How Wine Insiders Boosted Sales 73% with Shopify Plus

Introduction

Wine Insiders had been managing its direct-to-consumer wine business on a custom platform since 1982. The system handled every aspect of tax and compliance for alcohol sales, but couldn’t keep pace with modern features like one-click checkout, advanced subscription flows, or app integrations. By 2022 they faced stagnating conversions, outdated interfaces, and a growing desire to tap into Shopify’s ecosystem.

Challenges

Operating on a home-grown platform meant slow feature release cycles, high maintenance overhead, and limited integrations. Customers wanted real-time alcohol tax calculations, flexible subscription options, personalized SMS and email journeys, and an overall faster checkout. Each delay or mismatch in tax rates could lead to compliance risks or lost revenue at every transaction.

Solution

In 2022, Wine Insiders teamed up with Electriq, a retention and growth agency, and installed Shopify Plus as their new backbone. They added the DRINKS app to embed alcohol tax and compliance directly in checkout, eliminating manual rate updates. They then layered on subscription apps for curated wine clubs, Klaviyo for email and SMS automations, and Shop Pay for one-click payments. Intensive A/B tests and flows were built to re-engage lapsed buyers with post-purchase surveys and trigger-based campaigns.

Results

Within weeks of launch, Wine Insiders saw dramatic lifts:

• 73% jump in sitewide conversion rates
• 15% increase in average order value
• 22% boost in repurchase rate

Key Learnings

Migrating from custom infrastructure to a platform like Shopify Plus can unlock modern checkout experiences, subscription capabilities, and a vibrant app ecosystem without sacrificing critical compliance controls. Pairing the right apps and a savvy retention strategy is what drove real ROI for Wine Insiders.