Smart growth looks different this season. Operational excellence is the real multiplier.
Everyone can discount their way through Black Friday. But December is where the real operators separate from the rest. The brands winning right now are doubling down on execution; smoother CX, smarter checkout, loyalty that compounds, stores that drive revenue (not rent).
This week’s Hotline breaks down what smart growth actually looks like, minus the noise. Because hype spikes traffic. Operational excellence turns customers into revenue. All season long.
Peak season isn’t over, it’s just shifting gears.
🔥 The D2C Deep Dive: Hybrid scale is paying off for Warby Parker as profitable growth becomes the real flex.
💰 Deal of the Week: Loyalty is cheaper than acquisition. This tool proves it.
📞 Missed Calls: Black Friday proved that convenience and checkout experience now beat discounts or doorbuster lines.
🎤 D2C IRL: The calm before the events storm. Two must-see sessions kick off December. Get CX and AI dialed in while the competition hits snooze.
🛸 Signal Boost: Great post at the right time + timely email/SMS follow-up = the secret sauce many brands still miss.
Your weekly look at the D2C brands setting the bar and what operators can learn from their playbook.
Warby Parker just delivered one of its strongest quarters yet, proving that a decade-old DTC pioneer can still unlock new growth curves. Revenue climbed 15% YoY to $222M, active customers increased 9% YoY to 2.66M, and average revenue per customer hit about $320, all while the brand expanded profitability. Net income reached nearly $6M and adjusted EBITDA rose to $25.7M (about 11.6% margin). Retail continues to be a major engine, too: Warby now operates 300+ stores, and in-store sales jumped around 20% thanks to selective expansion and Target shop-in-shops.
The strategy driving it? A hybrid distribution model that gives shoppers the convenience of digital with the confidence of try-on IRL. Meanwhile, a growing portfolio of lenses, upgrades, eye exams, and accessories keeps ARPU climbing. This means Warby isn’t dependent on constant new-customer acquisition to grow. Strong cost control and disciplined store rollouts are helping, too, turning scaling into a margin-positive rather than margin-draining move.
And Warby isn’t standing still: new product innovation, including progress toward smart eyewear, signals plans to stay ahead of shifting consumer behavior rather than reacting to it.
💡Operator Takeaway: This is what scaling responsibly looks like. Lower CAC seasons call for a business that doesn’t rely on hype cycles. Warby is showing their playbook clearly: pair omnichannel trust with recurring value and let operational discipline do the heavy lifting.
Discover more about Warby Parker
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The D2C world moves fast. These are the stories worth your attention. The ones showing where strategy, spend, and consumer trends are headed next.
Winners and losers of Black Friday 2025
💡 D2C Takeaway: Discounting alone won’t cut it anymore. Conversion paths and online experience matter more than price slashes; brands winning are those mastering frictionless checkout and intelligent channel strategy.
E-comm growth surpasses stored on Black Friday, with sales up over 10%
💡 D2C Takeaway: Black Friday is now a digital-first sprint. If you’re not optimized online, you’re missing the wave.
Lunar Solar Group is a modern growth consultancy for bold DTC and omnichannel brands.
We help the bold grow beyond.
We break down barriers at the intersection of technology, creative, and performance to deliver revenue-driving acquisition, retention, and onsite experiences across every channel.
From full-funnel media and performance creative to web development, CRO, and lifecycle programs, our team and proprietary technology help brands scale smarter and grow faster.
🚨 Friends Rate Discount: Brands referred through 1-800-D2C receive a free lifecycle audit, including segmentation, flows, messaging review, and a full teardown of your current retention stack
Key Benefits:
Where operators show up IRL. The top community events and conversations happening right now.
This session walks operators through how top Shopify brands design, map, and optimize every step of the customer journey, not as isolated touch points, but as one seamless experience. You’ll learn why even small gaps (a confusing checkout, a mismatched offer, slow support) can derail a sale, and how smarter timing, unified teams, and proactive CX create journeys that convert and retain.
Thursday, December 4, 2025, 2 pm EST | Webinar
This in-person event is all about turning the “AI hype” into real, revenue-driving tactics. Expect live talks and breakout sessions focused on how AI is reshaping visibility, discovery, operations, and conversions in the e-commerce world.
Thursday, December 4, 2025 | London, United Kingdom
It's peak season, so volume's about to spike. Most teams either hire temps (expensive) or burn out their people (worse). See what smarter teams do: let AI handle predictable volume so your humans stay great.
Quick hits and resources from around the industry we think are worth your time this week.
The Best Times to Post on TikTok for Brand Visbility
TikTok is still not banned and learning the best times to post your videos can drastically increase your brand visibility and increase your reach for your target audience.
How To Do Email And SMS For E-Commerce: Max Results, Minimal Fatigue
The top D2C e-commerce brands tactfully use email and SMS for higher ROI, better consumer retention, and less buyer fatigue. We cover pro tactics, automation tips, and real world playbooks for email marketing.
At 1-800-D2C, we spotlight the real builders behind the tools and brands featured on our site and the D2C players putting those tools to work. Let’s collab:
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Everything you need to build a better D2C brand, business and tech stack.
