The Canadian jewelry brand Mejuri is midway through a growth spurt, with new stores, a new mobile app and a new loyalty membership program all aimed at speeding the direct-to-consumer brand’s growth.
Mejuri has raised more than $100 million in funding to date from investors including Felix Capital. That money has so far gone into hiring — the company has nearly 600 employees, over 70% of whom are women — and opening new stores. Mejuri operates 24 stores across the U.S., Canada and the U.K., and plans to reach 29 stores by the end of the year.
In addition, a new mobile app launched on Thursday brings personalized shopping to the brand’s e-commerce ecosystem. Mejuri co-founder Majed Masad said he’s wanted to introduce a mobile app since the brand’s launch in 2013, but development was deprioritized as the brand focused on e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retail.
“We wanted to do it right,” Masad said. “We didn’t want to just replicate the website, because that wouldn’t add value. Personalization by recommending items that go well with what people have bought is what sets the app apart from our online store.” The personalization feature is not offered on the brand’s website.
The app is also meant to target Mejuri’s most loyal buyers. The brand has around 2 million annual customers, but 50% of its revenue comes from repeat customers. Of those repeat buyers, 25% buy multiple items from Mejuri in a single year. The app is designed for loyal customers who shop Mejuri regularly and will benefit from the recommendations and personalization that adjust based on what they’ve purchased and how frequently. When customers have bought a certain product, for example, the next time they log into the app, they’ll be served front-page recommendations for products that pair well with their original purpose.
Mejuri is not yet profitable, but Masad said the brand is progressing toward profitability every quarter.
Mejuri’s new loyalty membership program, also launched Thursday, has a similar goal of increasing customer lifetime value. The program’s creation was led by Elaine Shum, the company’s vp of insight and design, who spent months speaking directly with Mejuri customers about what they wanted out of a loyalty program. They landed on elements like discounts, gifts on customers’ birthdays and exclusive products for members. More features will be added to the program based on feedback collected from users in the first few months of its life.
