Acquisition project | Uber

Are you living for that extra slice of quirky, bold, and downright iconic - just like your superheroes? 🦸
📺 From binge - worthy marathons of Marvel mayhem, reliving epic sitcom moments, to wizarding wonders from Hogwarts - your fandom deserves more than just a spot on your feed!

Step up your style game with The Souled Store 👻, where your fan-fueled spirit meets the coolest, comfiest threads and merch to match your vibe.

✅ Quality Check?

While most online shopping leaves you wondering if the item’s got a “one-wash” expiry date, The Souled Store has your back (and your wardrobe!). At The Souled Store, we’ve mastered the art of blending high-quality fabrics with designs that are basically love letters to your favourite universes.

With TSS, you get top-notch quality that'll hold up to your daily grind and make your closet your happy place. By pouring passion (and a pinch of nerdy magic) into every tee, hoodie, and accessory, our team of die-hard fans works around the clock to bring you the freshest takes on classics from Marvel and DC to the latest anime sensations - each crafted to keep your style sharp and your fandom alive.

Oh, and did we mention our membership program? Saving big on iconic styles is just the cherry on top! 💰
🖖 With over 5.5 million fans repping the TSS squad, isn’t it time you let your fandom live loud and proud?

Core Value Proposition of The Souled Store

🫀 Enabling fans to express their love for pop culture through high-quality, affordable, and officially licensed merchandise that resonates on a personal level.

Let's understand the main business

• What The Souled Store is truly in the business of?
  TSS is in the business of empowering fans to proudly showcase their passions by offering fashion and lifestyle products inspired by beloved pop culture franchises. They help fans wear their identities, connecting them to like-minded individuals while making self-expression easy and accessible.
  
• Problem Solved: TSS solves the challenge of finding authentic, high-quality merchandise that reflects individual interests in a market often flooded with generic or unlicensed products. They provide fans with unique, reliable, and official designs they can’t find elsewhere.
  
• Key Features and Customer Benefits for customers -
• • Exclusive Merchandise: TSS offers officially licensed products from top franchises, giving fans confidence in authenticity and design.
  • High Quality at Accessible Prices: TSS combines quality with affordability, which is crucial for customer satisfaction and retention.
  • Pop Culture Connection: TSS’s products aren’t just items—they’re symbols of fandom, bringing customers closer to the stories and characters they love.

Now, onto some insights from Customer Benefits

• Why Customers Choose The Souled Store Over Competitors?
  Customers appreciate TSS’s unique blend of affordability, design authenticity, and quality. They trust TSS to deliver official merchandise that’s both stylish and lasting, standing out from generic options that might not be licensed or durable.
  
• Why Customers Keep Coming Back?
  Many TSS customers see the brand as a go-to for both everyday wear and niche collectibles. They return not only because of the quality but because TSS continuously updates its catalog with fresh designs, keeping fans engaged with new ways to express their interests.
  
• How Customers Describe The Souled Store? Customers describe TSS as authentic, trendy, and reliable, often highlighting that it’s a brand where “quality meets fandom.” It’s perceived as fun, relatable, and rooted in the latest trends, making it relevant and desirable for young audiences.
  
• Do customers refer a Friend?
  Customers might say, “If you love pop culture, you’ll love The Souled Store. Their products are high quality, official, and always on-point with the latest trends, so you can show off your fandom in style.”

To conclude, The Souled Store’s core value proposition lies in its commitment to creating an authentic pop-culture experience through quality products that help fans express themselves in a way that’s both meaningful and accessible. By providing exclusive, high-quality merchandise that’s official and affordable, TSS has positioned itself as the brand that doesn’t just sell products—it brings fandom to life.

Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) for The Souled Store

1. The Trendy Teen - Aanya

2. The Aspiring Professional - Rohan

3. The Fashionable Professional - Priya

4. The Pop Culture Parent - Sameer

5. The Social Media Influencer - Neha

⁉️ When you open The Souled Store, what do you expect from the platform?

Unique and cool pop culture merchandise

Exclusive, high-quality T-shirts and hoodies from my favourite shows

Affordable yet stylish clothes that reflect my interests

New drops and limited-edition collections

A fun and seamless shopping experience with great deals and offers

⁉️ What are the features that make you keep using The Souled Store?

The vast collection of officially licensed merchandise from top franchises

Consistent updates with fresh and trending designs

The loyalty program and discounts make it worthwhile to keep coming back

High-quality products that last and don’t fade after a wash

User-friendly app and website with personalised recommendations

The fun and relatable social media content that keeps me engaged

🥊 Competitors

• Bewakoof - Known for affordable fashion and pop culture designs.
• Urban Monkey - Popular for its streetwear and quirky accessories.
• Myntra & AJIO - Large fashion e-commerce platforms offering a variety of brands.
• Redwolf - Focused on pop culture and indie artist merchandise.
• Uniqlo & H&M - For high-quality, trendy basics that are also a hit with young consumers.

How do users currently experience that core value prop repeatedly?

Customers begin by exploring The Souled Store’s collection of officially licensed, pop-culture-themed merchandise, selecting items that reflect their favorite fandoms. After browsing and finding items they love, they add them to their cart and complete the purchase to own unique, high-quality, affordable - official merchandise that resonates personally with them.

Unboxing and experiencing their chosen items is where they feel the core value prop the most—they get to hold quality products that reflect their pop culture passion. The carefully designed product details, packaging, and even occasional themed freebies enhance this experience.

The repeat usage of The Souled Store is driven by its core value proposition:

• Unique pop culture merchandise with officially licensed designs from popular movies, TV shows, and comics.
• High-quality, affordable products that blend comfort with trendy fandom styles.
• Loyalty program offering rewards, discounts, and early access to new collections, boosting customer retention.
• Seamless omnichannel experience across website, app, and offline stores for convenient shopping.
• Personalized recommendations and tailored offers enhance user engagement.
• Flexible payment options and easy return policies ensure a hassle-free experience.
• Engaging social media and community involvement, creating a loyal fanbase and driving repeat visits.
  

Let's expand this and understand why's and how's to this experience-

🗺️ Journey Mapping

Visualizing the Customer Path from Purchase to Loyalty.

This journey map outlines the path customers take in experiencing The Souled Store’s core value proposition repeatedly

1. Product Selection and Purchase (Emotional and Functional High)

• Touchpoints: Website or app browsing, product selection, personalized recommendations, and membership offers.
• Experience: Customers explore the TSS catalog, which features high-quality, licensed merchandise. Seeing items from their favorite franchises aligns with their interests and prompts the desire to express fandom. Membership perks and discounts reinforce the feeling of affordability.
• Potential Friction: An overwhelming product selection or stock issues for specific items could hinder a seamless browsing experience. Curated collections or highlighting popular items could address this.

2. Checkout and Payment (Functional High)

• Touchpoints: Adding items to cart, applying membership discounts, and completing the payment process.
• Experience: The streamlined checkout experience supports a functional high, ensuring customers encounter minimal obstacles as they move toward purchase. The application of membership perks and discounts helps reinforce the brand’s affordability promise.
• Potential Friction: A cumbersome payment process or lack of preferred payment options could disrupt the checkout experience.

3. Order Fulfillment and Delivery (Functional High)

• Touchpoints: Order confirmation, real-time tracking, fast delivery options, and omnichannel options like Buy Online, Pick Up In Store (BOPIS).
• Experience: With options like BOPIS and quick delivery, customers receive their items faster, enhancing the satisfaction of getting licensed, high-quality merchandise promptly. The Souled Store’s commitment to accessibility and convenience is reinforced during this stage.
• Potential Friction: Delivery delays or stock limitations may disrupt the experience, impacting customer perception of reliability.

4. Unboxing and First Use (Emotional High)

• Touchpoints: Product packaging, item quality, design alignment with fandom, and potential freebies.
• Experience: The unboxing process provides a key emotional high, allowing customers to physically experience the quality of the merchandise. Any added touches (such as themed packaging) make the experience feel personal and tailored to their fandom.
• Potential Friction: Any discrepancies in product quality or design could lessen the emotional impact and disrupt customer satisfaction.

5. Post-Purchase Engagement and Re-Engagement (Functional and Emotional High)

• Touchpoints: Follow-up communications, loyalty program offers, personalized product recommendations, and new collection announcements.
• Experience: Through follow-up emails, exclusive member offers, and targeted recommendations, TSS keeps customers engaged and returning to the brand. Regular updates on fresh merchandise keep customers connected to their fandoms and reinforce the brand’s value proposition of providing unique, fandom-inspired merchandise.
• Potential Friction: A lack of personalized recommendations could impact the ongoing connection with the brand.

🍋 Experience Mapping

Emotional and Functional Highs and Lows Throughout the Customer Journey

The experience map focuses on key emotional and functional highs that The Souled Store customers encounter when engaging with the core value proposition, as well as any potential areas of friction that could affect the overall experience.

1. Emotional Highs

• Unboxing the Merchandise: The moment customers physically receive their products is a peak emotional experience. Seeing the design, quality, and detail of the fandom-themed merchandise reinforces TSS’s core value prop, fulfilling their desire for authentic, high-quality fandom expression.
• Receiving Membership Benefits: Membership discounts, early access, and priority shipping create an ongoing emotional connection to TSS. Members feel valued and part of a special community, aligning with the brand’s promise of making fandom accessible and personal.
• Discovery of New Fandom Merchandise: Notifications about new launches (e.g., Marvel, DC) cater directly to customers’ interests and create excitement about revisiting the platform.

2. Functional Highs

• Efficient Checkout and Delivery: The streamlined checkout experience combined with fast shipping options ensures that customers experience minimal friction, reinforcing TSS’s promise of a convenient, accessible shopping journey.
• BOPIS and BORIS Options: Omnichannel fulfillment options, like BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick Up In Store) and BORIS (Buy Online, Return In Store), provide added convenience and flexibility, enhancing the brand’s accessibility and reinforcing its customer-first approach.
• Post-Purchase Loyalty and Engagement: Targeted follow-ups, loyalty rewards, and personalized recommendations allow customers to feel consistently valued and connected with TSS, creating functional highs that encourage return visits.

3. Potential Friction Points

• Stock or Delivery Issues: If specific items are out of stock or delivery times extend unexpectedly, it could impact customer trust in reliability.
• Overwhelming Product Selection: The extensive range of products could initially overwhelm customers; however, personalized browsing recommendations can streamline the shopping experience.

Through journey mapping and experience mapping, it’s clear that The Souled Store’s converted customers experience the core value proposition repeatedly through touchpoints that emphasize fandom, quality, affordability, and a seamless shopping experience, making each purchase a meaningful connection to their pop culture interests.

Furthermore, this analysis captures the typical journey and engagement loop for a Souled Store customer, from trigger to action, highlighting how they are drawn back to experience the brand's core value proposition repeatedly.

The natural frequency of ordering from TSS depends on its Casual, Core, and Power users. However, fashion e-commerce has a natural frequency of Weekly orders. It's difficult for users to buy fashion apparel more than once a week.

Keeping up with the diverse preferences in customer engagement, The Souled Store has developed a VIP Membership that cater to varying levels of customer commitment and encourage repeat visits, deepening the connection between customers and their favourite fandoms at great deals and discounts.

Membership VIP Program

The Souled Store’s VIP Membership offers a variety of perks like discounts, early access to new collections, and priority shipping, designed to enhance the experience for frequent shoppers and build a loyal customer base. The program provides unique benefits, encouraging monthly engagement from members who want to maximize value from their membership.

Core Value of the Sub-Product

The core value of the VIP Membership is to offer a premium experience for dedicated customers, creating a sense of exclusivity and priority access. This feature adds value to every purchase cycle, rewarding repeat customers and strengthening their relationship with the brand.

Here's how different users interact with the Membership -

Frequency and Depth Engagement Framework work the best for TSS

For The Souled Store, customer spending is a key metric for engagement and revenue growth. The more frequently users make purchases -whether through regular items, exclusive drops, or seasonal collections - the better insights the brand gains into their preferences, allowing for targeted recommendations and exclusive loyalty rewards. Each transaction not only drives immediate revenue but also builds long-term customer value by fostering brand loyalty and repeat purchases, making spending a critical factor in The Souled Store’s engagement framework.

Frequency of Engagement with The Souled Store (x times in y time)

1. Monthly purchases – Average number of purchases made per month.
2. VIP membership usage – How frequently users utilise membership benefits (e.g., discounts, exclusive access) within a month or year.
3. Event-based purchases – Number of purchases made during specific events or seasonal drops in a month or quarter.
4. Loyalty rewards usage – Number of times users apply loyalty points or discounts in purchases over a month or quarter.
   

Frequency Limitations -
1. Wishlist Capacity and Cart Retention
2. Exclusive Drop Availability and Limited Quantities
3. VIP Membership Benefits and Purchase Caps
4. Notification Frequency for New Drops and Collection Alerts
5. Loyalty Point Redemption Limits

Depth of Engagement with The Souled Store

1. Average cart value per transaction – Depth is indicated by both the frequency of transactions and average spend per cart.
2. High-value purchases frequency – Frequency of buying premium products or exclusive items reflects deeper financial commitment.
3. Annual spending on TSS merchandise – Depth over a year reflects cumulative spending, showing sustained financial commitment.
4. VIP membership enrolments and renewals – Frequency of membership renewal and the upfront cost paid indicates engagement depth.

An active user at The Souled Store is defined by frequent and intentional purchases that go beyond one-time transactions. This user aligns with the brand’s core value proposition by consistently choosing TSS for affordable, high-quality pop culture merchandise, indicating a strong connection to the brand’s offerings.

🛍️ Actions that makes a user an active user

Actions that make someone an active user of The Souled Store:

• Completing at least one purchase within the last 60 days, demonstrating engagement with the brand’s current merchandise.
• Renewing VIP membership within the last 6 months (if enrolled), indicating sustained interest in membership benefits like exclusive discounts and early access.
• Purchasing from limited-edition or seasonal collections as they become available, showing high responsiveness to new product drops and brand-exclusive items.

🛒 Natural Frequency of Active Users

🧍‍♂️Casual users: Once every 3-6 months

• • Typically make low-frequency, occasion-based purchases, usually during sales or festive periods.
  • E.g.: Users who buy a couple of items per year, often during discounts or major releases.

🚶‍♂️Core users: Once every 1-2 months

• • Loyal to a particular category and return for regular, non-seasonal purchases.
  • E.g.: Users who frequently buy new T-shirts or hoodies, maintaining a steady engagement with new arrivals.

🏃‍♂️Power users: 1-2 times per month or more

• • Staunch brand loyalists who explore various categories and consistently engage with new collections or exclusive drops.
  • E.g.: Users who purchase across categories, multiple products from a collection and look forward to exclusive merchandise, limited editions, and VIP perks.

For The Souled Store, identifying the right EnR metrics will help us guide decisions that drive customer loyalty, increase lifetime value, and support long-term growth.

🏔️ Steps to Defining Core Engagement and Retention Metrics for The Souled Store

1. Align on the Business Goal - The primary objective for The Souled Store is to increase customer retention and repeat purchases. Therefore, the EnR metrics should focus on tracking customer loyalty, purchase frequency, and lifetime value, with an eye toward expanding both engagement and revenue over time.
   
2. Gather Team Goals and Metrics - Each department may have specific EnR-related goals:
3. • Marketing may focus on conversion rates from first-time visitors to paying customers.
   • Customer Support may prioritize customer satisfaction and repeat purchase rates.
   • Product/Design may emphasize user experience and ease of navigation, as these directly impact engagement.
     
4. Select Metrics Relevant to The Souled Store’s Core Operations - Since The Souled Store is an e-commerce business, key metrics should center on purchase behavior and customer satisfaction. Metrics such as Average Order Value (AOV), Customer Lifetime Value (LTV), and repeat purchase rate would be crucial.
   
5. Establish Clear Metric Definitions - It’s essential to define each metric precisely to maintain alignment across the organisation. For instance, specify the timeline for measuring retention - whether it’s 30-day, 90-day, or yearly retention.
   
   

🔍 What Should The Souled Store’s EnR Metrics Look Like?

1. Specificity: Metrics should have a defined time frame and other measurable components. For instance, “Customer Retention Rate over 90 days” is more specific than simply “Customer Retention.”
2. Team Alignment: Ensure all teams calculate metrics like Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and LTV consistently to avoid discrepancies.
3. Actionability: Metrics should lead to actionable insights. For example, “Number of repeat purchases per month” is actionable, allowing the team to focus on increasing these numbers.

😬 EnR Metrics for The Souled Store

For The Souled Store, these metrics focus on customer behavior, satisfaction, and spending, directly reflecting engagement and retention.

🤚 Frequency Limits (Revised Based on AOV)

1. Low-Frequency Users (Casual): Typically make 1-2 purchases per year with an AOV around INR 800-1000. These users may buy a single product occasionally and are generally less invested in TSS as a go-to brand.
2. Medium-Frequency Users (Core): Make 3-5 purchases annually with an AOV of INR 1000-1600. They are familiar with the brand, often make seasonal or collection-based purchases, and are responsive to new releases and offers.
3. High-Frequency Users (Power): Make 6+ purchases a year, with an AOV of INR 1600+ per transaction. They frequently shop across categories (apparel, accessories, etc.) and are highly engaged, often signing up for VIP membership and buying limited-edition items.

Let's have a look at our customers and understand who they are -

Let's look at how and why customers buy from The Souled Store

These user insights suggest that The Souled Store’s success hinges on its ability to:

1. Continue expanding exclusive, licensed collections that cater to a loyal base of pop culture enthusiasts.
2. Optimize membership benefits and communication around VIP perks to engage casual users more deeply.
3. Leverage event-based marketing and unique drops to increase the frequency and depth of user engagement, particularly with core and power users.
   

📝 Jobs to be done

🤷‍♀️ Who are: CASUAL/CORE/POWER USERS

🤩 Advanced Segmentation for The Souled Store

This segmentation table refines the core focus on purchasing behaviour and spending patterns aligned with each user segment’s engagement level and interaction with The Souled Store’s offerings.

🤼‍♀️ Revisiting the engagement framework

Based on this we get the Natural Frequency-Based Segmentation

• Depth and Frequency are prioritised due to The Souled Store's focus on financial engagement as an indicator of brand loyalty.
• Breadth, though secondary, offers insight into user preferences across categories, informing cross-promotion and product development.

Metrics to focus on -
- Recency: Days since the last purchase.
- Frequency: Number of purchases in a given time frame.
- Monetary: Total amount spent by each customer.

Advanced Segmentation with RFM Analysis for The Souled Store

👀 Key Insights and Observations

1. Recency Patterns:
2. • Hibernating users have not engaged in over four months, needing reactivation campaigns or seasonal promotions to re-engage.
   • Champions interact weekly or more frequently, showcasing the highest brand loyalty.
3. Frequency:
4. • In-Danger and Needs Attention users have shown recent but inconsistent activity, suggesting interest but a risk of drop-off.
   • Champions purchase multiple times monthly, often influenced by new releases and exclusive offers.
5. Revenue Contribution:
6. • Hibernating and In-Danger segments make up only 15% of the revenue, while Champions and Loyalists contribute the most, emphasising the need for retention strategies for high-value segments.
7. Engagement Depth:
8. • Hibernating users have limited engagement and short session times, indicating a need for targeted re-engagement with compelling offers.
   • Champions engage in longer sessions, exploring the catalog in depth and actively interacting with brand features.
9. Breadth of Engagement:
10. • Hibernating and In-Danger users mostly interact with basic checkout and discount features.
    • Champions and Loyalists frequently use loyalty programs, early access, and VIP perks, showing comprehensive engagement with brand offerings.