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In Northern England, House of Malt is an independently-owned family business that has grown into one of the leading online retailers of specialty whiskies and spirits in the U.K. It was established in 2015 as an independently-owned family business and have used the internet to manage their operations since 2017.
House of Malt has a retail location and warehouse situated in Northern England, though a vast majority of transactions are done online via their store. It currently delivers across the U.K. and have plans for international expansion.
Woo spoke with Jethro Hazelhurst, House of Malt's Ecommerce Director.
for Whiskey
House of Malt chose as their online store platform since they wished to stay away from other highly-regulated platforms; they liked how customizable the Woo platform can be and also wanted to own as much of their online business and operations as they possibly could.
Since that time, House of Malt has partnered with Woo through Woo's Enterprise Ecommerce program, which has improved their cash flow. Woo is a blessing to their business in many different ways. an increase in average order value, conversion rates, and an improvement in the amount of time needed to deposit from 7 days to 1 day, have all assisted them ensure there is the working capital needed to help their business growth.
Big wins
- The conversion rate was increased and the average value of orders to 22% since implementing Apple Pay through WooPayments.
- Reduced the time for cash deposits from seven days to one day thanks to the Woo Customer Success team.
- Founded in 2015, House of Malt has grown to become one of the top three online sellers of spirits in the U.K.
Key Extensions
- WooPayments and Apple Pay
- PayPal and PayPal Pay Later
- Searchinise
- The theme of Storefront
- Google Listings as well as Ads
- Klaviyo email marketing
Achievement in the wake of Brexit and Covid-19
Much like many British businesses, House of Malt was affected by export tax levies following the Brexit law. Because of the difficulties that ensued and a need to adapt, they decided to shift their attention to clients within the U.K., and have since become one of the top three businesses within the U.K. in online whisky sales.
Following the closing of Covid-19, House of Malt was in a position to continue their operations even through the closures. They operate exclusively through their website.
Now, their physical store is an essential aspect of their business and offers unique experiences to customers that their competitors aren't able to match.
Malt matching: Using data to cater to customers
House of Malt has a amazing knowledge of their users who visit their website, which helps inform their ecommerce strategy.
The general rule is that House of Malt serves four distinct customer needs:
- People who want to test the latest products available on our website.
- Returning customers who visit houseofmalt.co.uk to purchase their most-loved items and buy the same each time.
- Collectors who like to stay informed about the most recent collection and releases.
- Wholesalers who can't find a product anywhere else, as well as frequent House of Malt for repeat purchases to replenish bars as well as smaller shops.
The data can be extremely helpful due to restrictions on ads that apply to alcohol merchants -- which House of Malt combats with a strong email marketing program.
The average value of orders can be increased by 22% using Apple Pay and WooPayments
House of Malt offers a variety of payment options, including PayPal, PayPal credit card processing, as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay through WooPayments.
The decision was made to launch WooPayments to support Apple Pay specifically due to their site traffic. Jethro stated that "The most of our customers are mobile users and Apple users use Safari. It is easy to see how that conversion rates will increase because of the addition of Apple Pay. It's hard to think of a motive why it wouldn't. There's just less friction. This is a huge game changer for us."
Since introducing Apple Pay, House of Malt has seen an increase of 22% in order volumes, and a rise in conversion rates since offering more choices for payment.
"The more payment options we offer the better -- 100 100%. The conversion rate has increased as we have added various payment options. Using all the payment methods and WooPayments, we've seen nice growth over the years. It's all been looking good to carry on using the methods to expand." -- Jethro Hazelhurst, Ecommerce Director, House of Malt
Transferring whiskey across the lake
House of Malt is planning to expand internationally, initially to Europe and then to the U.S. They're trying to bring on shipping partners along with their customs logistics in the hopes of providing the best customer experience for overseas orders.
With their new warehouse, House of Malt anticipates thriving under periods of high order quantity, such as during the time of year when they are most busy and future global expansion.
Integrating more payment and product options
House of Malt is also developing their catalog of products, improving the user experience on their website, as well as developing a subscription service and loyalty program for their repeat customers.
They're still looking for more payment options to meet customer preferring to pay with cash. This includes expanding their buy now, pay later (BNPL) options with additional providers.
Hazelhurst knows the benefits of BNPL: "The fact that buyers can choose to use buy now, pay later will increase the an average value for orders. Any buy now pay later choices will help."
In the end, House of Malt has enjoyed a wonderful experience the company and looks forward to the future.
"All you've done on WooPayments makes a great tiny impact" Hazelhurst said. "Somewhere in the north-western region of England, in a tiny part of an older town. We're putting great whiskey in the hands of people with Woo."