Parker Thatch
October
2026
Since our last deck, three tests went live: the buy box, the collections grid and the cart cross-sell. October works on two moments: the product page, where shoppers decide, and the first visit, where they decide whether to join your list. We show size instead of describing it, and we test a better reason to sign up. Two primary tests and two ready spares, all mobile-first.
Two primary tests, two ready spares
The primaries go where the money is: the product page and the first order. The alternates are worked up and ready to swap in.
Primary tests
2 conceptsRecommended to launch firstKnow What You’re Getting
Size is the question shoppers ask most. The answer is already on the page in words, and the questions keep coming. This test shows size instead of describing it, in three different ways, so the results tell us which way answers the question best.
| Signal | Source | Supporting data |
|---|---|---|
| Size is the question shoppers ask most. | Our call, Aug 26, 2026 | Matt says 80% of the questions customer service gets are “can we see it on body” and “what is it relative to size.” Shoppers ask before they buy: “most customers can’t even picture what 30 by 40 looks like.” |
| The words are already there, and they are not enough. | parkerthatch.com, Oct 1, 2026 + our call | 43 of 54 bag pages carry a “Fits” line, and the Daily Bag shows its size open by default. Stephanie: “they don’t read in the description.” |
| Almost no other bag brand shows size visually. | Review of 11 bag brands, Oct 1, 2026 | All 11 describe size in words. Only 2 show the model’s height, 2 a size comparison and 2 what fits inside. |
| Gift buyers cannot check fit in person. | Shopify, 6,040 orders, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | 31% of orders ship to a different address than billing, and those orders average $710 vs $649. |
Variation 1 answers both size questions in the photo gallery. Variation 2 answers them in a Fit guide. Variation 3 does both, so we learn which works best and whether they add up. We run all three against today’s page for about four weeks.
- Variation 1 · Size in the galleryThe first on-body photo gets one short line with the model’s height and the strap drop, and the next photo shows the bag open with the everyday things it holds.
- Variation 2 · Fit guideA quiet “Fit guide” link above Add to Cart opens one clean card: the bag on the body, the model’s height and strap drop, what fits inside, and the dimensions. The gallery stays as it is today.
- Variation 3 · BothThe gallery changes from Variation 1 and the Fit guide from Variation 2, together.
Concept sketches only. Final design will differ. Heights and measurements shown are examples.
Email Capture Popup Offer
Your email popup offers free ground shipping on a first order over $250. Most first orders are already over $500, where shipping is free anyway, so for them the offer adds nothing. This test gives every new shopper a real reason to join your list, and tells us which reason works best: a gift or a discount.
| Signal | Source | Supporting data |
|---|---|---|
| The current offer helps about 1 in 10 first orders. | Shopify, first orders, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | 69% of first orders are already $500 or more. Only 10% fall in the $250 to $499 band where the offer saves money. |
| Most new buyers never join your list. | Shopify, 60 days + intro call, Aug 3, 2026 | 61% of first-time buyers never opted in to email. At a cost to acquire “north of 300,” each one is worth keeping. |
| First orders are your biggest. | Shopify, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | The average first order is $718. |
| A strap is the add-on your buyers already choose. | Shopify, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | The typical accessory costs $128, and orders that include one average $225 more. |
Same popup, same moment, same design. The headline now names the offer, and every sign-up gets a one-use code that applies itself through the popup’s button.
- Variation 1 · A strap on us with your first bagShoppers who sign up pick a strap from a short set you choose, right in the cart, and it is free with their first bag.
- Variation 2 · 10% off your first orderA one-use code for 10% off the first order.
Concept sketches only. Final design will differ. The strap set is yours to pick.
Ready alternates
2 conceptsWorked up, ready to swap inClose the Checkout Leak
Shoppers who leave checkout are not just browsing. Almost all of them have typed an address and picked shipping, then stopped at the last step, often with a $700+ bag in the basket. Nothing on that step tells them why Parker Thatch is safe to buy from. This test puts your strongest promises and your customers’ own words right above Pay now.
| Signal | Source | Supporting data |
|---|---|---|
| Most of the money leaves at the last step. | Shopify, abandoned checkouts, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | 95% of 2,059 abandoned checkouts had an address and shipping chosen, worth $1.53M. |
| It is a big number every month. | Shopify, Sep 1 to 30, 2026 | $822K sat in abandoned checkouts in September. |
| Big baskets leave more often. | Shopify, 60 days to Sep 30, 2026 | 52% of abandoned checkouts are $700 or more, vs 44% of completed orders. |
| Nothing at checkout reassures a $700 purchase. | Checkout review, Aug 2026 | Checkout shows payment options, delivery and a strap upsell. It shows no promises and no reviews. |
Each variation adds one block right above Pay now. Nothing else in checkout changes.
- Variation 1 · Our promises365-day repair guarantee, designed in the USA, free ground shipping over $500.
- Variation 2 · Customer reviewsYour star rating and two short quotes from your on-site reviews.
- Variation 3 · BothThe promises and the reviews together.
Concept sketches only. Final design will differ. The payment step is drawn from standard Shopify checkout. Quotes shown are from your customers; the final quotes come from your on-site reviews.
Sold Out Before
Your best bags really do sell out, and your most loyal customers know it. Today the product page never says so. Instead of a stock count that fans test and call out, this adds one quiet, true line: how often the bag has sold out before. A real fact about the brand becomes a reason to decide now, with no countdown and no numbers to game.
| Signal | Source | Supporting data |
|---|---|---|
| Your hero bags really do sell out. | Our call, Aug 26, 2026 | Matt: “the jack in the hairs, they constantly sell out,” with the Daily Bag Leopard named as another. |
| Your #1 bag is on pre-order right now. | parkerthatch.com, Oct 1, 2026 + Shopify, 60 days | The Daily Bag Leopard earned 8.0% of revenue in the last 60 days, and today it shows Pre-order, shipping from Oct 15. |
| Your team has done this by hand before. | Our call, Aug 26, 2026 | “we’ve had to manually do it on some of the items where we’ll say this thing’s been sold out many times.” |
| Stock numbers backfire with your fans. | Our call, Aug 26, 2026 | Fans add stock to their cart to test counts and post about it, so “only N left” is out. “Sold out three times last year” was the framing your team liked. |
The line appears only on bags with a real sell-out history, and every count is true.
- Variation · Sell-out historyOne quiet line under the price: “Sold out 3 times this year.” No badge, no timer, no stock count.
Concept sketches only. Final design will differ. “3 times” is an example count.
What the numbers say
From your Shopify orders (60 days to Sep 30, 2026), test results, your team calls and a review of 11 bag brands. These shaped every concept.
What September’s buy box test taught us
The version that added a strip of three trust claims under the buy button lost to today’s page on revenue per visitor and add-to-cart, and fewer shoppers clicked Drop A Hint. The lesson: at the moment of decision, show, don’t claim, and only make promises that are strong. The size test shows size instead of claiming it. The checkout test uses only the promises that read as strong, and leaves out the return window.
The collections test and the cart cross-sell are still running. We will share both reads when they reach their planned end.
How other bag brands show size
We reviewed the product pages of 11 bag brands. Every one describes size in words. Few show it. Two show the model’s height, two show a size comparison, and two show what fits inside. Lyons is the only one that does all three.
Highlighted: brands that show size visually in at least one way.
Sources
Shopify Admin API: 6,040 orders and 2,099 abandoned checkouts (60 days, Aug 1 to Sep 30, 2026), 263-product catalog. Intelligems test results (from Aug 24, 2026). Your team Slack channel (to Sep 30, 2026). Intro call (Aug 3, 2026), kickoff call (Aug 11, 2026) and concept call (Aug 26, 2026). Post-purchase survey (Fairing), with responses through Dec 15, 2025. Public reviews (Yelp, 54). Live site and email popup reviewed Oct 1, 2026. Product pages of 11 bag brands reviewed Oct 1, 2026. GA4 is pending an access grant, so session-level funnel data is not yet included.
