize their lifetime value.
  • Attribution That Makes Sense: How to finally track which messages, associates, and campaigns are actually moving the needle-in store and online.
  • Appointments, Reimagined: Why Endear’s new appointments feature is tailor-made for retail, and how it’s driving 90%+ conversion rates for in-store visits.
  • Scaling Smarter: Lessons from brands like Psycho Bunny and Eleventy on building a culture of relationship-driven selling (and how to templatize what works).

Episode Sponsor: Nacelle

This episode is sponsored by Nacelle, the AI-powered personalization platform transforming how Shopify brands connect with their customers. Tired of generic “you might also like” recommendations that miss the mark? Nacelle’s AI assistant, Paige, learns your brand’s voice and customer shopping patterns to deliver truly personalized product suggestions— even for first-time, anonymous visitors!

Trusted by leading Shopify brands, Nacelle’s one-click installation and white-glove service make implementation effortless, delivering impressive results with conversion rate increases and average order values that jump by nearly 18%.

Visit Nacelle.com to start your free trial today!

Episode Summary

Leigh returns to unpack practical strategies for modern clienteling for Shopify-powered retailers. We discuss how the retail landscape has transformed since the pandemic and why today’s most successful brands are actively bridging the gap between their online and in-store customer experiences.

She explains how Endear’s CRM goes beyond spreadsheets, giving retail associates a 360-degree view of every customer-what they’ve bought, how much they’ve spent, and even which marketing channels brought them in. The result? More personalized outreach, higher conversion rates (in some cases, 30%+ in-store), and a dramatic lift in customer lifetime value.

We dig into the practical tactics that make clienteling scalable, like automated thank you notes, targeted VIP campaigns, and smart segmentation to drive store visits. Leigh shares real-world case studies-including how brands like Psycho Bunny and Eleventy moved from pen-and-paper tracking to a data-driven approach that’s both accountable and repeatable.

We also touch on Endear’s new appointments feature, designed specifically for retail, and why 90% of booked appointments convert to sales-a game changer for brands looking to stand out in a crowded market.

Key Insights

  • Clienteling is for Everyone: It’s not just a luxury play-any brand with a retail footprint can leverage clienteling to drive incremental sales and loyalty.
  • Omnichannel Shoppers Are Gold: Customers who shop both online and in-store are more loyal, spend more, and return less. The key is unifying your data and outreach.
  • CRM Unlocks Actionable Data: Endear consolidates Shopify and app data (Klaviyo, Attentive, Gorgias, and more) into a single view, making it easy for associates to personalize every touchpoint.
  • Automated Personalization at Scale: With Endear’s campaigns and recipes, brands can automate thank you notes, invitations, and VIP offers-while still allowing for 1:1 customization where it matters.
  • Attribution, Simplified: Endear’s customizable attribution model tracks which associate, message, or campaign drove each sale, helping brands reward top performers and optimize their strategy.
  • Appointments Drive Conversion: Endear’s retail-native appointments tool delivers a tailored, high-touch experience-leading to 90%+ conversion rates for in-store visits.
  • Seamless Shopify Integration: One-click setup, no tech headaches, and designed to scale from three stores to hundreds-Endear is built for modern, growth-minded retailers.

Guest Spotlight

Leigh Sevin is the co-founder of Endear, a modern clienteling and CRM platform built for omnichannel brands. After seeing firsthand how disconnected retail and ecommerce data held brands back, Leigh set out to build a solution that empowers associates, drives foot traffic, and turns every customer interaction into a growth opportunity. Today, Endear powers some of the world’s most innovative brands-and Leigh’s on a mission to make clienteling accessible, actionable, and profitable for every Shopify merchant.

Guest Information

Leigh Sevin
Co-Founder, Endear

Links & Resources

Thanks for Supporting the Pod!

Over the past eight seasons, I’ve been incredibly lucky to chat with some of the brightest founders in ecommerce building remarkable Shopify brands and partners shaping the app and marketing ecosystem. Honestly, every conversation has taught me something new, and I’m grateful for the chance to learn alongside you.

What matters most is that this podcast helps you solve real challenges and unlock new growth for your business. Your support, feedback, and stories have made this journey truly special. Thanks for tuning in, sharing your wins, losses, and being part of the eCommerce Fastlane community.

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