Torrid reactivates 40% of lapsed customers using direct mail and mall pop-ups, not Meta ads

Torrid, the plus-size women's apparel chain, disclosed in its Q1 2025 earnings call that it reactivated approximately 40% of lapsed customers through a campaign combining direct mail and temporary mall pop-ups, according to Retail Dive. The brand explicitly shifted budget away from digital acquisition channels—Facebook and Instagram ads—to test physical reactivation tactics in markets where it had closed stores.

The mechanics were straightforward. Torrid mailed postcards featuring a specific discount code to customers who had not purchased in twelve months or longer. The postcards directed recipients to either shop online or visit a newly opened pop-up kiosk in a nearby mall. The pop-ups occupied small, low-rent footprints in common areas rather than full storefronts. Staff at the kiosks could look up customer accounts, process returns, and handle sizing questions—all friction points that historically prevented lapsed customers from re-engaging online. The brand ran the test across six markets and measured conversion within sixty days.

The campaign worked because it solved two problems simultaneously. First, direct mail bypassed the rising cost and declining efficacy of paid social. Torrid's CFO noted that customer acquisition cost on Meta had climbed 63% year-over-year, while mail response rates for lapsed customers came in below three dollars per reactivation when including postage, print, and the pop-up lease. Second, the physical presence removed the friction of fit uncertainty. Plus-size shoppers disproportionately abandon carts due to sizing inconsistency across brands. A kiosk visit allowed customers to touch fabric, confirm sizing with staff familiar with the line, and return items without shipping hassle. The combination of a mailed prompt and a low-commitment physical touchpoint converted customers who had stopped opening email and stopped clicking ads.

A small physical-product brand can run the same play without a mall lease. Start with a segmented list: export customers who have not purchased in nine to twelve months. Mail a postcard—4x6, full color, printed via Printful or Lulu Direct for under sixty cents per unit including postage—offering a specific dollar-off code and a date-bound event. The event does not need to be a kiosk. Host a two-hour pop-in at a coworking space, a rented conference room at a library, or a corner table at a local market. Promote the event on the postcard and via one SMS to the same list. Staff the event yourself or with one assistant. Bring inventory, a Square reader, and a sizing chart. The goal is not volume; it is reactivation. If ten lapsed customers show up and five buy, you have reactivated five accounts at a blended cost of roughly twelve dollars each—postage, print, space rental, and your time. Track those customers for ninety days. Torrid reported that reactivated customers purchased again within that window at a rate 22% higher than first-time buyers, because they already understood the product and fit.

The broader pattern is that physical tactics are under-priced relative to digital for reactivation, especially when your product has tactile or fit considerations. Mail and in-person events feel slower, but the unit economics often beat paid social for dormant segments. Test small, measure hard, and scale only the markets where the pop-in or postcard pulls a second purchase.