In retail, every metric tells a story. Behind the buzzwords such as personalisation, loyalty, omnichannel, there are real commercial pressures: to grow without squeezing profit margins, retain customers beyond the first purchase, and create experiences that feel worth coming back for.
The data is clear: traditional approaches aren’t cutting through like they used to. So here are 10 statistics that reveal where consumer expectations are headed, and how smart retail marketers are evolving in response.
Personalisation doesn’t just improve the customer experience, it transforms business outcomes. The top-performing retailers in this space are generating 40% more revenue than those slower to adapt. And it’s not just about product recommendations or dynamic content. What sets them apart is their ability to turn customer data into meaningful, one-to-one interactions that drive frequency, spend and brand affinity.
At TLC, we see this every day: brands that shift from transactional tactics to emotionally engaging, personalised strategies create more lasting relationships and stronger bottom-line results. It’s not about offering more promotions, it’s about offering the right ones, to the right people, in a way that actually matters.
Why This Matters:
This isn’t a marginal gain - it’s a significant revenue lift. For retailers still relying on generic campaigns or price-driven promotions, this stat is a clear call to re-evaluate. With the right platform and strategy, personalisation becomes more than a buzzword, it becomes a performance lever. The question is no longer if personalisation delivers - it’s how fast you can start scaling it.
It turns out, shoppers aren’t always chasing the lowest price - they’re willing to pay up to 16% more when the experience feels tailored, relevant, and human. This is the power of creating an emotional connection: when a customer feels seen and valued, they don’t just stay loyal; they spend more, and more often.
For retailers under pressure to drive revenue without shrinking margins, this stat is a game-changer. It proves you don’t have to compete on price - you can compete on added-value like the experience. And that’s where personalised, brand-aligned reward strategies come in. At TLC, we help brands create those high-perceived-value moments at scale, without the cost or chaos of discounting.
Why This Matters:
In a world of instant price comparisons and promotion fatigue, this 16% premium shows what sets brands apart isn’t just what they sell, it’s how they make customers feel too. Personalised experiences aren’t just good CX, they’re a strategic lever to protect margin, elevate perception and grow spend. And with the right reward strategy, you can deliver more value while protecting (and growing!) your margins.
Despite the growth of e-commerce, 85% of consumers still prefer shopping in physical stores. That’s not a threat to digital, it’s a massive opportunity for retailers to double down on what stores do best: human connection, physical interaction and instant gratification.
However, expectations are higher than ever. If someone chooses the store over a swipe, they want more than convenience. They want added-value. Attention. Recognition. That’s where more personalised in-store experiences matter most.
At TLC, we help brands bridge the digital-physical gap, bringing customer insight, reward strategy, and emotional relevance right to the shop floor. It’s not just about having stores. It’s about making them memorable.
Why This Matters:
Footfall alone isn’t enough. Today’s store visits have to earn their keep. With the majority of consumers still walking through your doors, the priority isn’t driving visits - it’s making those visits convert into revenue without eroding margin and brand equity with constant discounts. Retailers who use in-store moments to deliver personalised value (not just transactional service) will be the ones who turn preference into profit.
Not all customers are created equal. Those who shop across channels including store, app, and online, are worth up to 3.5× more than those who stick to just one. Customers buy more. Engage more. Stay longer.
But unlocking that value isn’t about being everywhere, it’s about connecting the dots. When experiences feel joined-up, customers move more freely between platforms and channels. That’s when loyalty deepens and spend follows.
At TLC, we design campaigns that work across the entire retail ecosystem in APAC. From tailored rewards to always-on engagement, we help retailers turn fragmented journeys into one connected, high-value customer lifecycle.
Why This Matters:
You don’t need more channels, you need smarter ones. Every disconnected touchpoint is lost potential. But when your acquisition, engagement and reward strategies work together, you turn browsers into buyers and buyers into brand fans. If omnichannel customers are worth 3.5× more, the question isn’t should you unify the experience - it’s how fast can you start?
Personalisation isn’t a “nice touch” anymore. It’s expected. 71% of customers expect personalised experiences and when they don’t get them, 77% feel frustrated. That’s more than a missed opportunity. It’s a brand risk.
Frustration is emotional, and it lingers. From ignored preferences to irrelevant emails, inconsistent experiences quietly chip away at trust, loyalty and ultimately, lifetime value. Customers don’t want to feel like one of many, they want to feel recognised.
At TLC, we help brands deliver that recognition at scale, in an economically sustainable way. Whether it’s personalised rewards, relevant touchpoints, or insight-led segmentation, our campaigns are built to make every interaction feel like it was made for your customer.
Why This Matters:
The numbers tell the story here: if you’re not personalising, you’re not just underdelivering, you’re actively weakening value. Expectations are rising, and the brands who win will be those that treat personalisation as a standard, not a bonus. The good news? With the right tools and strategy, consistent, omnichannel personalisation isn’t just possible, it’s profitable.
Every time a loyal customer slips through the cracks, replacing them costs 5 to 25 times more. That’s not just inefficient, it’s unsustainable.
Acquisition is expensive. You’re paying for ads, promotions, partnerships… all for someone who may never convert. Meanwhile, your existing customers are ready to spend again - if you give them a reason to stay.
That’s where emotional engagement delivers real value. At TLC, we help brands reward the right behaviours across the customer lifecycle, so your acquisition spend doesn’t just buy a click, it builds longer-term value.
Why This Matters:
It’s not just about keeping the customers you’ve already won, it’s about designing a better system. If you’re spending all your time chasing new customers while existing drift away, you’re losing margin at both ends. But when retention becomes a strategic priority - backed by relevant, personalised rewards - you spend smarter and earn more. That’s how you shift from short-term wins to sustainable growth.
Sometimes the smartest growth move isn’t to do more, it’s to lose less. Just a 5% increase in customer retention can drive profit growth of 25% to 95%. That’s not an incremental win, that’s transformative.
Why? Because retained customers are more efficient. They cost less to serve, spend more, and advocate harder. And yet, many retailers across APAC still invest more in attracting new customers than in keeping the ones they’ve already earned.
At TLC, we help brands shift that balance by using personalised, emotionally resonant campaigns that turn occasional shoppers into loyalists, and loyalists into lifetime value. Our strategies don’t just retain customers - they amplify their value.
Why This Matters:
If you could nearly double your profits by keeping just 5% more customers, wouldn’t you act on it? This stat puts a number on what loyalty really means to your bottom line. With the right reward strategy in place, retention isn’t a back-end metric, it’s your most cost-effective growth engine.
Forget the myth that customers won’t share data. 90% say they’re willing to share behavioural info - if it improves their experience or saves them money.
That’s a massive green light for retailers. The challenge isn’t privacy, it’s showing customers the value they get in return. When shoppers feel like their data leads to better rewards, smarter offers, or more relevant experiences, they’re not just compliant, they’re willing participants.
At TLC, we help brands turn that trust into tangible outcomes. Our campaigns use zero and first-party data to serve shoppers personalised, emotionally resonant rewards. Because when the value exchange feels fair and the data is used to provide more relevant benefits, customers will lean in.
Why This Matters:
Data isn’t the problem. Relevance is. If 9 in 10 customers are willing to share, yet you're still struggling with insight gaps, perhaps it’s time to rethink how you’re using (and communicating) personalisation. With the right strategy in place, behavioural data becomes the fuel for relevant personalisation, deeper engagement, stronger loyalty, and more efficient marketing.
Almost two-thirds of customers say their loyalty hinges on how the brand makes them feel, not just what it sells. Product and price might win the basket, but experience is what keeps them coming back.
And it’s not about gimmicks or freebies. It’s about relevance. Recognition. Seamless journeys that feel personal - across digital, in-store, and beyond.
At TLC, we help brands design incentive-led campaigns that elevate the entire customer experience - so that from first click to repeat purchase, every interaction builds value and affinity. It’s experience that feels effortless, but works hard for your brand.
Why This Matters:
Loyalty isn’t just earned through points and certainly not through discounts - it’s built through more authentic, emotionally engaging moments. This stat is a clear reminder: if your customer journey feels forgettable, loyalty will be too. But when your experiences are personalised, meaningful and brand-aligned? That’s when you shift from one-time transactions to long-term relationships.
Brands that focus on personalised experiences see, on average, a 46% increase in customer spending. Not because they push harder, but because they connect better.
When the experience feels tailored - when the offers, rewards and messaging reflect what customers about - they are much more likely to buy. Frequency goes up. Baskets get bigger. And customers feel like more than a transaction.
At TLC, we turn that insight into action, designing emotionally-driven, high-perceived-value rewards that give customers a reason to come back and spend more. All personalised, all scalable, all built to grow value without eroding margin.
If nearly half your revenue growth could come from getting closer to the customers you already have… why wouldn’t you start there? Here’s the shift in mindset: personalisation isn’t just a retention play, it’s a revenue engine. For retail marketers under pressure to deliver more with less, this is the performance lever worth pulling.