How this designer achieve 160% revenue surge with a king-sized bed?

By Kelie Wong · 2nd May, 2024

How this designer achieve 160% revenue surge with a king-sized bed? | EasyStore

Sultera, formerly known as "Sultan," is the top choice for Malaysians seeking home products including hotel-quality towels, bedding, pillows, and home decor that recreate the luxurious ambiance of a 5-star hotel within their own homes.

This vision was ignited during a casual conversation the founder - Ashraf Aziz had at a friend's house back in 2018, where the allure of 5-star hotel experiences and the importance of quality sleep sparked his decision to make luxurious, premium and comfort products. 

Today, Sultera's reach extends far and wide, with a strong online presence through their official website and social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. 

Additionally, they offer a tangible experience through their showroom outlet in Shah Alam, conveniently located alongside their office and warehouse, designed to mimic a bedroom with a king sized bed in the middle of their showroom where customers can touch and feel products before purchasing. 

Sultera's journey with EasyStore spans 6 years and facilitated their growth along the way, achieving:

  • 5-figure daily sales revenue

  • 42% Customer Base Expansion

  • 160% Revenue Growth

  • 300 talented entrepreneurs turned ambassadors nationwide, 

  • Every 5 in 100 customers are international customers!

Starting Small, Scaling Substantially

Starting from humble beginnings, Ashraf recognized that quality home products wasn't his ultimate goal; he aspired to build a brand that impacts lives and withstands the test of time. Hence, he consistently leveraged evolving commerce and customer trends with strategic progression over the years.

In 2018, Ashraf initiated Sultera's online presence by creating an online store through EasyStore, laying the foundation for their ecommerce operations, building brand awareness among customers, and collecting first-party customer data.

In 2019, with the onset of the pandemic, Sultera's online sales, agent, and stockist model peaked. In response, they launched the Sultera Ambassador Program, empowering individuals from all walks of life, including stay-at-home mothers, and especially those affected by the pandemic, to embark on their entrepreneurial journey — a truly inspiring initiative!

In 2020, Sultera recognized the trend of expanding sales channels and swiftly adapted when EasyStore transitioned into a Multiple Sales Channels solution provider. 

Sultera activated Facebook and Instagram within the EasyStore backoffice, which automatically synced orders, products, and customer databases across these channels from their online store. 

When customers browsed their Facebook catalog, watched Instagram live sessions, and seamlessly checked out, all activities were recorded and efficiently managed within the same backoffice.

In 2021, Sultera achieved a notable milestone by reaching 100 ambassadors nationwide, significantly boosting brand awareness and expanding their customer base by 2.5 times. 

As TikTok gained prominence during this period, Sultera once again swiftly adapted and activated TikTok. Their product catalog was automatically synced, and they could add tags to products for customers to browse through easily, further extending their reach and engagement on the platform.

In 2022, customers evolved in their shopping behavior, spanning across multiple platforms, accounts and devices, engaging with various touchpoints. 

Recognizing this shift, Sultera acknowledged the necessity for a unified membership and reward system and Member App with the goal of further enhancing customer loyalty and engagement.

In 2023, customers reverted to seeking physical experiences, prompting Sultera to officially launch the showroom and seamlessly integrate offline retail with online operations. 

They achieved this by implementing EasyStore mobile point-of-sale (POS) systems, which were released in the same year. EasyStore POS is a simple addition of a device that merges the retail store business with their existing ecommerce operations seamlessly.

Accompanying their achievements, Sultera garnered prestigious awards: 

  • Top Rising Award by Annum Leadership, 
  • Top 3 position at the Top ECM Awards 2023 by SIDEC, 
  •  Majlis PKNS Usahawan Anugerah Peruncitan Perbaik 2023.

This year, the primary objective is to ensure they capture customers across all touchpoints, delivering personalized and connected experiences, and providing a seamless shopping journey, all powered by EasyStore. Furthermore, they aim to surpass the milestone of 300 ambassadors.

Stakeholders At Hand

With various stakeholders involved, Ashraf understood that success hinged on one essential factor: a well-designed and unified system.

  • For customers, the focus was on enhancing accessibility for purchasing, addressing sleep-related concerns, and facilitating faster checkouts to ensure overall satisfaction

  • For the team, success meant providing them with effective tools and solutions to deliver a seamless and positive shopping experience to customers.

  • For ambassadors, it was crucial for Sultera's branding in the market to be synchronized and consistent, enabling them to leverage these assets to drive sales

For himself as managing director of this empire and ensure continued scalability, EasyStore was the answer.

160% Revenue Surge

Ashraf highlighted an intriguing statistic: while a satisfied customer may share their positive experience with 3 others, a dissatisfied customer may share their negative experience with 11.

He emphasised synchronised branding, streamlined operations, and enhancing customer engagement as key considerations when launching his first showroom outlet. 

Here's what he did to prioritize customer experience and uphold their branding:

  • Same SOP for all staff: Every staff member knows their responsibilities and how they contribute to the business and customer experience. Additionally, they can take on responsibilities beyond their scope, such as facilitating walk-in orders through the POS system, as everyone is familiar with the same system inside and out.

  • Recognise VIP without fail: Integrated membership program on the point of sale (POS) allows staff to easily identify members through scanning of member barcodes which also dynamically update discounts during checkout.

  • Big Bed Corner: Featuring a large bed in the showroom where customers can experience the products firsthand, with ready stock products alongside. The inventory for these ready stock products is also included in the inventory and will be deducted automatically for each sale, synced with online available inventory.

  • Pick-Up Point for On-Demand Orders: Customers may choose to shop online and pick up in-store or request same-day delivery for urgent orders. This is especially helpful when customers are shopping for last minute gifts.

  • Bundle Products With Clear Profit Margin: Sultera strategically bundled products to entice customers and drive higher Average Order Value (AOV), ensuring that the offerings were both attractive and profitable.

  • 2-tier Membership for a Nationwide Community: Elite and Gold membership tiers were strategically designed based on customer spending behaviors, aiming to foster a sense of belonging and exclusivity within the community. Exclusive benefits were offered to drive customers to reach the next tier, incentivizing continued engagement and loyalty.

  • 24/7 Access To Order Update: Sultera ensures consistent engagement with customers through email reminders, follow-ups, and in-app notifications. For instance when customer makes an order, the system automatically updates order fulfillment status to the customer.

  • No Customers Left Behind: Even during last-minute sales, the team is equipped to accept and handle rush orders to ensure all customers are served, especially crucial during peak season like Raya Campaign

In essence, Sultera's strategic alignment with EasyStore's adaptable features, coupled with their unwavering commitment to providing an exceptional customer experience, propelled them towards outstanding revenue growth and a prominent position in the market.

And of course their success didn't go unnoticed; even Malaysian Palace Institute took notice and reached out to them!

Systemise, Scale, Succeed 

Sultera's successful model served as a blueprint for growth, inspiring their ambassadors including Sultera Xclusive, operated by Quebiz, to leverage EasyStore and replicate their achievements. 

This approach emphasizes the importance of establishing efficient systems, scaling operations effectively, and repeating successful strategies to drive sustained success and expansion.

Moving forward, Sultera has exciting plans in line. They aim to open more retail outlets, establish a warehouse in Sabah, and expand internationally into the Brunei market with the use of EasyStore's cross-border tool.

EasyStore witnessed Sultera's growth alongside our transition in the market, always ahead of commerce trends. It is our goal to continue driving our merchants to the forefront of the game.

Confidence Driving Their Growth 

EasyStore is a Unified Commerce Solution that unifies retail and ecommerce business. Over 50,000 brands have grown their businesses by embracing unified customer experiences (UCX) strategy through EasyStore across multiple sales channels - online store, retail outlets, marketplaces, and social media, ensuring consistency in product and service offerings for a seamless shopping journey.

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