Case Study: Geartrade

GEARTRADE x FLD

Great marketing doesn’t just solve external problems—it speaks to the internal struggles customers face. People don’t just want gear that works; they want to feel confident, align their shopping habits with their values, and connect to something bigger than themselves, like adventure and sustainability.

But how do you overcome the stigma of used gear? How do you make buying secondhand as satisfying as buying something new? How do you inspire people to pass on the gear they no longer need? And how do you align marketing and finance so every decision drives both impact and profit?

At Geartrade, these weren’t just challenges—they were opportunities. Geartrade turned to FLD to help.

HOW WE DID IT:

Overview

Geartrade leads the outdoor re-commerce space, making it easier for adventurers to buy and sell secondhand gear while promoting sustainability. Despite their strong foundation, the company faced unique challenges: balancing the need to sell gear while encouraging consignments, addressing the stigma of used gear, and navigating the tight margins of sustainable businesses. Additionally, a lack of alignment between marketing, finance, and channel teams created hurdles in connecting campaign results to financial outcomes. Geartrade partnered with Fall Line Digital (FLD) to bridge these gaps, optimize performance, and drive profitable growth.

The Challenge

Dual Business Model: Geartrade needed to grow two sides of their business simultaneously—selling gear and getting more people to list and consign gear.
Stigma of Used Gear: Convincing new customers of the value and quality of secondhand gear was a constant hurdle.
Sustainability vs. Profitability: Tight margins made it challenging to grow sustainably without sacrificing profitability.
Misaligned Teams: Marketing, finance, and channel managers for email, Google, and Meta were operating in silos, making it hard to execute cohesive campaigns and track performance.

The Solution

Creating Alignment

Developed a unified strategy to ensure marketing, finance, and channels were working toward shared goals.
Focused on aligning growth forecasting and planning to bridge the gap between campaign results and financial outcomes.

2. Strategic Growth Planning

Collaborated with Geartrade’s leadership to create actionable plans that balanced revenue growth with margin optimization.
Introduced tools and processes for accurate growth forecasting, ensuring campaigns supported long-term profitability.

3. Overhauling Email & SMS Marketing

Email Revamp: Redefined email design and messaging to reflect Geartrade’s brand values and resonate with its audience.
Increased Campaign Volume: Particularly in Q4, we launched more targeted campaigns to capitalize on seasonal demand.
SMS Program Launch: Established an SMS channel to directly engage customers and boost conversions, unlocking a new high-ROI avenue.

4. Paid Ads Performance

Meta Viral Video Creatives: Partnered with top creators to produce engaging, relatable video ads that resonated deeply with audiences.
Meta Product Carousels: Leveraged carousel ads to retarget existing customers and attract new ones effectively.
Google Shopping: Fully optimized product feeds and organized campaigns by price tiers, making this the most profitable channel.
Non-Brand Search Campaigns: Successfully launched campaigns to acquire new customers beyond branded searches.
Omni-Channel Impact: Aligned Meta ads, emails, and Google discount codes during sales to maximize impact across all platforms.