Case study

How Mokko reopened a forgotten customer list and reached a 45% open rate, without discounts

A Romanian handmade brand had over 1,500 customers who had already bought, but received no emails. In 3 months the list came back to life with opens over 2x the ecommerce average, without permanent discounts.

Updated: July 2026

The results in short

These results are real, from a DeviDevs Agency project with Mokko, a Romanian handmade-accessories online store (WooCommerce). The figures come from the platform and the store, published with the client's consent. We do not present invented results, results vary from store to store.

The challenge

A list of real customers, built over years, that received nothing

Mokko had what most online stores have: a list of over 1,500 real customers, gathered over years of sales, that received nothing after the first order. A strong emotional brand on Instagram and on the site, but complete silence in the inbox. Perfect seasonality, Valentine's, Martisor, Mother's Day, Christmas, left unmonetised through email. The cheapest source of sales was sitting untouched.

What we did

We brought the customer list back to life, step by step

Import and segmentation

We cleaned and imported the existing customer list into the email marketing platform, segmented in batches for a controlled warm-up.

Authentication and deliverability

We set up sending on the brand's own domain (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), with a controlled warm-up for a clean reputation.

Automated flows

We activated Welcome for existing customers, Welcome for new subscribers, and abandoned-cart recovery.

Results

Opens over twice the ecommerce average

45% open rate on reactivation

We reopened a list of over 1,500 existing customers who received no emails. The first reactivation campaign hit a 45% open rate, over double the ecommerce average.

Story opens, offer clicks

Same list, same week: the brand-story campaign got 46.3% opens and 3.4% clicks, the 30%-discount one got 38.0% opens and 4.2% clicks. The list responds to voice, not just to discounts.

Over 6,500 RON tracked

Over the tracked period, 43% of the store's orders used a code promoted via email. Average open rate 44.6% across 10,131 emails sent, bounce 1.3%, under 5% unsubscribes.

Real figures from a DeviDevs Agency project, published with the client's consent. We do not present invented results; results vary by store.

Why it worked

Story opens, offer clicks

Same list, same week: a personal story got 46.3% opens and 3.4% clicks, a 30% discount got 38.0% opens and 4.2% clicks. The story opened more emails, the offer brought more clicks. For a handmade brand that means a list that responds to voice, not one trained to wait for discounts: opens stayed consistently above 44% for 3 months, and discounts remain for strategic moments. In June, the summer collection launch combined both: 48.6% opens and 7.6% clicks, the best results of all months.

Frequently asked questions

Are the case study results real?+

Yes. These are real figures from a DeviDevs Agency project with Mokko, a Romanian handmade-accessories online store (WooCommerce), published with the client's consent. The first reactivation campaign had a 45% open rate on a list of over 1,500 customers.

What did the project include?+

Import and segmentation of the existing list, sending-domain authentication for deliverability (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) with a controlled warm-up, plus automated flows: Welcome for existing customers, Welcome for new subscribers, and abandoned-cart recovery.

Why did the story campaign open better than the discount one?+

Same list, same week: the brand-story campaign got 46.3% opens and 3.4% clicks, the 30%-discount one got 38.0% opens and 4.2% clicks. Story opens, offer clicks. Over the measured period, 43% of orders used a code promoted via email, over 6,500 RON tracked directly.

Do you have a customer list sitting silent?

If you run an online store with customers who already bought, you have the cheapest source of sales sitting untouched. A free audit shows you exactly how much you can recover.