Founded in 2016, Asphalte quickly won over French consumers with its men’s and women’s clothes made in Europe. Its mission? Make sustainability accessible with a pre-order model that enables customers to create timeless, high-quality clothing that truly resonates with them. This approach also allows them to reduce waste, avoid overproduction, and offer an excellent price-to-quality ratio to all buyers.
Initially only available online, the brand soon realized that opening a brick-and-mortar store would bring strategic benefits for its growth. Opening its retail operations came with its set of challenges, such as managing stock across multiple channels, synchronizing customer data, and creating a unified omnichannel shopping experience. All of those made Shopify and Shopify POS the perfect fit for this stage of the brand’s expansion.
Since moving to Shopify POS, Asphalte has seen:
- €2.4M in total retail revenue in just seven months
- 180€ average in-store shopping basket vs. 150€ online
- 15% of store visitors making a purchase on the spot
Challenge: Unifying ecommerce and retail operations
Asphalte’s quick rise in popularity incited them to consider adding a permanent flagship store to their ecommerce offering. This hypothesis was tested through several pop-up stores which confirmed its potential, despite the challenges. They needed to synchronize inventory across two distinct channels, unify customer experience by tracking both their purchase history and pre-orders across all channels, and use the store as a display for customers to try on products before placing an online order. All this required managing returns in parallel to Asphalte’s pre-order campaigns, which were at the heart of their mission.
Opening a physical store also meant that Asphalte needed to reorganize its customer service operations. Sales staff needed full access to the details of all customer orders, both online and in-store. A centralized system became essential to manage pre-orders, returns, and product availability across multiple sales channels. These challenges reinforced the brand’s decision to implement a unified omnichannel approach that could support their mission for transparency, efficiency, and a superior customer experience: Shopify.
Solution: Simplifying retail and ecommerce with Shopify POS
Initially, Asphalte’s pre-order model was 100% digital. Today, the brand continues to rely on technology that enables it to be as sustainable as possible, co-creating the perfect pieces with its community (their iconic t-shirt is, in fact, called The Perfect T-Shirt). Once the design is finalized, customers can place a pre-order, paying for the piece up to three months in advance in exchange for a discounted rate. This system enables customers to save money and helps the brand limit overproduction and excess inventory.
A smart and sustainable business model that deserved to be expanded to a physical retail location aligned with the brand’s values. That’s how the idea of a hybrid space, a mix between a store and a showroom, was born. Le Magasin, Asphalte’s first permanent store, enables the brand to sell the surplus of per-order returns or cancellations, but, more importantly, it also allows customers to try on the clothes before purchasing, and present best-selling pieces to an audience that’s receptive to in-store interactions. A winning move, backed by the platform that has been with Asphalte since day one: Shopify.
For customers, Shopify POS centralizes all order-related information: production updates, delivery tracking, and purchase history. Sales staff, on the other hand, can provide personalized advice while customers try on clothes. For example, a sales rep could check a person’s past orders’ sizes and recommend the best fit for their body shape.
We needed to provide a flawless in-store experience for our customers, even for pre-order items. This was challenging, because it meant that the sale did not generate stock withdrawal and that the customer would receive their garment months later. Shopify helped us make this process very smooth and easy.
The platform also benefits internal support teams. Shopify POS has allowed Asphalte’s customer service and IT teams to track orders and customer history at every touchpoint. Teams now have better visibility over all orders, whether placed online or in-store. This level of transparency and connectivity has been a game-changer for Asphalte's ability to improve and transform the customer experience.
With Shopify POS, Asphalte has created a customer journey that seamlessly bridges physical and digital experiences. The result? An NPS (Net Promoter Score) of 75, achieved just seven months after the store’s opening. To put this into perspective, a score above 70 is generally considered excellent in retail.
We adopted Shopify for what it does best: the smooth processing of orders, exchanges, and returns, as well as its efficient payment process.
Results: An omnichannel success
With Shopify POS, Asphalte has seamlessly integrated its in-store sales into its existing model, which was initially 100% online. The brand now manages all orders, pre-orders, inventory, and customer analytics from a single centralized system.
This is a solution that supports Asphalte’s future growth ambitions, including the planned opening of new stores across Europe in the next few years.
With Shopify POS, Asphalte achieved:
- €2.4M in total retail revenue in just seven months
- 180€ average in-store shopping basket vs. 150€ online
- 15% of store visitors completing a purchase on-site