Shopkick ‘Kicks’ Showrooming Effect in the Teeth; Drives $110 Million in Revenue to Retail Partners

Shopkick partners can breathe a sigh of relief in the wake of all of the talk about losing in-store customers to “showrooming,’ as it’s been deemed.

The mobile shopping app drove more than $110 million worth of in-store revenue for its partner retailers in 2011, which was the first full year it was in operation. Currently, Shopkick works with 11 national retail brands in the US, including BestBuy, Target, Macy’s and Old Navy.

With consumers researching products in brick and mortar stores, then going online to make a purchase, showrooming has become a damning problem for retail brands. Shopkick sees itself as an antidote to that dilemma.

“Some mobile services drive people out of stores, not into stores, with online comparison shopping that turn stores into ‘showrooms.'” said Cyriac Roeding, CEO of Shopkick. “Shopkick drives people into stores by rewarding them with things they love just for visiting.”

Path to Purchase

Shopkick aims to be the single location-based shopping app for retailers, brands and shoppers alike. People don’t switch wallets or outfits going from the grocery store to the mall, so assuming they’ll want separate apps for the various ways and places they shop ignores consumer preferences. To best serve all its constituents, Shopkick rewards behavior throughout the path to purchase, including:

• Discovery: Shopkick users interact with stores in the app 150 million times per month, and that allows brand and retailers to reach them at home and on-the go. Media partnerships with InStyle and the CW amplify the discovery.
• Visits: Shopkick uses what it refers to as presence detection technology that rewards shoppers from the moment they walk into partner stores.
• Purchase: Thanks to a recent partnership with Visa, Shopkick rewards shoppers when they make a purchase at a participating partner retailer using their Visa debit or credit card as part of the Buy & Collect program.

Presence Detection Key to Shopkick Success

Shopkick’s patent-pending presence technology is what sets it apart from other apps, which rely on often inaccurate GPS. Thanks to a small box located within the store, which emits a signal that the app detects and decodes, it knows the shopper is actually in the store and, as a result, provides reward points, called “kicks” to the shopper.

Shopkick by the Numbers

Based on numbers reported to SCT, Shopkick has:

• 3 million active users;
• 1 billion in-app offers have been viewed;
• 5 million walk-ins to partner stores in December 2011;
• 10 million products have been scanned.

There is even more evidence that Shopkick works for retailers and brands. For example: 

• During the 2011 holiday shopping season, shopkick users interacted with stores through the app more than 3.1 million times per day on average, up from just over 1 million in August 2011;
• There were approximately 150 million interactions with retailers from the launch of Old Navy on November 10, 2011 through the end of the year.

As to who is using the app, 64 percent of all Shopkick users are younger women, most of whom are moms. Since women are responsible for 85 percent of all purchases, that certainly bodes well for retailers.

Shopkick Partner Metrics

Lastly, here are some metrics related to Shopkick partners:

• Eleven national retail partners:  American Eagle Outfitters, Best Buy, Crate and Barrel, Macy’s, Simon Property Group (the nation’s largest mall operator), The Sports Authority, Target, Toys“R”Us, west elm and The Wet Seal;
• In 2011, Best Buy, Simon Property Group, Crate & Barrel and west elm expanded their shopkick program include all locations nationwide;
• New partners in 2011: Old Navy (rolled out nationally at launch), Visa, InStyle, CoverGirl, Disney, Levi’s, Libman, Mead Johnson, Meguiar’s, Mr. Clean, Olay, Revlon, Tilex, Trident, and VTech;
• Over 35 major brand partners including Clorox, Disney, HP, Intel, Kraft Foods, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Gerber, Hasbro, Nickelodeon and more;

Shopkick’s goal for 2012 is to do more of the same – continually increase the number of retail partners and app users, which should translate into more dollars being spent in the store and not on Amazon.