After being diagnosed with Coeliac disease, WOW YOU! CEO Ella O’Connor decided to replace her skincare products with more natural solutions. She scoured the beauty industry for budget-friendly and ethically made natural skincare products, but came up short.
So, she and her partner decided to take matters into their own hands and create the products she couldn’t find. Thus, WOW YOU! was born.
Design that mirrors product
WOW YOU!’s Shopify store is as fresh and fun as their products. Made with simple ingredients derived from nature, their best-selling products like the Ready, Set, Glow Mini Kit are well marketed to their target audience. WOW YOU!’s branding carries its cheery colour scheme and playful imagery throughout the online store, telling a cohesive story.
For O’Connor, everything about their online store and their products is done with the intention of making their customers happy.
“We want to help our customers find their best ever skin,” she says. “And hopefully, we can put a smile on their face in the process!”
A theme for speed
UK-based WOW YOU! is now hosting 20,000 visitors per month using their customized Out of the Sandbox Turbo theme.
“We really liked the clean look of the theme and how fast it is to load,” says O’Connor. “We chose the theme for speed and although we have quite a few apps installed, it still performs really well.”
Self-reliance and working with a budget
WOW YOU! was completely self-funded and launched on Shopify in August 2018. Since then, the business has been an impressive two-person operation.
“Since the start we’ve bootstrapped and found ways of creating what we imagined with a really tight budget,” says O’Connor. “We have created everything ourselves, from the product photography, to our social media channels.”
Making a difference makes it worthwhile
The brand’s journey hasn’t always been the easiest, but O’Connor has found that it’s all worth it when their products make a difference in their customers’ lives.
“It’s been a really difficult journey so far, with lots of setbacks and challenges”, says O’Connor. “But, at the end of the day, when you read that really inspiring review from a customer whose skin we’ve helped, it makes it all worthwhile!”
Remember: It’s all for the customer
WOW YOU!’s ethos revolves around filling a need for their customers. O’Connor believes that having a clear direction like this will help other merchants succeed too.
“Make sure you always keep the customer in mind and try to imagine what they’re thinking whenever you make any changes to the store,” she says. “Keep updating and trying new things all the time and look back to make sure you’re making progress.”
You’re not alone in ecommerce
O’Connor also believes that ecommerce merchants can forget to create connections within their industry. She advises other business owners to reach out in order to flourish.
“Find people you can talk to who are doing the same thing as you,” says O’Connor. “It can be quite lonely running a business if friends and family don’t really get what you’re doing, so having someone to talk to who understands is really helpful.”
See all the Outstanding Shop Awards winners right here!
