The Bestwine story: from a wine cellar to a successful e-shop
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Covid was a time of change for the entire retail sector, giving impetus to the rapid growth of e-commerce. Bestwine winery, which had been actively contributing to the personal boutique experience, also turned its growth ambition to digital channels and approached Futurist with the desire to quickly increase the share of its e-services.
Strategic U-turn in one month
When we met with the management of Bestwine, we found ourselves faced with a familiar challenge. The company wanted to develop its online store and increase the volume of purchases through the online channel, and to do all this as quickly as possible, since the sales channels of the physical store that had been operating until now were limited due to COVID-19. Bestwine wanted to create an online store that would take into account the expectations and needs of its existing customer base, offering them an alternative to shopping in a store. And at the same time, it would also help to increase business volume in the form of new customers.
Since Bestwine did not have time to spend several months developing its e-shop due to the corona restrictions, we quickly started with a two-day strategy sprint , during which we analyzed the new situation and its impact and opportunities for the business. Then, the goals for the next two years were agreed upon and a specific action plan was set on how to get there. After the strategy sprint, Bestwine's management had a clearer understanding of what a suitable business concept is for the current times, where the focus of the new e-shop is directed, and what are the foreseeable risks of making such a bold turn. The result of the strategy workshop was already a detailed plan and initial design ideas related to the e-shop.
The entire management team worked together on the design of the prototype for Bestwine's new online store.
A prototype of a new e-shop was completed in a week
Then, work began on the new e-shop concept, which was also completed at lightning speed. During the week-long design sprint, we first began interviewing existing customers to better understand their previous purchasing behavior and what is important to them when purchasing through an e-channel. Then, we analyzed various possible solutions and, during co-creation, drew a prototype design for the new e-shop, which was then used to create a complete prototype. On the fourth day, the entire management team was able to observe the testing of the prototype on end users and also offer their own solutions to fix the problems that arose.
In parallel with the design, testing, and improvement suggestions, the Futurist design team worked on finalizing the design. This made it possible to test the service with its final appearance, and immediately begin implementing the online store the week after the sprint.
Bestwine's new online store mobile view, which was tested on end users.
Turnover growth: two million euros
Bestwine's turnover grew from 2 million euros to 4 million within two years of launching the online store. The initial simple desire to create an online store turned into a purposefully designed digital sales channel, with a clear business goal and concept. The probability that a potential customer will leave the Bestwine online store with a successful purchase is three times higher today, and the number of unfinished purchases has decreased by almost half.
If you are interested in hearing more about Bestwine's rapid development and activities, Anni Toom, now former CEO of Bestwine, visited the Kasvuminutite podcast a while ago, where we talked about not only growing an e-business, but also about coaching and the foundations of a happy organization, which create an important foundation for the growth of any business.