Retail

How a Warehouse Club Gave Members Back 9,000+ Hours a Quarter by Turning Optical Waits Into Shopping

A leading membership warehouse retailer rolled Frontlion's in-person service platform out across the optical centers in its clubs nationwide, letting members check in by phone and shop the floor while they wait. In a recent quarter the platform engaged more than 90,000 members, converted 9,161 hours of waiting into shopping time, and held abandonment to 1.4%.

  • +9K

    Member wait hours converted to shopping

  • 77%

    Positive service outcomes

  • 599

    Members recovered after abandoning

  • 19%

    Lift in member shopping time and basket value

What Leaders Say

Before the platform, I would see a line and ask, 'Who's next?' and every member would claim they were first. The platform helps me keep my patients organized and streamline their visit.

Optical Associate, A Leading Membership Warehouse Retailer

Who They Are

Customer Snapshot

A leading membership warehouse retailer operating one of North America’s largest membership club chains — with an in-club Optical Center in each location. Optical is a high-touch, appointment-and-walk-in service: members arrive for eye exams, fittings, eyewear pickup, and repairs. Because the optical center sits inside a full warehouse club, a member waiting for service is steps away from a floor full of merchandise.

Members/Month ~30,000/month
Abandonment Rate 1.4%
Pilot Results 19% shopping-time & basket lift
Recommendations Served 278,442 per quarter

The Problem

The Challenge

In many clubs, members entered their information by hand or stood in a physical line with no view of how long they would wait. One optician described the peak-hour reality as being ready to hand people sticky notes with their place in line. That opaque line cost the retailer twice — it made a high-touch service feel disorganized, and it tied members to a spot on the floor when they could have been shopping the club.

  • Members standing in a physical line — unable to browse the club floor while they waited
  • No standardized check-in experience across clubs — varied location by location
  • No automated recovery of members who left before being served
  • No instrumented view of service outcomes, abandonment, or basket impact club-by-club

The Decision

Why Frontlion?

The retailer validated the platform in a controlled pilot before committing nationally, seeking a partner that could stand up a consistent optical experience in every club and measure the results. Three factors drove the decision: a single configurable experience deployable everywhere, in-wait service-specific recommendations, and full instrumentation to measure basket value, abandonment, recovery, and outcomes.

Shop While You Wait

Members check in by QR code, then shop the floor — returning when it's nearly their turn, often with full carts.

In-Wait Recommendations

278,442 service-specific, branded recommendations served per quarter while members wait on the club floor.

Automated Recovery

When a member leaves before being served, the platform drives automated follow-up to re-engage them — 599 recovered in a recent quarter.

Full Instrumentation

Every visit, outcome, abandonment, and basket impact captured club-by-club — leadership has a measured view across the network.

How It Works

The Solution

Frontlion deployed its in-person service platform across the retailer’s optical centers — giving every club the same modern member experience and giving the program team one instrumented operating model.

Deployment

How the Rollout Worked

1

11-Club Pilot (10 Weeks)

2

Proof Validated

3

National Rollout

Impact

Operational Challenges Solved & Results

In a recent quarter the platform engaged more than 90,000 members, converted 9,161 hours of waiting into shopping time, delivered 77% positive service outcomes at 1.4% abandonment, recovered 599 members who had abandoned, and served 278,442 in-wait recommendations. The pilot that led to the national rollout lifted member shopping time and basket value 19%.

9,161 hrs/quarter

Wait Hours Converted to Shopping

9,161 hours of dead waiting time converted to active shopping on the club floor in a recent quarter.

77%

Positive Service Outcomes

77% of service interactions ended in a positive outcome — 70% of sales-related visits completed a sale.

1.4%

Abandonment Rate

Abandonment held to just 1.4% — the lowest in the optical category.

599

Members Recovered

599 members who left before being served were re-engaged through automated follow-up.

19%

Pilot Basket Lift

Pilot lifted member shopping time and basket value 19% — $30.67 average basket increase — proving the model before national rollout.