Over two years, alternative fashion retailer Beserk.com.au went from good to exceptional, pulling in $20 million in revenue while maintaining a 20x+ return on ad spend. Here’s how we did it.
About Beserk
Beserk is Australia’s go-to online store for alternative fashion, streetwear, and pop culture merch. Think gothic, punk, kawaii, and everything in between. They’ve built a loyal following among people who want their style to actually mean something.
Where We Started
When we kicked things off, Beserk was dealing with the usual ecommerce headaches:
- Ad costs were climbing across the board
- Competition was fierce from both Aussie brands and international players
- Customer acquisition was getting expensive fast
- Tracking what actually worked was getting messier by the day
- Sales would spike and drop with the seasons, making planning tough
The Game Plan
We focused on three main things:
1. Really Understanding the Audience
We went way deeper than “18-35 year old females interested in fashion.” We looked at:
- What subcultures people identified with and how they expressed themselves
- How people actually shopped (browsers vs. buyers, impulse vs. planned purchases)
- Where people were in their journey with the brand
- Building lookalike audiences based on the best customers, not just any customers
2. Hitting Every Stage of the Funnel
Instead of just chasing conversions, we built out the whole journey:
- Got the brand in front of new people through content and influencer partnerships
- Helped people discover products through styling content and new arrivals
- Converted browsers with precise retargeting and product ads
- Kept customers coming back with loyalty programs and exclusive drops
3. Testing Everything
We tested constantly and let the data tell us what worked:
- Multiple versions of ads, landing pages, and offers running at once
- Actual lift studies to see what was really moving the needle
- Attribution modeling to understand how channels worked together
- Predictive models to know when to push hard and when to pull back
What We Actually Did
Paid Advertising
Meta (Facebook & Instagram)
Instagram was huge for us. The visual nature of the platform was perfect for showcasing the aesthetic. We ran dynamic ads that showed people exactly what they’d been looking at, built custom audiences based on site behavior, and planned campaigns around key dates in alternative culture (not just Black Friday).
Shopping campaigns were optimized down to the product level. We protected branded searches aggressively (because competitors were bidding on Beserk’s name), expanded into non-brand keywords around specific styles, and used YouTube for bigger storytelling moments.
The Numbers:
- Meta: 22x ROAS on average
- Google Shopping: 18x ROAS
- Google Search: 25x ROAS
Creative That Actually Worked
The alternative fashion crowd can smell fake from a mile away, so we kept it real:
- Encouraged customers to share their own photos and featured them
- Worked with micro-influencers who were already part of these communities
- Shot lifestyle content that showed products in real contexts, not just white backgrounds
- Created styling videos and behind-the-scenes content
- Refreshed ads 3-5 times per week to avoid fatigue
Making the Site Convert
We improved the site experience significantly:
- Rebuilt the mobile experience from scratch (mobile conversion rate jumped 47%)
- Added one-click checkout options (cart abandonment dropped 31%)
- Fixed the size guides to actually be helpful (returns down 23%)
- Built better product recommendations (average order value up 28%)
- Added reviews and real-time purchase notifications
Email & SMS
These channels printed money once we got them right:
- Smart automated flows for abandoned carts, post-purchase, and win-back
- SMS for time-sensitive drops and flash sales
- VIP program giving loyal customers first access to new stuff
- Regular campaigns to lapsed customers with targeted incentives
Content & SEO
We built long-term organic traffic through:
- Style guides and lookbooks that ranked for informational searches
- Blog content covering trends and subcultures
- Technical SEO cleanup and optimization
- Link building through media coverage and collaborations
The Results
Revenue
- Total Over 2 Years: $20,000,000
- Year 1: $7.2M
- Year 2: $12.8M
- Growth Rate: 78% year-over-year
Ad Performance
- Overall ROAS: 20.4x
- Monthly Ad Spend: ~$40,000
- Cost Per Acquisition: Down 85%
- Customer Lifetime Value: Up 142%
Other Wins
- Conversion Rate: From 1.8% to 4.6% (156% increase)
- Average Order Value: From $87 to $111 (28% bump)
- Repeat Purchase Rate: Up 63%
- Email Revenue: 32% of total sales
- Organic Traffic: Up 234%
Scale
- 180,000+ orders fulfilled
- 95,000+ new customers acquired
- Email list grew 220%
- Social following up 340%
Why It Worked
We Treated It Like a Community, Not Just a Store
Alternative fashion is about identity. People aren’t just buying clothes, they’re expressing who they are. We leaned into that instead of fighting it.
We Moved Fast
We ran over 200 A/B tests in two years. When something worked, we scaled it immediately. When it didn’t, we killed it and moved on.
Everything Worked Together
We didn’t just optimize Facebook in a vacuum. Every channel informed the others, and campaigns were coordinated to tell a consistent story.
We Built Proper Analytics
You can’t optimize what you can’t measure. We invested in tracking and attribution that gave us confidence in our decisions.
Creative Quality Mattered
In a visual category like fashion, mediocre creative doesn’t cut it. We invested in photography, video, and design that matched the quality of the products.
Problems We Solved
iOS 14.5 Wrecked Facebook Tracking
When Apple killed a bunch of tracking capabilities:
- We implemented Conversions API for better data
- Shifted to broader targeting with better creative
- Built out attribution beyond last-click Facebook conversions
More Competition
As more brands entered the space:
- Doubled down on what made Beserk unique
- Got exclusive partnerships with brands
- Made customer service a competitive advantage
What We Learned
Brand investment pays off in performance. The more we invested in brand awareness and community building, the better our direct response campaigns performed.
Retention is where the real money is. Focusing on lifetime value instead of just acquisition created compound growth effects.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Diversifying channels protected us when platforms changed their algorithms or policies.
Community creates a moat. You can copy products and prices, but you can’t fake authentic community connections.
Speed wins. The faster you can test, learn, and scale, the bigger your advantage.
What’s Next
We’re building on this momentum with:
- Expansion into US and UK markets
- Private label products exclusive to Beserk
- Pop-up events and IRL community experiences
- AI-powered personalization
- A network of content creators
The Takeaway
Hitting $20M at 20x+ ROAS wasn’t about one magic tactic. It came from understanding the audience deeply, building a complete marketing system, and optimizing relentlessly.
The alternative fashion community in Australia wanted a brand that got them. We helped Beserk become that brand, and the growth followed.
The real lesson? Sustainable growth comes from knowing your customers, giving them real value, and constantly improving based on what the data tells you. No shortcuts, just smart work.
Want to scale your ecommerce brand? Let’s talk about what’s possible when you combine strategy with execution.
