Growth changes when acquiring new members is no longer enough
Like many other subscription businesses, Luxplus has reached a point where optimising for new member acquisition is no longer enough. The focus has increasingly shifted towards three things at once: acquiring members efficiently, activating them earlier and more frequently, and retaining them by making the everyday value of membership more tangible.
That is the starting point for the app project: a strong membership should deliver value every week, not just during campaigns. Member prices, free shipping, loyalty benefits and relevant inspiration are all things that should be present between major sales events not only as part of them.
Four things made the case for an app rather than simply optimising the website:
- Convenience (fewer steps from intent to purchase)
- Visibility (benefits are easier to discover)
- Relevance (data can improve the experience)
- And a more direct relationship through the app and push notifications
But and this was probably the most important takeaway of the evening an app is not a strategy in itself. If it simply mirrors the website, it becomes just another channel. What makes it valuable is whether it actually makes the membership meaningfully better.
Three things Dwarf and Luxplus learned
An app is not a strategy. If the app simply replicates the website, it becomes just another channel. It should make the membership better not just make it available in another place.
Members adopt value. It’s not the number of features that determines whether an app gets used, but whether it feels convenient, relevant, and makes the benefits clearly visible.
Launch is the beginning of learning. The real work begins when members start using the product, and behaviour replaces assumptions.
From a design perspective, Dwarf and Luxplus therefore focused on members’ actual moments rather than a list of features: joining and understanding the membership, quickly finding the right product, clearly seeing campaigns and benefits, easily reordering familiar products, and, importantly, being able to build and follow their own routines.
The latter was highlighted as something an app can do particularly well something a webshop has a harder time with: following a member over time, rather than just supporting an individual purchase.
Tested before it was built
One thing that set the process apart was how early testing began. Before the app was developed, members were consulted through a qualitative focus group with five members and a quantitative concept study involving 879 members across all of Luxplus’ markets.
The response was unequivocal: members were not just open to an app, they were actively asking for one. The concept achieved an average appeal score of 7.8, while the average likelihood of downloading and using the app was 8.2 out of 10, with 39% giving it the highest possible rating.
After launch: loyal members showed the way forward
The app launched in spring 2026 and, in its first week, became the most downloaded app in the Lifestyle category on the App Store. Since then, it has become a genuine revenue-driving channel. 30% of members’ product revenue now comes from the app, and average baskets are 35% larger than on the website.
At the same time, eight interviews with loyal members pointed to three improvements, all focused on making the value of membership more visible in everyday use. The option to choose a brand discount was moved to the front page. Trending products are now shown directly within the relevant categories. And the homepage has become more personalised from one visit to the next.
The premise for the continued development remains the same: personalisation should feel like a service, not surveillance.
Key take away
An app earns its place only when it makes the membership itself better. Not more screen time but less friction, more relevance, and a membership that people actively choose to keep.
For members, the experience should be trustworthy, convenient, and increasingly personalised. For Luxplus, the app should be a promise that continues to deliver value, even when you look beyond the interface itself.
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