Beyond ROAS: category economics in fashion, beauty and furniture
Adjust automated acquisition targets for apparel returns, beauty repurchase behaviour and furniture fulfilment costs.
Short answer
A shared ROAS target can conceal very different economics. Fashion needs refund-adjusted contribution; beauty requires evidence about repeat purchase; furniture needs careful treatment of delivery, damage and lead times. Use observed category and product economics to set acquisition limits rather than assuming revenue efficiency means the same thing everywhere.
Key takeaways
- Measure returns from your own product cohorts.
- Treat repeat purchase as evidence to validate, not a promise.
- Include category-specific fulfilment costs in contribution.
Fashion: measure the revenue retained
Returns can materially change the economics of an apparel campaign. The size of that effect varies by product, customer and market; a generic industry return rate is not a reliable substitute for the brand's own data. Include refunds and relevant handling costs when assessing contribution.
Beauty: distinguish acquisition from lifetime value
A first order that breaks even may create value when the customer repurchases reliably. Discovery sets, full-size products and gift orders can lead to different repeat patterns. Build targets from observed cohorts and acceptable payback periods rather than assuming every beauty customer becomes a repeat buyer.
Furniture: high order value is not high profit
Bulky shipping, damage claims, service requirements and made-to-order funding can substantially reduce the contribution of a large order. Product-group economics should influence what automation is asked to prioritise.
- Compare refund-adjusted contribution by product group.
- Set realistic customer acquisition and payback targets.
- Review high-margin bundles and lower-return products.
- Check inventory funding and fulfilment capacity before scaling.
FAQ
Can fashion, beauty and furniture use the same ROAS target?
Only if their underlying economics genuinely justify it. Returns, margin, repeat purchase and fulfilment costs typically differ. A shared ratio should be the result of a commercial calculation, not the starting assumption.
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