Building a Brand from Scratch for Lilly’s Pink Cottage

Case Study

Building a Brand from Scratch for Lilly’s Pink Cottage

Client Overview

Lilly’s Pink Cottage is a Lilly Pulitzer Signature Store located in Perrysburg, Ohio. As a brand-new store with no prior online presence or brand recognition, Lilly’s Pink Cottage faced the unique challenge of building its digital marketing infrastructure and establishing itself within the competitive Lilly Pulitzer community across the United States.

The Challenge

Starting from ground zero: The client had no live website, marketing infrastructure, or established brand awareness.

Lack of brand equity: As a new entrant, the store was unknown within the Lilly Pulitzer community.

Aggressive revenue targets: The store needed to quickly generate sales to meet stretch goals in online revenue, and helped them consistently exceed online revenue by 10%+ and as high as 250%+ in certain months.

Coordination for frequent product drops: Lilly Pulitzer’s schedule of biweekly product launches required a robust workflow to manage campaigns, collections, and promotions effectively.

The Solution

Forest City Digital developed a comprehensive marketing strategy, focusing on foundational infrastructure, rapid brand awareness growth, and conversion optimization:

Implemented Klaviyo for email marketing, including building foundational email flows and a phased rollout of SMS marketing.
Integrated Google Ads, Meta Ads, and pixels to track performance and optimize campaigns.
Conducted a deep SEO audit, implementing on-page corrections pre-launch to ensure organic search readiness.
Configured apps like Rise AI for gift cards, loyalty programs, and referrals; Gorgias for customer service; and AI-powered search and discovery tools.

Paid Media and Organic Social

Launched Google Ads and paid social campaigns to drive awareness and traffic.
Managed organic social media to foster community engagement and provide consistent brand visibility.

Content and Campaign Coordination

Developed workflows for Lilly Pulitzer’s frequent product drops, coordinating email campaigns, ad launches, and organic social posts to maximize impact.
Consulted on technology stack to streamline workflows for shipping insurance, return automation, and affiliate programs.

Local and Community Marketing

Focused on local SEO, directory management, and reputation management to attract nearby customers.
Promoted the brand in private Facebook groups to drive local engagement and loyalty.

Results

How We’ve Helped The Pink Cottage Grow Online Revenue

17k+

Consistently driving 17,000+ sessions per month.

10k+

Grew subscribers to over 10,000 profiles.

Performance

2.8%

Order conversion rate

ROAS across all ad platforms for 2024.

Well-Rounded Approach to Marketing

Strong Infrastructure: Built a solid marketing foundation, enabling smooth coordination of frequent product launches.

Enhanced Local Presence: Leveraged local SEO and community engagement to drive foot traffic and online sales.

Key Takeaways

Forest City Digital’s ability to establish a full marketing infrastructure from scratch enabled Lilly’s Pink Cottage to exceed its initial stretch goals.
Strategic planning for biweekly product launches created a reliable workflow to sustain momentum and sales growth.
A combination of local and digital marketing tactics positioned the store for long-term success heading into its second year of business.

Forest City Digital gave us the tools and strategy we needed to hit the ground running. From building our marketing foundation to helping us navigate biweekly launches, they’ve been an invaluable partner in growing our brand.

Store Owner