Animal is one of the most iconic names in sports nutrition, trusted by serious lifters, competitive bodybuilders, and strength athletes for over 40 years. Animal’s lineup anchored by the legendary Animal Pak multivitamin and expanding into creatine chews, protein, pre-workout, and cutting supplements, has earned a loyal cult following that doesn’t compromise. As Animal expanded its DTC subscription business, they needed a retention partner capable of converting that loyal audience into long-term subscribers and building the owned-channel infrastructure to grow recurring revenue at scale.
Background
- No replenishment infrastructure existed to support the subscription program, customers who missed a charge or lapsed from their order cycle had no automated pathway back to active subscriber status.
- Post-purchase communication lacked the product education and upsell sequences needed to convert one-time buyers into subscribers, a critical gap for a brand built on daily-use products like Animal Pak, Flex, and Creatine Chews.
- Behavioral triggers were absent: no abandoned cart, no browse abandonment, no winback, leaving revenue on the table at every major high-intent moment in the customer journey.
- SMS operated without a structured welcome series or behavioral flow suite, limiting the channel’s contribution to both subscriber acquisition and retention.
- Campaign strategy lacked the segmentation and cadence needed to consistently re-engage Animal’s large, purchase-ready audience between product drops.
What We Did
Lilo’s first priority was building the subscription lifecycle infrastructure that Animal’s program didn’t have. We launched a Replenishment flow designed to reach subscribers before their next order charge, recover lapsed customers, and create a consistent touchpoint for the most valuable segment of Animal’s customer base. Alongside it, we built a Post-Purchase flow to introduce new buyers to Animal’s broader product ecosystem at the highest point of engagement, creating a clear pathway from first order to active subscriber.
On the acquisition side of the subscription flywheel, we launched Abandoned Cart and Browse Abandonment flows to recover high-intent shoppers who hadn’t yet converted, many with subscription CTAs woven directly into the messaging. A Winback flow targeted lapsed subscribers before they churned permanently, while an SMS-Only Pop-Up Welcome flow captured newly opted-in SMS subscribers with immediate conversion offers. Taken together, these flows closed the gaps in Animal’s lifecycle and created a program that actively worked to grow the subscription base rather than simply maintain it.
Outcomes
The subscription program responded immediately. Monthly new subscriptions nearly doubled under Lilo’s management, driven by a lifecycle infrastructure that actively moved customers from consideration to subscription at every stage of the journey. Net subscription growth more than doubled as well, a reflection of both stronger acquisition and better retention throughout the subscriber lifecycle. Animal’s owned channels became a meaningful driver of recurring revenue growth, compounding month over month as each new flow matured and the subscriber base expanded.
Success
Animal’s subscription business didn’t just grow, it accelerated. Built not born.
Increase in Monthly New Subscriptions
Improvement in Net Monthly Subscription Growth
Animal’s subscription business didn’t just grow, it accelerated. Built not born.
What We’ve Created
